Friday 30th March 2001

Fern: The residents of Cardale have more than foot-and-mouth to worry about. There is a new epidemic about to break loose.

[Clip from episode that will be shown on Thursday 5th April 2001]

And here he is. Simon Shepherd is here. It's lovely to meet you.

Simon: Thank you very much for having me.

John: A warm studio today isn't it. . . rather than the open air?

Simon: It certainly is. Glad I've got my T-shirt on, which is my Save The Children T-shirt.

John: You didn't waste any time did you? It's there. . .

Simon: Straight in with Save The Children.

Fern: Are you working for Save The Children?

Simon: I am not working for Save The Children, I'm supporting Save The Children. (Points to his T-shirt) This is one in four, which is, one in four children in the world live in poverty.

Fern: Really?

Simon: Six hundred million children and we want to change these odds.

Fern: When is the big Save the Children day?

Simon: It's the 29th April and it's for a week…and what we are asking for today, is for collectors. House to house collection, street collections. 7p can buy enough food for a child in Ethiopia to live for one day. 7p!

Fern: So, you can't say "I haven't got any change on me."

Simon: You shouldn't be embarrassed about saying that I haven't got any change on me, if you know that you've got 10p. Just put it in. Think how much you could collect in an hour.

John: If you want to help, how can you?

Simon: You can call a number, which I have written on my hand: 0845 606 4027. Please do it now.

John: And then for one week and . . .

Simon: Just one week and we're looking for collectors. We really need these collectors. Last year we collected £500,000 and I think that we can do more this year.

Fern: I'm sure you can. The final day is Saturday May 5th, so all those people that jangle tins outside the supermarket, in car parks and street corners. . .that is the big day to . . .

Simon: That's the big day, but you can also do it, if you can't face doing that, you can say that you'll collect envelopes from people's houses.

John: How come you got involved in this then? Has it always been close to you? Is it one of your nominated charities that you've always worked for?

Simon: Yes, it's a . . .I mean I get asked to do a lot of charity and same as you (gestures to Fern) I've got a lot of children.

Fern: You've got four, haven't you?

Simon: Yeah, I've got four, yes. Don't have one on the way though . . . erm. . . and I have nominated a certain number of children's charities. I could be doing charity every weekend, but you know, I have a life . . .

Fern: It's the privilege of your position, isn't it? You get a lot of requests I'm sure.

Simon: Yeah.

Fern: And it's easier to focus on an area that you'd really like to help.

Simon: Yeah. . . well I feel that I had a very privileged childhood and I hope that my children have the same. And I think that we have a responsibility. . .I mean children deserve education. . . they have a right to education, health care, clean water. . .you know all the things that we take for granted in this country. In deed, Save The Children work in this country aswell.

John: Staggering isn't it? So many impoverished children in the world. . . still in this day and age.

Simon: It's just not, it's not good enough.

John: It's not on.

Simon: No it isn't.

Fern: Did you see the report on the news last night . . . In India where they had that terrible earthquake a couple of months ago. And they have nothing and there's some row between the government and the contractors, who are supposed to be clearing the rubble and rebuilding, as to who's going to pay. So they've stopped! And there are children, who've lost their parents and they're living on these rubble tips, picking through to find a bit of fabric to give to somebody, or to sell.

Simon: There's a story that I read of a girl called Linda, in Angola. And through terror, she and her family are living in poverty now. They've gone away from their hometown. And these children just want to tell their story. The Save The Children are very clear that that's what the children want to do. They just want to tell their stories. Her story. . . basically she doesn't have the same rights that all of us have. She lives in dirty rags. She is 14 and she is not allowed to go to school, because she's got to look after brothers and sisters. Normal human rights. . .she has no clean water. . .all she wants, she says, "All I want is to be normal. Like everybody else."

John: Given a chance!

Fern: We really don't know we are born, do we?

Simon: No we don't, we really don't!

Fern: We have a misery if we haven't got enough petrol in the car. . .But anyway, talking of children. . .and you've done that very well, Save The Children Fund . . .

Simon: Thank you!

John: From fact to fiction really.

Fern: Yes. In Peak Practice, we see the. . .the clip we saw earlier is from next weeks show, which is the last of this current series.

Simon: Yes that's right.

John: Very topical as well . . .

Fern: Yes, a little baby with measles. . .and this is a big number, because mums are. . .

John: Very worried about it!

Fern: Yes, this MMR. . .Measles, Mumps and Rubella. There are a lot of people thinking it could cause autism in children, once they are given the injection and so a lot of people aren't vaccinating their babies anymore, are they?

Simon: No, I think it's a very difficult problem. I think that you have to get as much information, don't you? I mean, presumably you are going through the same. . .

Fern: Absolutely. Are all of your children vaccinated?

Simon: No, not all of them. . . but I mean it's a question of finding out as much information as you can and making your decision. And the only way that you can do that is to follow government guidelines and talk to your GP. I think that's. . . and read as much as you can. It's really difficult!

Fern: Well, the programme has tackled it and shown both sides, so lets have a look at a clip… again of next Thursdays show, isn't it?

[Clip]

All: Ohhhh!

John: Do you think that there mirrors what real life is? I mean I don't have the worry that, a decision that you'll have to make. . . but it seems to me that doctors seem to think that it's ok. And there are loads of cases coming forward of people saying, "well my child was ok until, they got a vaccination."

Simon: I think it's terribly difficult, difficult question.

Fern: Don't think there's any hard and fast facts yet. . .

John: Nobody knows.

Fern: It's a difficult situation.

Simon: I think it's very difficult!

Fern: The thing that the programme has highlighted is that healthy children will get measles and measles is life-threatening.

Simon: Yeah!

Fern: You forget that!

Simon: And it's, and measles was, not wiped out in this country, but I mean it was such a rare occurrence. And that will not be the case. It's a very difficult problem for the individual and it's actually the individual that has to make the choice. And I think that everybody just has to read as much as they possibly can and make their own choice.

Fern: I mean we all want to protect our children. . .

Simon: Of course!

Fern: And give them as best chance as possible. Simon, thank you very much indeed!

Simon: Thank you!

Fern: Lovely to meet you. It's mother's favourite programme.

Simon: Great! We'll be back in the Autumn.

Fern: Oh great!

John: And yourself, obviously.

Fern: And we'll know about whether she's all right with . . .

Simon: We certainly will.

Fern: Ovarian cysts and . . .

Simon: I don't know yet, so I couldn't even give you a hint on that one.

Fern:I hope she's ok!!

John:She just had to get that one in there!

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