{"id":12558,"date":"2022-03-21T21:30:37","date_gmt":"2022-03-21T20:30:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.radiotimes.com\/?p=1609857"},"modified":"2022-03-21T21:49:10","modified_gmt":"2022-03-21T20:49:10","slug":"then-barbara-met-alan-true-story-the-real-life-history-behind-bbc-two-drama","status":"publish","type":"rss_feed","link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/rss_feed\/then-barbara-met-alan-true-story-the-real-life-history-behind-bbc-two-drama\/","title":{"rendered":"Then Barbara Met Alan true story: The real-life history behind BBC Two drama"},"content":{"rendered":"

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By Flora Carr\n \t\t<\/p>

Published: Monday, 21 March 2022 at 12:00 am<\/p>

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BAFTA-winning screenwriter Jack Thorne has teamed up with actor-turned-writer Genevieve Barr for a brand new BBC Two film, set in the 1990s in the UK and based on a true story.<\/p>\n

Then Barbara Met Alan<\/a> tells the real-life story of disability rights activists and former couple Barbara Lisicki and Alan Holdsworth, who were instrumental in bringing about the Disability Discrimination Act<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The Then Barbara Met Alan cast<\/a>\u00a0is led by Ruth Madeley, best known for her roles in Years and Years<\/a> and Cold Feet<\/a>, and who plays Barbara Lisicki opposite Alan Holdsworth as Arthur Hughes.<\/p>\n

Read on for everything you need to know about the true story behind BBC Two drama Then Barbara Met Alan.<\/p>\n

Is Then\u00a0Barbara Met Alan based on a true story?\u00a0<\/strong><\/h2>\n
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The Then Barbara Met Alan cast on BBC Two<\/span><\/figcaption><\/div>\n

Yes, the BBC Two film Then Barbara Met Alan charts the true story of Barbara Lisicki and Alan Holdsworth, the former couple who founded DAN, the Disabled Peoples Direct Action Network.<\/p>\n

The real-life group organised non-violent civil disobedience<\/a> throughout the \u201990s and helped to bring about the Disability Discrimination Act, a groundbreaking piece of legislation.<\/p>\n

Comedian Barbara Lisicki and singer-songwriter Alan Holdsworth met in the early \u201990s, and teamed up to confront television events that they believed showed disabled people in a negative light<\/a>, like Children In Need or ITV\u2019s Telethon; \u00a0for the latter they used the slogan \u2018Piss On Pity\u2019 for the famous \u201cBlock Telethon\u201d protests.<\/p>

The couple also picketed inaccessible venues like cinemas that didn\u2019t have wheelchair access,\u00a0using non-violent civil disobedience<\/a>\u00a0like handcuffing themselves to public transport.<\/p>\n

Ruth Madeley, who plays Barbara in the series, appeared at a recent press event attended by RadioTimes.com<\/a> and spoke about her nerves ahead of meeting the real Barbara.<\/p>\n

\u201c[It was] terrifying. I was so frightened, because I\u2019d come on board this really early and then I thought, \u2018What if she hates me?\u2019. What if she thinks, \u2018Why did you hire her, of all people?\u2019 \u2013 so I was just really desperate to do Barbara justice and also the story of DAN and what was achieved,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m not a London girl and the first thing she said to me was, \u2018You\u2019re not using that accent, are you?\u2019 \u2013 I was like, \u2018No! I\u2019ll get a dialect coach, it\u2019s fine!\u2019 \u2013 from an acting perspective, it was such a welcome challenge,\u201d she added.<\/p>\n

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Arthur Hughes (who plays Alan) added: \u201cAlan lives in the States, so we\u2019d spoken on Zoom. I was terrified \u2013 I wanted to do it justice, because it\u2019s a huge responsibility to tell not only the story of DAN but the story of Barbara and Alan\u2019s life. I think I\u2019ve got the blessing, from what he said. But it was a real privilege to get to know him. I hope I\u2019ve done it justice. I feel very proud of the film and I hope Alan is too.\u201d<\/p>\n

Speaking at the same press event, director Bruce Goodison explained: \u201cThere\u2019s always a huge weight of responsibility with making any fact-based drama but [especially] when it is such an important story which changed history, with some incredible characters,\u201d adding: \u201cWhen I was invited onto this, I was immediately scared.\u201d<\/p>\n

Co-writer Jack Thorne<\/a> (His Dark Materials) concluded: \u201cI\u2019m really proud of the work we did on it and I\u2019m really proud that we got the opportunity to represent a bit of history which isn\u2019t much talked about, because disabled history has been relegated out of the history books and it\u2019s about time that changes.\u201d<\/p>\n

Read more: <\/strong><\/p>\n