The Blind Side
Grace Dent follows 21-year-old footballer Brandon Coleman, who is hoping to get his first cap for England's blind team.
Grace Dent follows 21-year-old footballer Brandon Coleman, who is hoping to get his first cap for England.
Brandon is a typical 21-year-old. He's good looking, says "like" a lot, and takes a great interest in girls, and drum and bass music. Then there's football. He loves football. Not just watching, but playing too. His coaches say he's a "freak". They've never seen anyone train as hard as him before. Grace Dent follows him in the run up to England's match against France in May - will Brandon make the grade?
It's been a long road for Brandon to get here. Four years ago, aged 17, he was in and out of work, and getting into trouble. Then, suddenly, his eye sight began to deteriorate. Six weeks later, he was blind. After trying to pretend his situation wasn't real, he eventually enrolled at the Royal National College for the Blind in Hereford, where he learnt to play football. Just eighteen months later, he's been training with England's blind football team, and if he can make the grade, he'll be getting his first cap for England.
The team suffered a bitter defeat at the euros on their home turf last year - depriving them of a place in this year's paralympics. Brandon's first match will also be the team's first game together since then. England manager, Jonathan Pugh, has to pull the team back together again - and Brandon is part of the plan.
Producer: Polly Weston.
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- Mon 20 Jun 2016 11:00麻豆社 Radio 4
- Tue 27 Sep 2016 23:30麻豆社 Radio 4
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Gripping real-life stories of 21st-century Britain that you won't hear anywhere else.
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Hand-drawn illustrations by Niki Pilkington
The Best of The Untold
Gripping real-life stories you won't hear anywhere else.
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The Untold
A series documenting the untold dramas of 21st-century Britain.