Mat Fraser

Lots of you might be wanting to know any number of things to do with disability, most of which I am sure I won't know the first thing about. But, I can tell you about some of my experiences, denial, education, politicisation, the Disability Art scene, and current beliefs, especially to do with the portrayal of disability in the media, particularly the stage and screen. Also for you drama students doing a dissertation on performance and disability, I have a little module-esque attachment I can send you upon request. In the Links section there will hopefully be the contact addresses you are looking for. As I am not an information organisation, it will of course be a personal set of links.

past

I was in denial, didn’t see myself as disabled. Then I met Mary Duffy, followed by the Disability Rights movement, and saw my disability in its proper social context, as opposed to the medical or charity model. I got angry. For detailed analysis of all this go to Writing, where some previous speeches and talks I’ve done better and more fully explain the journey I’ve been on, discoveries I’ve made, and conclusions I’ve drawn.

I’m still disabled ( Damn! And they told me if I did the physio....). I use it I think in more useful ways now than I ever have done, but with very different techniques to the anger and confrontation of previous years. Humour is now my main tool to discuss it all, and I guess the best example of all this would currently be the pod casts I co host with Liz Carr ( see links) for the BBC’s disability web site “Ouch!” ’s pod cast.

I will always be disabled ( Hooray!), in every way that can mean, I know that, but I also love, embrace and enjoy my individual life. I’m vomit-inducingly inspirational! Or just vomit inducing. I hope to never sell disabled people down the river, or even literally as slaves (though that could be fun), but also want to find new ways of getting the message across. I hope to achieve his through my writing mostly. Were I to get a lead role in a light rom Com feature film starring opposite, oh, I don’t know, let’s say Kate Winslet for example, then I do believe that would really help too...but it is very unlikely to ever happen, given the agenda of what I perceive to be Hollyweird and all who profit from her- not Kate, I mean I’m sure she’d be potentially up for it if the script and money were good, no, I mean Her as in Hollyweird. Ah, whatever, I’m enjoying the way I’m weaving disability into what I do at the moment. It feels like I’m moving forward.....