This movie is breaking my heart. It’s so emotional and relatable. Given it’s actually true, makes it hit even harder.

The story follows John Davison, age 11 as he’s starting secondary. He starts to develop tics, nobody around him understands or gives him a chance. They treat him as a freak. He’s punished for his tic’s. People refuse to even believe that he can’t help them. Knowledge of Tourette’s was non existent in the 80’s. He would be caned at school and then kicked out. We see him try to commit suicide.

A lot don’t understand how difficult it actually is to have a condition develop and change your life. It hurts and you never feel the same. You’re treated as if you’re an inconvenience to people and they wish it would be curable, even at the expense of your autonomy. They claim to understand but then, when you show signs of your disability, understanding goes away and you’re to blame. You’re punished in some capacity for something you don’t have control over. If anything, you wish you could go back to before it began and make the most of all the things you can’t do anymore.

Back to the film, it then skips ahead to 13 years later when John finally has a diagnosis and meets Dottie, his saviour essentially. She changes his life forever. She welcomes him into her home, makes sure he doesn’t apologise for something he didn’t mean. She has understanding and knows he’s had a life of far from understanding. He’s invited to move in so he can have a better life. She inspires him to turn his life around, get a job, be productive, it’s amazing.

The sad thing is there’s still a lack of understanding, you’d think that since the 80’s, people would have realised that it’s completely involuntary. Do they genuinely think that anyone sane would want to embarrass themselves, get attacked, get arrested and more for attention? No.

After the whole BAFTA’s, there’s been vile rhetoric towards disability in general. People calling for segregation, that disabled people shouldn’t be in public if they have no control but at the same time, they complain that disabled people are on benefits and “being lazy” make up your mind!!!

John is an inspiration, he really is. Anyone who says otherwise is not worth paying attention to. He deserves the absolute best. An absolute legend. I’m grateful for him telling his story. Movies like this are exactly what we as a disabled community need, we should tell our stories because they themselves can change lives. Our stories are just as valid as other people’s.