Original version

BBC World Service Online

Migrated podcast image for: Outlook

Outlook

Factual: Life Stories

True stories of ordinary people and the extraordinary events that have shaped their lives.

Outlook: Helping Paralysed People in Bangladesh

Helping paralysed people in Bangladesh

26/08/2014

Helping Paralysed People in Bangladesh

BBC World Service - Outlook, Helping Paralysed People in Bangladesh

Valerie Taylor has created the biggest spinal injuries hospital in Bangladesh

British physiotherapist Valerie Taylor has devoted her life to caring for people with spinal injuries - most recently those injured in the Rana Plaza disaster.

When the British physiotherapist Valerie Taylor first travelled to Bangladesh, she only intended to stay for 15 months. But 45 years later she's still there, running a rehabilitation centre for paralyzed people in Dhaka.  She tells reporter Candida Beveridge how she feels about being called "the Mother Teresa of Bangladesh". 

During the 1990s Tas Pappas and his brother Ben were among the best skateboarders in the world.  But after reaching the top, their lives spiralled out of control. Tas tells us why he is determined to tell his story to teenagers to stop them from following the same path.  He has now taken part in a documentary about his life called All this Mayhem.

We travelled to Big Island, Ilha Grande, off the coast of Rio de Janeiro in Brazil, to hear the extraordinary story of Julio de Almeida.  He's spent 56 years on the island, which used to be a maximum security prison.  Now 83 years old, Julio has served his time - but he still doesn't want to leave! 

American teenager Anna Caltabiano was determined to become a writer. Even after she was rejected by more than 200 publishers, she put her first novel online.  Now - still aged only 17 years old - she has a three book deal and over 100,000 followers on Twitter.

Accessibility links

Programme Index

Outlook

Helping Paralysed People in Bangladesh

Genres

Brand

BBC World Service Online

About BBC World Service