BBC Sounds Music Radio Podcasts

Lauren LeVernier, Desert Island Discs is taking its usual Easter break for the next few

weeks, so to keep you going until we're back on air, we'll be showcasing a few programs

from our back catalogue. As usual, as this is a podcast, the music has been shortened for

rights reasons. This week, the castaway is Adaya Deppetan, who was interviewed by Kirstie

Young in 2012.

My castaway this week is the Paralympian and TV presenter Adaya Deppetan. wheelchair basketballs

his sport, and this year he partnered ClearBolding, anchoring Channel 4's coverage of the 2012

London Paralympics. When he's not stuck in a studio explaining the intricacies of

goalball, he's reporting from the rain forests of Nicaragua, or the middle of the Atlantic

Ocean. Adversity seems to bring out the best in him. He even survived, turning up for

his first day at school aged 7, in a pink checked suit and bow tie. For a decade, his

decision to pursue a life in sport drove a huge wedge between him and his parents. He says,

I think I've done more things with my disability than most able-bodied people would ever dream

of doing. Adaya, you're a veteran at Paralympian yourself. You represented G.B. Sydney and the

Athens Games. You won a gold at the Paralympic World Cup. Do you think after London 2012,

Paralympics, there's no going back for Paralympics' sport?

Yeah, I think this was a landmark Paralympics. Even now, I still can't believe it's happened.

The figures speak for themselves. You look at the Olympic Park every day. It was jam-packed

and working on Channel 4, we were getting 6.5 million people watching on Frilla Fursley

when Johnny Peacock 100 metres. Everyone was just so up for it.

Channel 4 ran that very punchy marketing campaign that showed some of the Paralympic G.B.

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