Transcript for Jenna Preece - Our World 

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(music)

Hiya, I’m Jenna Preece and I’m an actor and Welsh language presenter. 

My arms are funky and they decide what they want to do sometimes. They both kind of end at the elbow and one of my hands has got a right attitude. It kinda points in towards me so it looks like I’m always talking about myself. But I promise I’m not! 

I’m one of more than 400,000 people registered as disabled in Wales. I’m from the valleys and up here we just get on with things. But covid and lockdown hasn’t made it easy. 

Thing is, it’s been way worse for people like me than a lot of you. You don’t think so? Try this then…

According to government figures, 3 out of 5 people who’ve died due to complications with covid are registered disabled. That’s two thirds. We’re only 20 percent of the population!

And if we’re not dying, we’re losing our jobs, or the social services we need, or the benefits we rely on just to live, mun. Get this. Nearly 37,000 (that’s roughly 16%) of the people employed in industries told to close during the pandemic identified as disabled. 

And while we’re talking numbers, according to the disabled charity Scope, it costs me £350 more a month just to live! I’m not having a laugh, look it up!

Here’s the thing though, I don’t wanna bang on about how rubbish it’s been for me, or loads of other disabled people, because it’s been rubbish for all of us. 

And I don’t wanna point fingers either and say you should’ve done this or paid for that. 

I just wanna see, now that we’re coming out of lockdown and everything, what can we all do to make the world just that bit better for everyone? 

For the past year I’ve been studying for a masters specialising in acting for screen, radio and theatre at the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama. I know! Me, at a college! I haven’t even got any GCSEs! 

Because a lot of our classes involve practical things, I’ve spent a lot of time on campus rather than having Zoom lessons. 

This is me doing combat training with Kevin McCurdy learning how to have a knife fight. If you think it sounds a bit weird, be thankful we didn’t record my intimacy class! Ha! 

Simon Reeves is my lecturer and the head of my year and as I’m coming to the end of my masters, I wanted to have a chat with him about our time together and what we’ve both learned. 

Simon Reeves:

Simon: I’m Simon, I am bald, I’ve got a little strip of hair around the side of my head though that I guard protectively. I’ve got black glasses with quite thick rims on, like you might expect from some artsy person. Hazel eyes. I’m 5’10’. I’m a little overweight at the moment, after Covid. Yeah, that’s me.

Jenna: I wouldn’t say you’re overweight Si, too harsh on yourself. Build yourself up. 

Simon: thank you 

Jenna: and Simon is a handsome man as well by the way people. The first time I met you Simon, was through emails and zoom. To be fair, I’m from a poverty area, the valleys, and I was so intimidated actually to come to college because I just thought everyone’s going to think I can’t articulate myself, I’m common, I’m a chav, I’m loud, I’m abrasive. So, I have to say I kind of prejudged you in the extent of, ‘are these going to be rich people, that don't know where I’m coming from, not interested where I’m planning to go, and essentially ticking boxes’ because that’s what I’ve had in my experience of life. How was it hearing my name for the first time and coming across me?

Simon: I was really excited actually, to have you in college. When you have someone coming in who is not what you would expect from the general run of the mill. The arts are known now to be, quite white, middle class to a large degree. It’s really exciting to have people from different walks of life, because the diversity really enriches the group. And one of the things that like really shocked me the first time we spoke was how open and easy you were about it all. There was a really easy conversation, so you were just out there about this is what my problems are. I can’t use the exact language but you were pretty frank...

(laughs)

Simon: ...about what those were, and it was a real pleasure to have a conversation with someone that’s really open. 

Jenna: First thing a lot of people learn really, they expect a disabled person to be usually a professional in what they need and to know everything and actually we find our feet and we find the obstacles on our way and fix them and that’s something actually and I really wanted to say about the college. I haven’t really come across an obstacle yet, or a barrier that hasn’t been dealt with and been “okay, how can we solve this”, rather than ignore the problem. Coming from the college point of view, did you expect the system to be flawed?

Simon: No, I was about to say that actually. It’s been a bit of a wake up call for me in terms of how long and how difficult it can be to get some of the other structures outside of the college - and some within, at times - to respond, in a timely fashion to things. The other one of course was us getting some facilities in place for you which needed to be specially ordered. Having ordered them, it’s been nine months now since we ordered them and they still have not got a firm date for delivery. That’s blamed on Covid and on brexit and all sorts of things because they’re made in europe. But nonetheless, I just think that’s not good enough, you’ll be gone, we’ll have the facilities here, but you won't be. 

Jenna: But that makes me, that’s good though if you have the facilities, the facilities have changed, I’ve put my mark on the building. 

(laughing)

Jenna: I should have that toilet called Jenna’s toilet.

Simon: We’ve got a programme in place, but with the best one in the world that is obviously aimed at what is kind of regarded as the regular student that comes into the college. What we have to do is make those reasonable adjustments as we go along to make it work for someone that has some form of disability. And I think the college is very committed to it. We don’t always get it right, we’ve made mistakes but there is a will to get it done. It’s there, it’s in the plan, it’s in the budget, it’s happening. 

Jenna: Royal Welsh has done really well, and we’ve managed to produce quite a few shows and put them online for casting agents and everything. We’re waiting for the subtitles to get put on to those films. That’s amazing, because anyone who sees that then, or watches anything from another college, you’re the forefront really of accessibility and leading the way. This is the way to do it, the new way, this is how to be accessible and it’ll encourage more disabled people to approach you. It just stops that stigma of an add on and then it just starts becoming the normal creative process.

(music)

I’ve become an actor because I never saw anyone like me on tv or films, so I decided to do something about it. But I couldn’t find anywhere I could train. People never called me back and it was really difficult finding accessible courses. In the end I did a seven day course through Disability Arts Cymru and was introduced to this amazing theatre company which looks at productions from an accessible point of view. They include things like British Sign Language and Audio Description as part of the performance. They’re not bolted on at the end like an afterthought. They’re amazing, and I probably shouldn’t say it on the BBC, because it’s advertising or whatever, but they are a registered charity so..and if you want to know how to make theatre which anyone and everyone can take part in or watch and enjoy then these are my girls.

(music)

Elise: Taking Flight is a producing theatre company. We make theatre, we run workshops, we produce events and we host symposiums. These happen to be accessible and they happen to feature classes of disbaled, non-disbaled and deaf performers because I can’t imagine why you would want to do anything else. My name’s Elise Davidson, I am a very small 4’10’ middle aged woman with pale skin and red hair in a kind of bob. I wear black rimmed glasses most of the time now and some denim dungarees.   

Taf: I’m Tafsila Khan, I am a gorgeous person. I am from pakistani heritage. My hair is blonde with pink bits at the bottom, if the hairdresser has done what I asked and I’m also registered blind. 

Steph (through interpreter Rachel): My name is Steph, and my sign name is two kind of peace signs that wiggle side to side. I’m deaf and I use BSL so I’ve got my interpreter voice with me at the moment. A beautiful voice, if I can say so, I’ve got red curly hair and I’ve got a kind of black and brown strappy dress on and my lanyard round my neck with some badges on it. 

Jenna: I personally have to thank you for creating Taking Flight in Wales, because I wouldn’t have had the opportunities that I’ve got today and I’m very aware of how privileged I am as a disabled person the opportunities I’ve got and you’ve empowered so many young and all ages of disbaled people to just go out and do it by creating a comfortable environment and an equal playing field and that is so important.

Elise: We’ve provided opportunities for people because of everything we have learnt from the deaf and disabled creatives that we have worked with. That’s it really, is that Taking Flight is what it is because of who we’ve worked with and I’m sitting with two of those amazing people here now.

Jenna: Steph, how do you find the industry in being, act of pushing your way through the doors, do you find the industry quite accessible in you using BSL instead of speaking English, and if so have you found any negatives and then have you found any positives? 

Steph: Well, my personal experiences, I’ve been very lucky. I finished university and I very quickly became part of Taking Flight theatre and started working with them and obviously I’m still here now. I’ve been quite lucky with my experience because I just had a lovely experience. I’ve had a lot of opportunities and had loads of support and I was given that kind of room to develop and kind of evolve my career and my creative practice. 

Jenna: I can see BSL is, you’re very passionate and it’s important to you is there a reason for that? 

Steph: I think it’s just a big part of my journey as it were. So, growing up, like I said I was born hearing and I became deaf and fabulous... 

Jenna: Very true

Steph:...during my teenage years. Yano, it kind of felt like one day I was hearing and the next day I was deaf, and does that mean that I automatically could sign, no, not at all. So, it was a huge adjustment as part of my life. Without having language, not having that access to spoken english anymore but not having sign it was difficult so when I found it, it was just, it really changed my life. 

Jenna: It was the people that really made me and helped me understand that I could have a job in this industry as an actor. As a disabled audience member I was absolutely just immersed into this theatre and world where there was an actually main disbaled character that wasn’t just there to be disbaled but was used in such an interesting and comedic way of using BSL as a language inspired me because you need to see people in the industry. You need to see people similar to you that you can actually inspire to be and people in our industry right now are kind of the ones breaking through for the next generation. 

Taf: I mean, that’s one of the core things that drives me as a human is I suppose social justice, creating change. That’s one of my big passions and I think that’s what I felt the arts gave me. For me, art kind of runs very closely aligned with, like you say, politics and I didn’t really want to become a politician so I was thinking what other ways are there for me to use my voice and create change and the arts is a place I feel you can do that. 

(music)

I’m Jenna Preece and I wanna know what our world could be like after Covid and lockdown. If I could wave a magic wand and make it more accessible and inclusive for disabled people.

We’ve already heard from my college and my favourite theatre company about what they’ve learned about accessibility and how, even if you’ve got resources and the best of intentions, there’s loads of hassle you never expected. 

But we can’t spend the whole programme just talking to people I know. 

Just because you identify as disabled, doesn’t mean you automatically know everything about all disabled people. 

So I wanted to learn more.  

Rhys: I’m Rhys, I’m disabled. I have, I used to have ginger hair, I don’t have a lot of it now. I’m five foot eleven. I’ve been to two Paralympic games, two Commonwealth games and medaled at the 2014 Commonwealth games in glasgow.  

Rhys is hoping to go to the Paralympics in Tokyo as well as next year’s Commonwealth Games in Birmingham. 

I wanted to talk to a disabled sports person because there’s a lot of prep involved, a lot of training and a lot of camps where they go abroad as a team.

So, I wanted to know what that was like and whether he’d come across any problems. 

Rhys: We went, a couple of years ago, to Arnhem in the Netherlands and they said it was wheelchair accessibility for everybody, and it turned out that it was an old caravan site where there was no wheelchair accessibility whatsoever. It was all stairs and steps and things like that. But generally we tend to have good experiences because obviously there’s places that are scouted out. There’s people, like the agencies that have been used to book things. We’re not going into places where we’re like the newbies. It’s like people know the administration, so they can get things 99.9% right.

Jenna: How was your life before the pandemic and then if anything has changed what’s happened during the pandemic for yourself?

Rhys: It all just came to a stop. Everything just came to a stop and you didn’t realise, actually realise, until looking back on it the last few months that it took a real mental and physical toll on people. I don’t know like with yourself or whatever, but people with disabilities and sometimes with brain damage, the whole system is a shock. What is happening with the world, you’re so used to routine and everything. 

I train in a group full of twenty to thirty people and all of a sudden it just gets taken away from you. You’re there on your own, you’re trying to find the courage and the energy to basically motivate yourself rather than being motivated by the people around you.

It’s just been really weird, mentally draining to be fair. It’s only really recently that everything is starting to get to what I would class as normality. 

Jenna: So, is there any positives you found out, have you found out, like maybe, you actually like to be on your own. That it’s actually healthy to be on your own for a while?

Rhys: We ended up going for walks around the mountains, around the back of our houses. You can see literally down like three villages, like from the top of our mountain. Within an hour and a half walk you’re over to the other side of the gateway, over towards Bridgend over the Bwlch mountain and things like that. We were really lucky that we live where we live. 

Rhys shows what is possible when everyone is working towards the same thing, and I’d love to have a team go everywhere ahead of me to make sure it’s all accessible and I’ve got everything I need. Imagine that! You rock up and everything is just taken care of.

But also, imagine being told you, or your child is a hopeless case? What would you do with that?

I’m gonna get on my high horse a bit here because this sort of stuff really annoys me! No one has the right to say what anyone else can or can’t do. Doesn’t matter if you identify as disabled. Just giving up and saying it’s too hard or it’ll never happen - that’s what disabled people have to deal with constantly.

Everyone’s been shocked by Britney Spears and her conservatorship and the Free Britney stuff. She recently said in court that she’d had her medication changed without her knowledge and that she’d been forced to perform against her will and that she’s been stopped from having any more children. 

I wasn’t shocked. It’s been happening to disabled people for decades, man. It’s still happening! 

Right, I’m gonna climb down off my horse now cos I’m getting a bit worked up like. 

And I want to talk about something else.

Yeah, disabled people have a tough time, but so do the people who look after disabled people. 

Here’s a couple more numbers for you. According to Carers Wales, unpaid carers, that’s people looking after their partners, or their kids, parents or other loved ones. Those guys are saving us £33 million pounds a day in Wales. £33 million pounds!

They’ve gotta be worth talking to. So that’s what I did. 

Chris O’Malley lives in Neath, Port Talbot and he’s been looking after his wife Annie since she became a quadriplegic after suffering a hemorrhage in 2014.

Gill Stafford is from North Wales and she cares for her son Gareth. He has cerebral palsy and speaks through a computer.

Gill: Gareth plays Boccia, he plays the disabled bowling game. He plays for Wales, he’s played in international competitions and he plays for a club. Well everything had to stop with Covid. Our lives revolve around Gareth’s Boccia, because if we’re not coming to Cardiff or Swansea to train, which wasn’t very often but we did come. We’re going up for competitions, we were going up for Boccia England competitions with his team that’s based in Liverpool, which is a 120 mile journey every week and we were going at least once or twice a week. And social life involved around the club in Liverpool. We’re just waiting for everything to start again. 

But, me personally, I’ve found zoom and teams amazing, because I’ve been able to go to things I couldn’t physically go to. I’ve been to classes, I’ve done dancing, I’ve got a sore knee but I went to ballet classes at first until it became impossible with it to do. Carers UK have had several dance classes on. I’ve been hanging onto my kitchen work top doing them and that’s been great. I’ve spoken to people like the FM (First Minister) which I never imagined I ever would, I’ve met him. I joined Carers UK and Carers Wales as a person who would speak if they wanted me to, because I see caring as positive. 

Chris: When Annie had her subarachnoid hemorrhage, my life changed within minutes. I retired the very same day, never went back to work. Just became an unpaid carer and slept in the car for a month, outside the hospital in the Heath. It’s been a hard seven months. Becoming a carer was as traumatic to me as it would be for anybody. 

Jenna: When Annie finally got out of the hospital and life settled down a bit, did anything dramatic change in your life then? 

Chris: Annie’s disability is such that she’s quadrapledric. She has substantial brain damage and totally dependent upon hoist and a wheelchair and dependent upon me to feed her and everything else. The Annie that I married is totally different to the Annie that I’m married to now. It’s as if I’ve married two people. 

The things that have changed are really our connection with each other. In every relationship, in every marriage there’s always a little bit of turmoil, there’s always arguments and you know for the last seven years there’s been no need for anything, any bad words, anything at all. Annie apologises for certain things that happen. I tell her you know, there’s no need to apologise, this is how we are now. There’s never a bad word. I try to get her out as much as I can, but covid really put a halt to that. 

I think the biggest change really, has obviously been in the woman that I love has now become the woman that I care for as well as love. 

(music)

My mam was my carer growing up in the nineties and it’s devastating to see things haven't got much better. In some cases it’s worse for them because it’s not happening to them, it’s happening to someone they love and they just want to look after them. 

But guess what? Around the world, brilliant people have come up with brilliant ways to help make life more accessible and freaking brilliant for disabled people. 

There are touchscreen smartphones and computers that work in braille now; headbands that can identify colours through sound; Wheelchairs can climb stairs on their own. There is a belt that detects signs of seizures early on and wirelessly sends messages to caretakers or guardians. Even a face-tracking software that helps people better recognise and understand expressions and emotions. 

So there are loads of amazing things happening around the world right now to make lives easier for people who identify as disabled. If only they could be more mainstream, accessible and affordable like. 

The Welsh Government announced it’s programme for government the other week. Not gonna lie, I don’t really do politics, I know that’s like a controversial thing and everything, but I don’t.

But the producer put this in so I gotta read it. So the Welsh Government say that, in the next five years, they’re gonna improve public transport for disabled people. They’re gonna use the new network of Disabled People’s Employment Champions to help close the gap between disabled people and the rest of the working population.

They’re gonna incorporate the United Nations Convention for the Elimination of all forms of Discrimination against Women and the UN Convention on the Rights of Disabled People into Welsh law. 

I got no idea what that means. Sounds like a big thing all politicians get excited about and have conferences and photos where they stand like a choir and shake hands and stuff. 

But here’s the thing, I asked all of the people we spoke to in the programme. Right, I gonna get my magic wand out, you’ve got one wish to make the world a better place after Covid. What is it? 

Rachel: plant knowledge in the brains of people and it would just mean that everything is accessible, everything goes smoothly and we could all just do our jobs and not have to educate everyone. 

Elise: taking what we’ve learnt and apply that learning so that we can offer, continue to offer opportunities. Continue to network, we need to support each other and not to forget about all the things we learnt during the pandemic. 

Steph: all of my friends and all of my colleagues, I would like to clone them. So I could just fill the world with all the people that I know love me. I just think that the people in my life are so amazing and I just, that’s literally as simple as it is, and I just think that’s what the world should be made up of. 

Rhys: I just want everybody to be kinder to each other. To see the positives that this has brought. Hopefully we can make it better, if anything like this happens again we can make a better go of it. 

Gill: Spontaneity. It would be nice to be able to do things spontaneously. Travel where you want, without fear of not being able to do what you want. 

Chris: It would be not to load anything that's available to Annie because of the word disability. What I mean by that is, if you’re looking for a holiday, a break, a weekend away all of a sudden the word disability trebles the price.

Taf: If I could have a magic wand, I’d change the attitudes of people to just be more kind. I think it would start with that and everything else could follow. The physical barriers would then, I think would dissolve and if everyone just being human and kind that would make a big difference. 

(music) 

Not one of them asked for something for themselves. Not one of them asked for a car, or a job, or a smart belt - still not sure what that is! - They just asked for more patience, more understanding and for us all just to be a bit nicer to each other.

Now, if I could have my magic wand for myself I’d just want all the people we’ve spoken to in this program and all the listeners out there to feel more empowered. Take control of your own destiny. Don’t let anyone tell you what you can or can’t do. Not even yourself. Come on peeps! It’s just about being kinder to each other. Taking the time to think about why people are acting a certain way they do and are they acting that way because they identify as disabled, and if so is there something you can do to help. Because it is Our World.