Media Representation & UK Disability on Screen Today

Why Media Representation Is Key To Understanding Disability: What Recent UK TV Storylines Get Right - And Where They Still Fall Short

Recent UK television has made visible efforts to include disability and chronic illness storylines; from Waterloo Road's endometriosis arc to disabled dancers on Strictly Come Dancing, to Reggie, a recurring character in Call the Midwife, with Down's Syndrome. These portrayals matter, but they also reveal the limitations of how disability is still represented on screen.

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For many people, media - particularly TV, is one of the primary ways they see and learn about disability. Television dramas, reality shows, documentaries and news coverage all play a role in shaping how disability is understood, particularly for audiences who may have little direct experience themselves. As a result, media representation does more than entertain; it acts as a form of informal education, influencing attitudes, assumptions, and expectations.

In recent years, disability and chronic illness have become more visible across UK television. Storylines addressing conditions such as endometriosis, learning disability, and physical impairment are appearing in mainstream programmes, while disabled participants are increasingly present in non-fiction and entertainment formats. This visibility matters. Seeing disability represented on screen can validate lived experience, challenge misconceptions, and prompt wider public conversation.

However, representation is never neutral. The way disability is framed, through narrative structure, emotional emphasis, and genre conventions, shapes what audiences take away from these portrayals. This is where media literacy becomes essential. By looking critically at how disability is represented in both fictional and non-fiction television, we can better understand not just what is being shown, but what these representations teach us about disability, normality, and inclusion.

Fictional television drama offers a particular way of representing disability, allowing writers to explore lived experience through character, narrative, and emotion. Programmes such as Waterloo Road and Call the Midwife provide useful examples of how disability and chronic illness are portrayed within scripted formats, and what audiences may learn from them.

Waterloo Road's recent endometriosis storyline brought attention to a condition that is widely misunderstood and frequently dismissed. By placing an invisible, chronic illness within a school setting, the programme highlighted how pain and fatigue are often minimised, particularly when symptoms do not fit visible or easily understood markers of illness. For many viewers, the storyline reflected familiar experiences of delayed diagnosis, disbelief, and the struggle to be taken seriously by institutions.

The strength of this portrayal lay in its validation of pain and persistence. Seeing a mainstream drama acknowledge the impact of endometriosis helped raise awareness of a condition that affects millions yet remains underrepresented on screen. However, as with many fictional narratives, the storyline also risked compressing a long and often ongoing experience into a relatively contained arc. Diagnosis can be framed as a form of narrative closure, potentially implying resolution where, in reality, management and uncertainty often continue.

Call the Midwife offers a different model of disability representation. Through the character of Reggie, a young man with a learning disability (Down syndrome), the series presents disability as part of everyday community life rather than as a one-off issue-led storyline. Reggie is not defined solely by his disability; instead, viewers see his relationships, routines, humour, and sense of belonging within his family and wider community, as demonstrated in Series 11's train crash episodes where he is making cups of tea.

This form of representation is significant. By allowing a disabled character to exist beyond moments of crisis or dramatic revelation, Call the Midwife challenges the idea that disability must always be exceptional, tragic, or inspirational to be meaningful. At the same time, the programme's period setting can soften some of the structural barriers disabled people historically faced, favouring warmth and compassion over systemic critique. While this approach humanises disability, it may also risk underplaying the realities of exclusion and limited support.

Together, these fictional examples demonstrate how scripted television can both illuminate and simplify disability experience. Drama has the power to foster empathy and recognition, but it also shapes understanding through narrative choices about what is shown, what is resolved, and what remains unseen. This is where media literacy becomes crucial, helping audiences recognise not only the value of representation, but its limitations within fictional storytelling.

While fictional drama allows writers to shape disability narratives through character and storyline, non-fiction and entertainment formats operate under different conditions. Programmes grounded in reality place disabled people themselves at the centre of representation, offering visibility that is not mediated through scripted narrative arcs. However, these formats are also shaped by editing, competition structures, and audience expectation. As a result, non-fiction disability representation raises different questions about agency, authenticity, and the emotional framing of lived experience.

One of the most prominent UK examples of this is Strictly Come Dancing, which has increasingly included disabled contestants over the years, bringing disability into one of the country's most watched entertainment programmes. Strictly occupies a unique space in UK media. As a prime-time entertainment programme, it reaches audiences who may not actively seek out disability-focused content, making its approach to representation particularly influential. Through the inclusion of disabled contestants, the programme has challenged assumptions about who belongs on the dance floor and what ability looks like in performance.

Deaf contestants such as Rose Ayling-Ellis and Tasha Ghouri brought conversations about access, communication, and rhythm into the mainstream. Rose Ayling-Ellis's performances, including the widely discussed silent segment of her dance, foregrounded deaf experience in a way that was both creative and disruptive, inviting audiences to reconsider how music and movement are understood. Tasha Ghouri's participation similarly normalised the presence of deaf contestants in competitive entertainment without positioning deafness as a limitation to be overcome.

Other contestants have broadened representations of physical disability. Chris McCausland, a blind comedian, challenged visual assumptions embedded within a highly visual format. Paralympians and veterans such as Jonnie Peacock, Jody Cundy, JJ Chalmers, and Lauren Steadman, all of whom have limb differences or amputations, brought visible disability into a space traditionally associated with physical symmetry and aesthetic perfection. Their participation reframed dance as adaptable rather than exclusive.

The programme has also featured contestants whose experiences complicate narrow definitions of disability. Katie Piper, who survived severe burns and lives with lasting physical and psychological effects, brought visibility to facial difference and trauma, even where disability labels may not be straightforward or universally applied. Ellie Simmonds, a swimmer with dwarfism, challenged assumptions about height, proportion, and athletic bodies, while Ellie Goldstein, a model with Down syndrome, extended representation beyond sport and entertainment into fashion and popular culture.

These appearances matter. Seeing disabled people participate in a mainstream entertainment format helps normalise disability as part of public life rather than something confined to specialist programming. However, Strictly also illustrates the tensions inherent in non-fiction representation. Emotional backstories, editing choices, and celebratory narratives can sometimes lean towards inspiration framing, encouraging audiences to focus on perceived triumph over adversity rather than skill, professionalism, or individuality.

From a media literacy perspective, this does not negate the value of such representation, but it does highlight the importance of critical engagement. Viewers are invited not only to celebrate inclusion, but to consider how disability is framed, which stories are foregrounded, and how emotion is used to guide interpretation. In doing so, non-fiction television becomes a powerful site for understanding both the possibilities and limitations of disability representation.

Fictional and non-fiction television each offer unique opportunities for disability representation. Drama, such as Waterloo Road and Call the Midwife, allows audiences to engage with character-driven narratives that explore lived experience, emotion, and community. Non-fiction formats, like Strictly Come Dancing, place disabled people directly in the public eye, offering visibility and challenging assumptions about capability and inclusion.

Yet both approaches also reveal gaps. Fictional narratives often compress or resolve ongoing challenges too neatly, risking the impression that disability experiences are simpler than they are. Non-fiction programmes, while highly visible, can frame participation through inspiration or emotional storytelling, sometimes emphasising triumph over adversity rather than skill, individuality, or systemic barriers. Recognising these limitations is central to understanding not just what audiences see, but what they learn from these portrayals.

Despite progress, many groups remain underrepresented or absent in UK television. Conditions that are invisible or fluctuating, such as chronic fatigue syndrome, fibromyalgia, or mental health conditions, rarely receive sustained attention in either drama or reality formats. Intersectional experiences - for example, disabled people from ethnic minority backgrounds, LGBTQ+ disabled individuals, or those from lower-income communities - are particularly rare. Certain impairments, such as neurodivergence beyond Down syndrome, sensory differences, or complex multiple disabilities, are also largely absent from mainstream narratives.

By overlooking these experiences, media runs the risk of presenting a narrow view of disability, one that emphasises visibility and inspiration but fails to reflect the diversity and complexity of real lives. Highlighting these gaps is essential to understanding where representation is still falling short and how it could be improved.

Representation matters because it shapes understanding, validates lived experience, and challenges stereotypes. UK television is increasingly diverse, bringing disability into mainstream visibility. Yet visibility alone is not enough. To move beyond surface-level awareness, audiences and producers alike must reflect on how disability is framed, whose voices are prioritised, and what stories remain untold.

By critically examining both fictional and non-fiction portrayals, we can celebrate progress while acknowledging where representation still falls short - and in doing so, encourage media that is not only inclusive, but accurate, nuanced, and empowering.

Author Bio:

Katie Hazel is a secondary school Computing and Media teacher by trade, currently completing her Masters in Education, with research about media literacy and media representation, exploring how the media shapes the way we see ourselves and the world around us. She has lived with De Quervain's for 13 years and draws on her own experience to understand the impact of media representation on those with chronic conditions.

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