Riding for the Disabled

When their houses were condemned, homeowners in Deans South, Livingston, fought for a fair deal and ended up living in a ghost town. Mark Stephen speaks with Kerry Macintosh, Phil Cavan and Isabel Baxter, who after twenty years finally found a solution.

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Mark Stephen visits the Fife Flyers in Kirkcaldy to meet the players, management and fans of the oldest ice hockey team.With over 60 Scottish and British cups and titles to their name, the Flyers have a storied history of success that’s all the more impressive considering they’re based in a small market town. Despite facing financial challenges compared to their rivals in larger cities like Cardiff, Belfast and Sheffield, the Flyers have more than made up for it with unwavering team spirit and a relentless drive to win. This was exemplified 40 years ago, when the Flyers were crowned British champions at Wembley Arena in London.The team plays at the historic Fife Ice Arena, which opened in 1938. From the outside, the arena resembles an old cinema, and its interior reflects its vintage charm. While it may not boast the modern, sleek design of newer venues, the Fife Ice Arena more than compensates with its rich character and decades of history.

Mark Stephen takes to the skies as he heads to North Uist in a light aircraft to meet the organisers of the Sollas Beach Fly-In, a special annual event where pilots get to challenge themselves by landing on a public beach.First established in the early 2000s by John Angus Macleod, the fly-in has grown from a few pilots landing on Sollas beach to an event that now attracts light-aircraft enthusiasts from all over the UK as well as further afield in Europe.

Mark Stephen takes a paddle on the Union Canal with Scotland’s only cancer survivors' dragon boat group, the Port Edgar Dragons. He also learns about the origins of the Pink Dragon movement in Canada, a dragon boat team formed by cancer survivors. The initiative was founded by Dr Don McKenzie, a professor of sports medicine and exercise physiologist, who sought to challenge the prevailing medical belief at the time that women treated for breast cancer should avoid rigorous upper-body exercise due to the risk of lymphedema - a chronic and debilitating side effect of treatment.

Barlinnie's prison radio station broadcasts into every cell, offering music request shows and vital information to support rehabilitation. Mark meets Barry Richardson, the prison officer who set up the station and learned how to operate it alongside the prisoners. Inmates including DJ Geo tell Mark how they've learned valuable life skills like teamwork and responsibility. Victoria Byrne from Citizens Advice uses the radio station to help prepare prisoners for their release, and for former inmate Jordan Robertson, working at Barbed Wireless led to a career in the media.

Forty years on, Mark Stephen hears why miners Gordon Cossar, Robert Kelly and Frank Bryce fought so hard to defend their communities in the most bitter strike in living memory.

As Knockhill racing circuit in Fife turns 50, Mark Stephen hears how farmer Tom Kinnaird turned his sheep farm into the home of Scottish motorsport. Over the last five decades, Knockhill has been the breeding ground for champions such as Formula 1 driver David Coulthard and superbike rider Niall MacKenzie, but triple British Touring Car champion Gordon ‘Flash’ Shedden gives Mark the full Knockhill experience as they hurtle around the track at over 100mph.

Mark Stephen visits the Borders to speak to some of Scotland’s most dedicated pigeon fanciers. Regarded as ‘feathered athletes’, he discovers a world of friendship, fun and fierce competition. He learns how the sport of pigeon racing fosters incredible bonds within families and how the traditional image of pigeon racing is being challenged by many in the racing community.

The Riding for the Disabled Association, also known as the RDA, was founded in 1969, and for over 55 years, the charity has been providing therapeutic horse-riding and carriage-driving lessons to thousands of individuals living with a disability, regardless of age or experience.In this week’s Our Story, Mark Stephen hears from the dedicated coaches, volunteers and participants whose lives have been transformed through the incredible relationship between horse and human.