Our Lives

Jonny Cotsen is an actor and a father of two children, and he's deaf. Though he was born deaf, he was made to adapt to be part of the hearing world, and this hasn't always been easy. This is his story as he tries to understand the life-changing decisions his mother took when he was a child, and what it means to live in two different worlds.

As a child, he was given analogue hearing aids, learned to lip-read and was taught to speak, which has left him traumatised. He had no deaf role models and no deaf identity, and he didn't even learn sign language. Now he wants to understand why his mum made the life-changing decision to raise him as if he was hearing. What was she thinking at the time, and what were the experts telling her?

Northern Ireland has produced some of the world's most famous racers, who have inspired a new generation of boys and girls who are revving at the grid and hoping to follow in their footsteps. This fast-paced documentary immerses viewers in the lives of the children who dream of becoming the next generation of motorcycle stars - and the families who juggle nerves and excitement as they support these young riders.

Featuring children aged between six and fourteen racing at speeds of up to 135mph, this action-packed film gives a personal insight into a sporting culture that is unique to Northern Ireland.

At the centre of the action is eight-year-old Max, son of racing superstar Paul Robinson who is one of Ireland's most decorated racers. Max takes part in the Bam Bam class for children aged between six and ten. His determination on the track and fearless attitude has meant that, despite his age, some people are already comparing him to his grand-uncle, the legendary Joey Dunlop. Could this be our first glimpse of a future racing superstar?

Standing in Max's way is nine-year-old Paige from County Tyrone, who is part of a new wave of girls who want to be involved in the sport. Softly spoken Paige is determined to beat her male rivals and follow in the footsteps of her eleven-year-old brother Lewis, who has overcome disappointment to be picked for a top UK team and is tipped for future stardom.

Also featured is rising star Peter from County Antrim. During filming, he had his first major accident while racing, and we follow his recovery and return to the track. Aged just thirteen, he races in the British Talent Cup and hopes one day to race at the highest level. The summer of 2021 saw a number of tragedies in Spain, in which two teenagers lost their lives while racing, and our families discuss the dangers of the sport they love and the unthinkable consequences of an accident.

Heart-warming and insightful, Speed Kids takes viewers into a world where children and their families experience an emotional roller-coaster as they pursue the sport they love. 

Thirty-three-year-old Tom Butler is a big wave surfer. For the last ten years, he has ridden some of the largest waves in the world, but he has been ignoring what's in his backyard, off Cornwall's wild north coast. There are legends of monster waves, and now Tom is spending the winter searching for them. A deadly reef two miles off St Ives, known as The Stones, could deliver him ‘the ultimate Cornish monster wave', but he needs wind and weather conditions to perfectly align.

The film is a beautiful celebration of Cornwall, its wild weather and extraordinary waves, and a window on to Tom's determination and passion for Cornwall and the sea.

The Queen Charlotte's Ball is the most prestigious debutante ball in the world and the pinnacle of the London season. For centuries, it's been a rite of passage for the privileged daughters of the British aristocracy.

But in recent times, the London season has been fighting for its future. Now it's opening its doors and accepting debutantes from unlikely backgrounds, making this a dream come true for Jasleen from Cardiff, the first debutante of Indian heritage in its 250 year old history.

Will Jasleen be able to pass off as a princess - and can the London season really change?

Chloe O'Brien is an 18-year-old from Perthshire, and darts is her life. She was a serial winner as a junior, but can she cope with the highs and lows of life in the adult ranks? This film follows her attempt to break into the Scottish ladies' team for the first time.

Welcome to the inspiring world of Dena Murphy and a charity-run vegetable allotment in Manchester, where everyone gets a second chance.

Our Lives follows Dena Murphy, a wise-cracking 93-year-old helping young offenders back onto the straight and narrow by supervising them as they serve court-appointed hours on an allotment in Manchester as part of a Community Payback scheme.

Sarah the Lumberjill is the fourth generation of her family to 'take up the saw', working across the forests of the Central Highlands of Scotland, where her family have worked for 150 years.

After some of the worst storms to hit Scotland in a lifetime, Sarah, her dad Ralph and brother Ralphy are busier than ever - though with Ralph's health in decline, Sarah has a lot to learn before taking over one day.

Bridal shop owner Rebecca is a champion of body positivity as she helps plus-size brides-to-be celebrate their curves and find their dream wedding dresses.

When a sudden stroke robbed Dai Chant of some of his most precious memories, his son set out to restore them

Dai Chant was the legendary coxswain of the St Davids lifeboat. It is 30 years since he last went to sea. When the stroke hit him, his son Mike noticed that objects connected to the sea stirred up old memories in his dad. Determined to restore his father's memory, Mike began to take his dad to key places in his life, including an emotional visit to the lifeboat station Dai had not entered for three decades. Gradually, memories began to return, but one was missing.

On 26 February 1989, a fishing boat, the Stephanie Jane, lost control close to the rocks beneath the Bishop Rock lighthouse. Dai and his crew put to sea facing a force 12 gale and 30 foot waves and succeeded in bringing her safely into Milford Haven harbour. Later, Dai received a medal for bravery from the RNLI.

Mike and his brother Will arrange to take Dai on a lifeboat, back to sea for the first time in three decades. It's an emotional experience, topped only by the news that both of his sons have been appointed as professional lifeboat crew members at St Davids - following in their father's footsteps.

When a mural by the world's best known street artist, Banksy, appeared overnight in Port Talbot, it caused a sensation - but also a problem. Despite a local campaign, Seasons Greetings was sold to an art dealer and removed from the town. But the legacy of Banksy is now to be seen everywhere across the steel town, with an explosion of street art and murals inspired by the Banksy.

Local people have been encouraged to take up the spray cans, including steelworker Ryan Davies, who has a water tower at the steel plant as his canvas. Artists have been commissioned to come to the town and create new works honouring local heroes like Michael Sheen and Richard Burton, and first time artist Tassia Haines is creating a seven-metre pink dragon on a gable end - despite having stage-four breast cancer.

Port Talbot is not short of walls to draw on. The underpasses become a space to tell the history of the town, including the story of the Jamaican community. And on the site of the original Banksy, a new mural has appeared, drawing attention to air pollution in an ironic homage to the Banksy original.

Six months after the Banksy left Port Talbot, the town has become the street art capital of Wales.

Building your own street is a radical solution to rising house prices. But for 33 families in Leeds, it's about to become reality. It's taken 12 years to get this far, and the venture is not without its problems. Every decision must be agreed on. What to do about sharing cars and telling off each other's kids, and what colour to paint the front doors? It's not everyone's ideas of fun, but for David, who has lived in Chapeltown all his life, Bill and Ali, who are retiring one mile down the road, and Becky and Ruth, who want to move in together, it's a dream they are desperate to see come true.

Sheepdogs from Wales are commanding the global market with dogs being exported to buyers in Korea, America, Italy and Spain. Farmers have used sheepdogs to shepherd the hills of Wales for generations. Recently, the demand for these sheepdogs from Wales has exploded, and so have the prices. These dogs now regularly sell for the same price as a family car.

Erinna Rogers, a hill farmer from the Elan Valley, follows some of Wales's most influential and world-record-breaking sheepdog trainers who have been integral to the online auction craze - Kevin Evans from Libanus and Dewi Jenkins from Talybont.

Jousting knights on horseback and gun-slinging, acrobatic cowboys. This is the life of Scotland's stunt horse team. They travel the length of the UK performing exhilarating stunt shows.

Whilst most riders are trying to stay on their horses, this troupe train to fall off. That's no laughing matter, when you're working with horses that can weigh up to 400 kg, the weight of a grand piano.

Based on a farm just outside Jedburgh in the Scottish Borders, the team divulge the secrets of skilled stunt choreography and show-stopping performances. Lances and swords, trick guns and period costumes are all staples for the team. In Lancashire, they perform a Wild West show with a horse-drawn carriage. But not all goes to plan, and the storyline of the show must adapt on the spot.

At Traquair House, a local historic home, the team transport the crowd back to medieval times with a jousting tournament and a barbaric knight who will stop at nothing to defeat his adversaries. Some of the younger stunt riders are involved in the tradition of common riding. Quite the spectacle, this is an annual event in the towns of the Borders where hundreds of locals gather together for a horseback ride.

Camaraderie, showmanship and daredevil stunts – these are the bread and butter of the Trick Pony Club.

Having been raised Welsh by his adoptive white parents, Gerallt Wyn Jones finds the courage at last to go looking for his birth parents. In 1973, born black to a white unwed mother, Gerallt was given away when he was only a few weeks old.

Raised speaking Welsh in a very white north west Wales, he has always felt different from everyone else. Nearly 50 years on - and fearing he may have left it too late - he can't hold back any longer from searching for the black father and heritage he's never known, and for the young white mother who felt she had no choice but to give him away.

Gerallt lives in Bethesda, a slate mining village on the edge of the magnificent Snowdonia National Park, and was the only black kid in his schools. When he turned 16, he was shown his adoption documents by Olwen, his adoptive mam. They said that his father was black and had come from Barbados to work in Britain. He learns that his mother was young, unmarried and white at a time when prejudice and bigotry was rife. Indeed, one adoption agency refused to accept him once they understood that he was black.

This is also the story of Olwen Jones, the woman who adopted Gerallt. Now in her mid-eighties, Olwen explains that she was keen to adopt a baby who wasn't being accepted by families because of race and colour. She is fully supportive of her beloved adopted son as he starts his search - she only hopes he hasn't left it too late.

This is the story of a group of women who've formed enduring friendships thanks to their shared passion for motorbikes - and their attempt to ride into the history books. Hell's Belles is also a chance to get to know a special community hidden in plain sight: a diverse group of Welsh women who have found friendship, support and belonging through motorcycling.

For a long time, women have felt under-represented and undervalued by the motorcycle industry, and this is one of the reasons that Sherrie, an accountant, and her friend Nimi have organised an event to set a new World Record for the largest gathering of female motorcyclists. They want to show the industry that their numbers are growing and that they are a worthwhile market.

The current record stands at 1,132, but Sherrie along with Nimi and the other ladies are aiming to smash the 2017 record.

Sam and Sue are officially two of the strongest women in the world. At 54, Sue holds the British Masters deadlift record and 44-year-old Sam is the third strongest woman in the world for her age. They're also mums to 11-year-old Ollie, who is their biggest fan.

Sam and Sue have both had difficult pasts but finding each other and the Strong Woman world has helped them hugely. As one of the oldest competitors, Sue knows her heavy lifting days are numbered but she wants to bow out on home territory, competing alongside Sam at Wales's Strongest Woman competition.

As the training intensifies and the competition date looms, an old knee injury of Sue's becomes a big problem and she's forced to take medical advice. The Strong Woman world is about more than lifting eye-popping weights - Sam and Sue open up about what it means to them and how it has changed their lives for the better.

Observational documentary following Patricia Page, known as the Rat Woman, who is on a mission to rid the homes, businesses and streets of Northern Ireland of the rats, cockroaches and wasps. For many, this a man's job, but Patricia, one of the only female pest controllers in the country, is unfazed by this work – in fact she is the daughter of the legendary Rat Man.

Patricia has her sights firmly set on becoming a legend in her own right as she battles the most common form of pests terrorising the country. Infestations of rats, mice, wasps and other pests are on the increase and have been making life a misery for many in this house-proud nation. But Patricia is a rat lover and has a huge respect for her adversaries.