Summary
The musician and broadcaster Tom Robinson nominates educationalist George Lyward in this episode of Great Lives.
Aged 15 and struggling with his sexuality, Tom Robinson attempted to take his own life and had a nervous breakdown. Following a series of assessments and tests, he was interviewed for Finchden Manor, a therapeutic community founded by George Lyward.
Tom shares his own experience, explaining to Matthew Parris how he believes Lyward saved his life. Former Finchden teacher Dr Norman Alm is also on hand to provide expert assistance.
Lyward's work is also assessed in the context of the 2011 summer riots, as Matthew asks his guests what should society do with its troubled teens.
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in 2012.
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Once you've wrapped up this podcast, how about trying a very British cult? |
| 0:06.0 | What happens if the person you trust with your future isn't what you think they are? |
| 0:10.0 | I did feel the whole time he was watching me Yeti. I saw a footprint and that really gave me gusmas. |
| 0:16.4 | Or people who knew me. Emme, I remember every secret, every lie. I'm the only one who knows the truth. |
| 0:23.0 | Discover more of our biggest podcast from 2003. |
| 0:27.0 | Listen on BBC Sounds. |
| 0:29.0 | Thank you for downloading this great lives podcast from BBC Radio 4. |
| 0:34.0 | For more information and details of other podcasts, just visit BBC. |
| 0:38.0 | K.k. |
| 0:40.0 | Radio 4. |
| 0:42.0 | The question of what to do with troubled teenagers Radio 4. |
| 0:42.7 | The question of what to do with troubled teenagers has been with us for a long time. |
| 0:47.0 | Should they be cared for and understood? |
| 0:49.2 | Or should they be hit with the proverbial big stick? |
| 0:51.6 | Do they need order? |
| 0:52.3 | Do they need freedom to develop. |
| 0:54.0 | Our subject on today's great lives is someone who's spent his own life grappling |
| 1:00.0 | with this very issue. His name was George Laiwood, perhaps not a name that leaps out immediately |
| 1:05.3 | as someone you recognize, but my guest here in the studio who chose him has said that George |
| 1:10.4 | Laiwood saved his life. This is the second time in my life that I've |
| 1:15.2 | encountered Tom Robinson, musician and broadcaster. The first was at a gig in the |
| 1:19.7 | Fairfield halls in Croydon in the 1970s, the first and only time I ever went to such a thing. |
... |
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