Other

BBC World Service West and Central Africa Schedule

BBC World Service West and Central Africa

The Compass v2 Podcast

The Compass

Documentaries

Factual: Life Stories

With ideas too big for a single episode, The Compass presents mini-series about society

Surprising stories from unusual places. With ideas too big for a single episode, The Compass presents mini-series about the environment and politics, culture and society.

BBC World Service Australasia

BBC World Service schedule for American satellite radio and the Caribbean

BBC World Service Americas and the Caribbean

BBC World Service

BBC World Service East and Southern Africa Schedule

BBC World Service East and Southern Africa

BBC World Service South Asia

BBC World Service News Internet

BBC World Service Online

BBC World Service Europe and the Middle East

BBC World Service East Asia

The Compass: The Senses: The senses: Hearing

Magazines & Reviews

Factual

The senses: Hearing

12/08/2020 GMT

The Senses

BBC World Service - The Compass, The Senses, The senses: Hearing

‘I could hear my eyeballs moving’: How rogue messages pass between our ears and brain

When disruptions occur between our ears and our brain:  we meet a company boss who hears his eyeballs moving and a charity worker whose spinning attacks last for hours.

From a whisper to the roar of thunder, every sound creates vibrations in our ears which the brain decodes, to tell us what we’re hearing.  But as neurologist, Dr Guy Leschziner explains, when disruptions occur along the way, extraordinary things can happen, changing how we perceive the world.
  
We meet Mark, who can’t hear his friends in a noisy pub but can hear the sound of every bodily function amplified in his head. 

Kelly gets spinning attacks that send her falling to the floor. The sensation lasts for hours and with every attack she loses hearing. She’s been told it’s Ménière's disease - an inner ear disorder that affects balance. 

Keen bird-watcher Bill recognises his hearing loss when he can no longer pick out the call of the smallest birds, but can hear elaborate musical tunes when there’s nothing playing.

These astonishing cases show how tiny changes in our bodies can turn our understanding of the world upside down, leading us to question our own version of reality.

Produced by Sally Abrahams for the BBC World Service.


Photo: Kelly, who has been diagnosed with Ménière's disease Credit: BBC

The Compass: The Senses

Neurologist Guy Leschziner explores the surprisingly strange world of our senses.

Neurologist Guy Leschziner explores the surprisingly strange world of our senses - how imperfect messages pass from our fingertips, ears, eyes, noses and tongues to our brains. We meet extraordinary individuals, whose senses have been altered in some way, providing important insights into how we perceive reality. The way listeners understand the world will never be the same again.

Accessibility links

Programme Index

The Compass

The Senses

The senses: Hearing

Genres

Formats

Brand

Series

BBC World Service West and Central Africa

About BBC World Service