Lives Less Ordinary

Colm Tóibín is a celebrated Irish writer, but as a child words didn't come easily. Navigating grief as a boy when his father died, he developed a stammer. Instead of talking, Colm watched and listened, collecting stories that wove their way into his novels. He's won a string of awards and been nominated for the prestigious Booker Prize three times. His novel Brooklyn was made into a movie starring Saoirse Ronan and was up for several Oscars. He finds it hilarious that although he was invited to the event he had to be ushered in through a back door – the red carpet is apparently not for novelists. Beyond his writing, Colm was a vocal campaigner for the legalisation of same-sex marriage in Ireland. He’s also breaking taboos by speaking openly about testicular cancer and highlighting some of the comedy moments from those bleak times.
His latest book is called A Long Winter.
Presenter: Jo Fidgen
Producer: Andrea Kennedy
Lives Less Ordinary is a podcast from the BBC World Service that brings you the most incredible true stories from around the world. Each episode a guest shares their most dramatic, moving, personal story. Listen for unbelievable twists, mysteries uncovered, and inspiring journeys - spanning the entire human experience. Step into someone else’s life and expect the unexpected.
 
Got a story to tell? Send an email to [email protected] or message us via WhatsApp: 0044 330 678 2784
 
You can read our privacy notice here:
https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/5YD3hBqmw26B8WMHt6GkQxG/lives-less-ordinary-privacy-notice

Willis Chimano is one of Kenya’s biggest pop stars. With the boyband Sauti Sol, he’s won a string of awards and even danced with President Barack Obama. But behind the success, Chimano had a secret: being gay in a country where gay sex is criminalised and people who identify as LGBT+ can experience violence and harassment. Since his childhood, Chimano had been hiding his sexuality but then in 2018 he was outed. Suddenly his career stood its toughest test as he was caught in a media frenzy and dealing with exposure that threatened to derail his entire life - and his relationship with his conservative family. But Chimano emerged from the storm as role model for LGBT+ people, becoming Kenya’s most famous openly gay singer.
His memoir is called Heavy is the Crown.
Presenter: Mobeen Azhar
Producers: Maryam Maruf and June Christie
Lives Less Ordinary is a podcast from the BBC World Service that brings you the most incredible true stories from around the world. Each episode a guest shares their most dramatic, moving, personal story. Listen for unbelievable twists, mysteries uncovered, and inspiring journeys - spanning the entire human experience. Step into someone else’s life and expect the unexpected.
 
Got a story to tell? Send an email to [email protected] or message us via WhatsApp: 0044 330 678 2784
 
You can read our privacy notice here:
https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/5YD3hBqmw26B8WMHt6GkQxG/lives-less-ordinary-privacy-notice

When she was 14, Krystal Evans survived a lethal house fire. Years later, to come to terms with what she’d experienced, she turned it into a stand-up show.
The women in Krystal's family have always been funny, she says; her mother was no exception. But as well as being hilarious she also struggled with mental illness, and life in Krystal’s childhood was chaotic. With very little money, the family would move from place to place, Krystal would miss months of school and often be left to take care of her younger sister alone. When Krystal was 14, chaos turned to tragedy when a fire engulfed their mobile home in Washington State. Not everyone survived. Krystal buried the experience and tried to move on with her life, but years later, while working as a comedian, she decided to confront her memories of the fire – by turning them into a hit stand-up show: The Hottest Girl at Burn Camp.
Presenter: Jo Fidgen
Producers: Caroline Ferguson and Zoe Gelber
Lives Less Ordinary is a podcast from the BBC World Service that brings you the most incredible true stories from around the world. Each episode a guest shares their most dramatic, moving, personal story. Listen for unbelievable twists, mysteries uncovered, and inspiring journeys - spanning the entire human experience. Step into someone else’s life and expect the unexpected.
 
Got a story to tell? Send an email to [email protected] or message us via WhatsApp: 0044 330 678 2784
 
You can read our privacy notice here:
https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/5YD3hBqmw26B8WMHt6GkQxG/lives-less-ordinary-privacy-notice

Joanne Briggs had always thought of her dad as a bit of a superhero. But he was hiding a dark secret.
She only saw him a couple of times a year during her childhood in the UK, but that was because Professor Michael Briggs was off travelling the world being a very important scientist. Or at least that was the story she grew up to believe. It was only in 1986, when Joanne was 23, that she first got a glimpse of who he really was. The Sunday Times newspaper exposed him as a scientific fraud, leaving his reputation in tatters. Two months later, he was dead. Joanne chose to close the door on this mysterious and destructive period of her life. But 34 years later it unexpectedly reopened, and led her on a journey through multiple lies and deception, towards a better understanding of the man she thought she knew. Joanne Briggs has written a book about her father: The Scientist Who Wasn't There.
Presenter: Jo Fidgen
Producer: Anna Lacey
Lives Less Ordinary is a podcast from the BBC World Service that brings you the most incredible true stories from around the world. Each episode a guest shares their most dramatic, moving, personal story. Listen for unbelievable twists, mysteries uncovered, and inspiring journeys - spanning the entire human experience. Step into someone else’s life and expect the unexpected.
 
Got a story to tell? Send an email to [email protected] or message us via WhatsApp: 0044 330 678 2784
 
You can read our privacy notice here:
https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/5YD3hBqmw26B8WMHt6GkQxG/lives-less-ordinary-privacy-notice

Fatima Whitbread grew up in a UK children’s home. She found both a mother and a coach in one person – going on to break the javelin world record and become an Olympic medallist.
Fatima spent her first 14 years in a series of institutions after being abandoned as a baby. She longed for stability and love, and found both in an unexpected place – on the sports field. Coach Margaret Whitbread spotted her talent early, and when she discovered that the young Fatima was growing up without a family, invited her to spend some time with her own. Holiday visits soon turned into an offer of a permanent home with the Whitbreads, and Fatima was eventually formally adopted by them. Margaret became both her mother and her coach.
Fatima had once written to Margaret that her dream was to be ‘the best javelin thrower in the world.’ Years later, she made that a reality with a record-breaking throw at the 1986 European Athletics Championships, followed by gold at the World Championships. She is also a two-time Olympic medallist.
Today, Fatima Whitbread is using her own experiences to campaign for children in care through her charity, Fatima’s UK Campaign.
Please be aware, this episode contains references to child sexual abuse.
Presenter: Mobeen Azhar
Producers: June Christie & Louise Morris
Lives Less Ordinary is a podcast from the BBC World Service that brings you the most incredible true stories from around the world. Each episode a guest shares their most dramatic, moving, personal story. Listen for unbelievable twists, mysteries uncovered, and inspiring journeys - spanning the entire human experience. Step into someone else’s life and expect the unexpected.

Got a story to tell? Send an email to [email protected] or message us via WhatsApp: 0044 330 678 2784

You can read our privacy notice here:
https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/5YD3hBqmw26B8WMHt6GkQxG/lives-less-ordinary-privacy-notice