Inside Our Autistic Minds

I’ve never really been the greatest fan of Chris Packham. It’s nothing personal. I think it’s to do with his enthusiasm for all things nature – I mean, nature’s great, but I’m nowhere near as passionate about it.

So when the BBC announced their two part series “Inside Our Autistic Minds”, presented by Chris, my heart sank a little (sorry Chris!). I worried that the autistic people featured would be presented as something to observe, like a birthing sheep on Springwatch.

How wrong I was.

Authentic Autistic Voices

The premise of the documentary is that the BBC – in partnership with the Open University – helps four autistic people to create short videos articulating things they find it hard to communicate themselves. The National Autistic Society has reported that the series has had unprecedented feedback from the autistic community. This is autistic people’s own thoughts in their own words.

Flo wants to unmask in front of her mum.

Ethan wants to explain noise hypersensitivity to his college peers.

Anton wants to explain his need for routine to his friends.

Murray’s Story

But the most impactful story was Murray’s. Murray is non-verbal and apraxic. This means it is very hard for Murray to communicate, either verbally or using communication tools. He needs time to be able to express himself.

If you have a moment to watch Murray’s video, please do. It’s only 2 minutes long, and if you consume any media during Autism Acceptance Month, Murray’s video should be it.

Because not only is Murray articulate, he is very, very intelligent. If you have an hour to spare, I urge you to watch episode 1 of Inside Our Autistic Minds, because Murray’s story makes his film all the more powerful.

Murray’s story takes a sledgehammer to the Rainman stereotype. He’s not a matchstick counter. He’s not completing complex calculations in his head.

He is a young man who understands everything that is going on around him, who is perceptive and who has profound thoughts. But because he can’t communicate as quickly as most people, the world is passing him by, not taking the time to listen to his contribution. And Murray shows in this video that his contribution needs to be heard.

Chris’ Story

Interestingly, across the two episodes Chris also gives insight into his own experiences. The most powerful for me was that he can’t unpack his books in his new house because they were arranged perfectly in his old house and now they are… well… just “wrong”. He talks about this surrounded by the unpacked boxes of books, his shelves half empty. This hit me because it can be very hard to explain sometimes that “I just can’t do it” and there was someone else on the screen in exactly the same position.

So, I owe an apology to Chris Packham. In exactly the same way that we make assumptions about people like Murray, I had made an assumption about the content of this documentary, and I was very, very wrong. Everyone needs to see it.

Sorry Chris.