The Contact

Spot the film and soap stars of the future as John Hurt plays a disabled teenager befriended by some biker boys.

Two decades before he starred as The Elephant Man, a disabled teenager played by John Hurt is befriended by some bikers who welcome him into their youth club. Made in 1963, The Contact is a remarkably forward-looking attempt to show disabled young people as deserving of inclusion and acceptance in mainstream society. Look carefully and you’ll spot a young Pauline Collins and Wendy Richards doing the Twist.

The common practice of a non-disabled actor playing a disabled character is felt by many to be offensive, in a similar way to white actors 'blacking up' to play a Black character - which is now relatively rare. Disabled actors are currently under-represented in the creative industries and on the screen.