The Senses

Episode

Title

First
Broadcast

Repeated

Comments

Hearing

19900102

20160204 (BBC7)
20160205 (BBC7)
20160206 (BBC7)
20190812 (BBC7)
20190813 (BBC7)
20190817 (BBC7)

An affair conducted via tape cassette-recorded messages conjures up a few problems with the sense of hearing.

Opening episode starring Celia Imrie and John McGlynn.

Heather - Celia Imrie

Tony - John McGlynn

Audrey - Francesca Brill

Edith - Eva Stuart

Mr Polglaze - Daniel Moynihan

Postman - Norman Bird

Senses is a six-part comedy drama boasting a stellar list of star names, including Joan Sims, Charles Gray, Alex Jennings, Sylvestra Le Touzel, Geoffrey Palmer, Lynda Bellingham, Brian Murphy, Rodney Bewes, Liz Fraser, Rory McGrath and Maurice Denham.

As writer Bob Sinfield explains: 'The six half-hour plays dealt respectively with the five obvious senses plus the er...other one'.

Producer: Neil Cargill

First broadcast on the BBC Radio 4 in 1990.

An affair conducted through messages recorded on cassette sparks problems.

Touch

20201209

Our skin contains millions of nerve endings and touch sensors that collect information about different sensations - like temperature, pressure, vibration, pain and send it to the brain for processing and reaction. But it's when our sensory system goes wrong that we learn most about how our senses help us understand the world around us.

Neurologist, Dr Guy Leschziner, talks to Alison, whose nervous systems goes haywire after she eats delicious seafood whilst on holiday in Fiji. She discovers her fish is contaminated with ciguatera poison, turning her sense of temperature upside down, so cold becomes hot and the cold floor tiles burn the soles of her feet.

We hear from Dawn, whose damaged nerve triggers excruciating pain down the side of her face - illustrating how our senses can trick us about the source of our agony.

We meet Paul, who's broken every bone in his body, yet never feels a jot of pain. His rare genetic condition, congenital insensitivity to pain, means his brain never receives signals warning of damage to his flesh and bones. And whilst a pain-free life might sound appealing, we find out it has serious physical and psychological consequences.

And through Rahel we learn about a lesser-known touch sensation, called proprioception. When it's not working, it affects our coordination. And for Rahel, that means she struggles to stay upright when it's dark.

Presenter: Dr Guy Leschziner

Producer: Sally Abrahams

Neurologist Dr Guy Leschziner explores the surprisingly strange world of our senses.

Neurologist Guy Leschziner explores the surprisingly strange world of our senses.

Touch

19900109

20160211 (BBC7)
20160212 (BBC7)
20190819 (BBC7)
20190820 (BBC7)

A busy doctor's surgery is failing its patients until the loyal receptionist discovers she has a gift.

Starring Polly James and Michael Angelis.

Marjorie - Polly James

Dr Cole - Michael Angelis

Angela - Bridget Turner

Graham - Simon McBurney

Emily - Avis Bunnage

Jill - Kay Stonham

Alan - Roger Hyams

As writer Bob Sinfield explains: 'The six half-hour plays dealt respectively with the five obvious senses plus the er...other one'.

Producer: David Tylerl

First broadcast on the BBC Radio 4 in 1990.

A doctor's surgery is failing its patients until the receptionist discovers she is gifted.

Vision

20201216

Vision is a complex process involving light rays, special nerve cells and electrical signals sent to the brain, which processes the information and tells us what we're seeing. But even tiny disruptions to any part of this system can result in remarkable visual problems.

Neurologist, Dr Guy Leschziner, meets 25 year-old filmmaker Oli, who's only recently discovered something alarming: he's missing half his vision in one eye - probably caused by a stroke he had before he was born. What's more surprising, Oli can see moving objects in his blind spot', but not stationary ones.

We hear from Dawn, whose eyes are working properly and yet she's almost completely blind. Her visual problems are caused by damage to a vital nerve connecting her eyeballs and her brain.

Susan describes how her epilepsy is causing visual distortions that mean she can see through a person as if they were transparent

And we meet Nina who's been robbed of her sight after two separate accidents. And yet, she sees colours and terrifying images of zombie faces. She discovers she has Charles Bonnet Syndrome - visual hallucinations caused by loss of sight.

Through the extraordinary experiences of these individuals, we learn how vision is not like a video camera, a straightforward process of turning light into a picture. These malfunctions in our visual system illustrate that we see with our brains and nervous system, not just our eyes.

Presenter: Dr Guy Leschziner

Producer: Sally Abrahams

Neurologist Dr Guy Leschziner explores the surprisingly strange world of our senses.

Neurologist Guy Leschziner explores the surprisingly strange world of our senses.

Hearing

20201223

From a whisper to the roar of thunder, every sound creates vibrations in our ears which the brain decodes, to tell us what we're hearing. But, as neurologist, Dr Guy Leschziner explains, when disruptions occur along the way, extraordinary things can happen, changing the way we perceive the world.

We meet Mark, whose hearing problems start in his forties. He can't hear his friends in a noisy pub, but more disturbingly, the sound of every bodily function is amplified in his head. He even hears the squelch of his eyeballs moving. After years of misery, he's diagnosed with superior canal dehiscence syndrome, caused by a tiny hole in his inner ear. Illustrating how even the smallest defect can cause big problems.

Kelly is in her twenties when she gets spinning attacks that send her falling to the floor. The sensation, like being on a child's roundabout, lasts for hours. With every attack, she loses hearing. She's told it's Meniere's disease, an inner ear disorder that affects balance - demonstrating its intimate link with our sense of hearing.

Keen bird-watcher Bill recognises his hearing loss when he can no longer pick out the call of the smallest birds. But Bill has another problem: he can hear elaborate musical tunes, when there's nothing playing. These musical hallucinations are created by his brain, to compensate for what his ears can't hear any more.

We rely on our brains and nervous systems to tell us the truth about the world around us - but they can deceive us. These astonishing cases show how tiny changes in our bodies can turn our understanding of the world upside down, leading us to question our own version of reality.

Presenter: Dr Guy Leschziner

Producer: Sally Abrahams

'I could hear my eyeballs moving': how rogue messages pass between our ears and brain.

Neurologist Guy Leschziner explores the surprisingly strange world of our senses.

Sight

19900116

20160218 (BBC7)
20160219 (BBC7)
20190826 (BBC7)
20190827 (BBC7)

A sleepy Cornish village provides the fodder for a self-appointed one-man Moral Watch Committee, until a mysterious film crew arrives....

Starring Ernest Clark

George - Ernest Clarke

Spargo - Donald Gee

Phoebe - Rebecca Saire

Littlejohn - Rory McGrath

Lancing - Paul Shearer

Mrs Menhennet - Hilda Braid

Theo - Geoffrey Matthews

Denzil - Bob Sinfield

As writer Bob Sinfield explains: 'The six half-hour plays dealt respectively with the five obvious senses plus the er... other one'.

Producer: David Tylerl

First broadcast on the BBC Radio 4 in January 1990.

A retired MP's ambition to improve the morality of his village has the opposite effect.

Smell And Taste

20201130

20201230 (R4)

Imagine spraying yourself with a flowery fragrance but all you can smell is rotting flesh?

Our senses can be surprisingly strange, especially when they malfunction due to injury, disease or genetic abnormalities. In this episode, neurologist Dr Guy Leschziner, explores two senses, smell and taste - separate yet inextricably linked.

We meet Joanne, whose sense of smell is so distorted after a heavy cold, even freshly-cut grass smells repulsive.

We hear from Walter who loves to cook and eat German cuisine but finds that pleasure is ruined when everything, even fine wine, tastes of metal. What causes this glitch in signalling from the taste buds on his tongue to the area of the brain processing taste?

By contrast, 15 year-old Abi's sense of taste is working properly. She can tell if her food is sweet or salty. But Abi was born without a sense of smell (anosmia), which also means anything she eats has no flavour - because that's created by smell and taste working together. If you want to imagine Abi's life, listen out for the jelly bean test.

Loss of smell, an early symptom of coronavirus, has raised awareness of this important, yet neglected sense, often only appreciated when it's gone. Yet so vital it's wired directly to parts of the brain responsible for memories and emotion.

Through Joanne, Abi and Walter we learn how disorders of our sensory system can help explain the way our bodies interact with the outside world. And discover how what we believe to be reality is often very far from the truth.

Presenter: Dr Guy Leschziner

Producer: Sally Abrahams

'Everything smelled of rotting flesh, even perfume': What happens when smell goes wrong?

Neurologist Guy Leschziner explores the surprisingly strange world of our senses.

Taste

19900123

20160225 (BBC7)
20190902 (BBC7)
20190903 (BBC7)
20240210 (BBC7)
20240211 (BBC7)

*** This programme was suggested by Christiane Fischer as part of BBC Radio 4 Extra's All Request Weekend ****

Can a 14th century Italian food taster protect his master, especially when he's invited to dine with the Borgias.

Six-part comedy drama written by Bob Sinfield.

Candelli - Alex Jennings

Massemino - John Woodvine

The Pope - Charles Gray

Francesquina - Kate Duchêne

Cesare Borgia - Clive Mantle

Paolo - Glynn Edwards

Caterina - Caroline Leddy

Biagio - David Battley

Lucrezia Borgia - Janine Duvitski

The Priest - David King

The series boasts a stellar list of star names, including Joan Sims, Charles Gray, Alex Jennings, Sylvestra Le Touzel, Geoffrey Palmer, Lynda Bellingham, Brian Murphy, Rodney Bewes, Liz Fraser, Rory McGrath and Maurice Denham.

As writer Bob explains: 'The six half-hour plays dealt respectively with the five obvious senses plus the er... other one'.

Producer: David Tyler

First broadcast on the BBC Radio 4 in January 1990.

**** To nominate a programme from the archives that you would like to hear again, please email radio4extra@BBC.co.uk and tell us details of why you'd like to hear it. ****

Can a 14th-century Italian food taster protect his master when they visit the Borgias?

Can a 14th-century Italian food taster protect his master when they visit the Borgias? Stars Alex Jennings and John Woodvine.

As writer Bob Sinfield explains: 'The six half-hour plays dealt respectively with the five obvious senses plus the er... other one'.

Producer: David Tylerl

Smell

19900130

20160303 (BBC7)
20160304 (BBC7)
20190909 (BBC7)
20190910 (BBC7)

Throwing off the scent poses problems for hunters and hunted alike, in a Boxing Day fox hunt.

Ken - Rodney Bewes

Vera - Liz Fraser

Diane - Lynda Bellingham

Leonard - Maurice Denham

Glynn - David Neville

Beasley - Michael Starke

The Horses and Hounds - David Goudge/ Judi Maynard /John Hollis

Senses is a six-part comedy by Bob Sinfield who explains: 'The six half-hour plays dealt respectively with the five obvious senses plus the er...other one'.

Producer: Neil Cargill

First broadcast on the BBC Radio 4 in January 1990.

Throwing off the scent poses problems for hunters and hunted alike in a Boxing Day hunt.

Synaesthesia: When Senses Merge

20210113

Neurologist. Dr Guy Leschziner, explores the extraordinary sensory experiences of individuals with synaesthesia - a mash-up of senses where one sense automatically triggers another. Some synaesthetes hear colours, others feel sound.

We meet James who perceives the world differently from most people, due to his brain's unusual wiring. Whenever he hears a word he immediately gets a taste and texture in his mouth. As a child, he'd go by train to school with his mum, reading out loud the stations they passed through. His favourite was Tottenham Court Road because the word sounds taste of sausage, crispy fried egg and toast.

Whilst James tastes words, 23 year-old synaesthete Valeria sees colours and feels textures when she hears music. She assumes everyone has that sensory experience until, at aged 14, she sees her dad's astonished reaction! For Valeria, some music is so utterly exquisite it causes her intense, physical pain.

Such variations in perception can also affect our internal world as Sheri, a painter from Canada, illustrates. After a stroke in her twenties she can no longer picture images in her mind. The condition, aphantasia (meaning without a mind's eye') is so devastating Sheri calls it `internal blindness`.

Our understanding of reality comes from how we perceive the world around us. But as we discover in this programme and throughout this series, each of us experiences a unique reality constructed by our brain and our sensory system. Leading us to question what is real and what is an illusion.

Presenter: Dr Guy Leschziner

Producer: Sally Abrahams

Synaesthesia: We meet the man whose sister tastes of blackcurrant yoghurt

Neurologist Guy Leschziner explores the surprisingly strange world of our senses.

The Sixth Sense

19900206

20160310 (BBC7)
20160311 (BBC7)
20190916 (BBC7)
20190917 (BBC7)

Conversation is far from neighbourly when the occupants of an old cemetery greet a new arrival and discover their lack of common ground.

Buckmaster - Geoffrey Palmer

Sarah - Sylvestra Le Touzel

Mildred - Joan Sims

Kitchie - Brian Murphy

Ridley - Peter Blythe

Olivia - Jane Booker

Gordon - Michael Kilgareth

Last in Bob Sinfield's comedy series who explains: 'The six half-hour plays dealt respectively with the five obvious senses plus the er...other one'.

Producer: Neil Cargill

First broadcast on the BBC Radio 4 in February 1990.

Will the occupants of an old cemetery be pleasant to a new arrival?

Episodes

Episode	Title	First Broadcast	Repeated	Comments
01	Hearing	19900102	20160204 (BBC7) 20160205 (BBC7) 20160206 (BBC7) 20190812 (BBC7) 20190813 (BBC7) 20190817 (BBC7)	An affair conducted via tape cassette-recorded messages conjures up a few problems with the sense of hearing. Opening episode starring Celia Imrie and John McGlynn. Heather - Celia Imrie Tony - John McGlynn Audrey - Francesca Brill Edith - Eva Stuart Mr Polglaze - Daniel Moynihan Postman - Norman Bird Senses is a six-part comedy drama boasting a stellar list of star names, including Joan Sims, Charles Gray, Alex Jennings, Sylvestra Le Touzel, Geoffrey Palmer, Lynda Bellingham, Brian Murphy, Rodney Bewes, Liz Fraser, Rory McGrath and Maurice Denham. As writer Bob Sinfield explains: 'The six half-hour plays dealt respectively with the five obvious senses plus the er...other one'. Producer: Neil Cargill First broadcast on the BBC Radio 4 in 1990. An affair conducted through messages recorded on cassette sparks problems.
01	Touch	20201209		Our skin contains millions of nerve endings and touch sensors that collect information about different sensations - like temperature, pressure, vibration, pain and send it to the brain for processing and reaction. But it's when our sensory system goes wrong that we learn most about how our senses help us understand the world around us. Neurologist, Dr Guy Leschziner, talks to Alison, whose nervous systems goes haywire after she eats delicious seafood whilst on holiday in Fiji. She discovers her fish is contaminated with ciguatera poison, turning her sense of temperature upside down, so cold becomes hot and the cold floor tiles burn the soles of her feet. We hear from Dawn, whose damaged nerve triggers excruciating pain down the side of her face - illustrating how our senses can trick us about the source of our agony. We meet Paul, who's broken every bone in his body, yet never feels a jot of pain. His rare genetic condition, congenital insensitivity to pain, means his brain never receives signals warning of damage to his flesh and bones. And whilst a pain-free life might sound appealing, we find out it has serious physical and psychological consequences. And through Rahel we learn about a lesser-known touch sensation, called proprioception. When it's not working, it affects our coordination. And for Rahel, that means she struggles to stay upright when it's dark. Presenter: Dr Guy Leschziner Producer: Sally Abrahams Neurologist Dr Guy Leschziner explores the surprisingly strange world of our senses. Neurologist Guy Leschziner explores the surprisingly strange world of our senses.
02	Touch	19900109	20160211 (BBC7) 20160212 (BBC7) 20190819 (BBC7) 20190820 (BBC7)	A busy doctor's surgery is failing its patients until the loyal receptionist discovers she has a gift. Starring Polly James and Michael Angelis. Marjorie - Polly James Dr Cole - Michael Angelis Angela - Bridget Turner Graham - Simon McBurney Emily - Avis Bunnage Jill - Kay Stonham Alan - Roger Hyams Senses is a six-part comedy drama boasting a stellar list of star names, including Joan Sims, Charles Gray, Alex Jennings, Sylvestra Le Touzel, Geoffrey Palmer, Lynda Bellingham, Brian Murphy, Rodney Bewes, Liz Fraser, Rory McGrath and Maurice Denham. As writer Bob Sinfield explains: 'The six half-hour plays dealt respectively with the five obvious senses plus the er...other one'. Producer: David Tylerl First broadcast on the BBC Radio 4 in 1990. A doctor's surgery is failing its patients until the receptionist discovers she is gifted.
02	Vision	20201216		Vision is a complex process involving light rays, special nerve cells and electrical signals sent to the brain, which processes the information and tells us what we're seeing. But even tiny disruptions to any part of this system can result in remarkable visual problems. Neurologist, Dr Guy Leschziner, meets 25 year-old filmmaker Oli, who's only recently discovered something alarming: he's missing half his vision in one eye - probably caused by a stroke he had before he was born. What's more surprising, Oli can see moving objects in his blind spot', but not stationary ones. We hear from Dawn, whose eyes are working properly and yet she's almost completely blind. Her visual problems are caused by damage to a vital nerve connecting her eyeballs and her brain. Susan describes how her epilepsy is causing visual distortions that mean she can see through a person as if they were transparent And we meet Nina who's been robbed of her sight after two separate accidents. And yet, she sees colours and terrifying images of zombie faces. She discovers she has Charles Bonnet Syndrome - visual hallucinations caused by loss of sight. Through the extraordinary experiences of these individuals, we learn how vision is not like a video camera, a straightforward process of turning light into a picture. These malfunctions in our visual system illustrate that we see with our brains and nervous system, not just our eyes. Presenter: Dr Guy Leschziner Producer: Sally Abrahams Neurologist Dr Guy Leschziner explores the surprisingly strange world of our senses. Neurologist Guy Leschziner explores the surprisingly strange world of our senses.
03	Hearing	20201223		From a whisper to the roar of thunder, every sound creates vibrations in our ears which the brain decodes, to tell us what we're hearing. But, as neurologist, Dr Guy Leschziner explains, when disruptions occur along the way, extraordinary things can happen, changing the way we perceive the world. We meet Mark, whose hearing problems start in his forties. He can't hear his friends in a noisy pub, but more disturbingly, the sound of every bodily function is amplified in his head. He even hears the squelch of his eyeballs moving. After years of misery, he's diagnosed with superior canal dehiscence syndrome, caused by a tiny hole in his inner ear. Illustrating how even the smallest defect can cause big problems. Kelly is in her twenties when she gets spinning attacks that send her falling to the floor. The sensation, like being on a child's roundabout, lasts for hours. With every attack, she loses hearing. She's told it's Meniere's disease, an inner ear disorder that affects balance - demonstrating its intimate link with our sense of hearing. Keen bird-watcher Bill recognises his hearing loss when he can no longer pick out the call of the smallest birds. But Bill has another problem: he can hear elaborate musical tunes, when there's nothing playing. These musical hallucinations are created by his brain, to compensate for what his ears can't hear any more. We rely on our brains and nervous systems to tell us the truth about the world around us - but they can deceive us. These astonishing cases show how tiny changes in our bodies can turn our understanding of the world upside down, leading us to question our own version of reality. Presenter: Dr Guy Leschziner Producer: Sally Abrahams 'I could hear my eyeballs moving': how rogue messages pass between our ears and brain. Neurologist Guy Leschziner explores the surprisingly strange world of our senses.
03	Sight	19900116	20160218 (BBC7) 20160219 (BBC7) 20190826 (BBC7) 20190827 (BBC7)	A sleepy Cornish village provides the fodder for a self-appointed one-man Moral Watch Committee, until a mysterious film crew arrives.... Starring Ernest Clark George - Ernest Clarke Spargo - Donald Gee Phoebe - Rebecca Saire Littlejohn - Rory McGrath Lancing - Paul Shearer Mrs Menhennet - Hilda Braid Theo - Geoffrey Matthews Denzil - Bob Sinfield Senses is a six-part comedy drama boasting a stellar list of star names, including Joan Sims, Charles Gray, Alex Jennings, Sylvestra Le Touzel, Geoffrey Palmer, Lynda Bellingham, Brian Murphy, Rodney Bewes, Liz Fraser, Rory McGrath and Maurice Denham. As writer Bob Sinfield explains: 'The six half-hour plays dealt respectively with the five obvious senses plus the er... other one'. Producer: David Tylerl First broadcast on the BBC Radio 4 in January 1990. A retired MP's ambition to improve the morality of his village has the opposite effect.
04	Smell And Taste	20201130	20201230 (R4)	Imagine spraying yourself with a flowery fragrance but all you can smell is rotting flesh? Our senses can be surprisingly strange, especially when they malfunction due to injury, disease or genetic abnormalities. In this episode, neurologist Dr Guy Leschziner, explores two senses, smell and taste - separate yet inextricably linked. We meet Joanne, whose sense of smell is so distorted after a heavy cold, even freshly-cut grass smells repulsive. We hear from Walter who loves to cook and eat German cuisine but finds that pleasure is ruined when everything, even fine wine, tastes of metal. What causes this glitch in signalling from the taste buds on his tongue to the area of the brain processing taste? By contrast, 15 year-old Abi's sense of taste is working properly. She can tell if her food is sweet or salty. But Abi was born without a sense of smell (anosmia), which also means anything she eats has no flavour - because that's created by smell and taste working together. If you want to imagine Abi's life, listen out for the jelly bean test. Loss of smell, an early symptom of coronavirus, has raised awareness of this important, yet neglected sense, often only appreciated when it's gone. Yet so vital it's wired directly to parts of the brain responsible for memories and emotion. Through Joanne, Abi and Walter we learn how disorders of our sensory system can help explain the way our bodies interact with the outside world. And discover how what we believe to be reality is often very far from the truth. Presenter: Dr Guy Leschziner Producer: Sally Abrahams 'Everything smelled of rotting flesh, even perfume': What happens when smell goes wrong? Neurologist Guy Leschziner explores the surprisingly strange world of our senses.
04	Taste	19900123	20160225 (BBC7) 20190902 (BBC7) 20190903 (BBC7) 20240210 (BBC7) 20240211 (BBC7)	* This programme was suggested by Christiane Fischer as part of BBC Radio 4 Extra's All Request Weekend Can a 14th century Italian food taster protect his master, especially when he's invited to dine with the Borgias. Six-part comedy drama written by Bob Sinfield. Candelli - Alex Jennings Massemino - John Woodvine The Pope - Charles Gray Francesquina - Kate Duchêne Cesare Borgia - Clive Mantle Paolo - Glynn Edwards Caterina - Caroline Leddy Biagio - David Battley Lucrezia Borgia - Janine Duvitski The Priest - David King The series boasts a stellar list of star names, including Joan Sims, Charles Gray, Alex Jennings, Sylvestra Le Touzel, Geoffrey Palmer, Lynda Bellingham, Brian Murphy, Rodney Bewes, Liz Fraser, Rory McGrath and Maurice Denham. As writer Bob explains: 'The six half-hour plays dealt respectively with the five obvious senses plus the er... other one'. Producer: David Tyler First broadcast on the BBC Radio 4 in January 1990. To nominate a programme from the archives that you would like to hear again, please email radio4extra@BBC.co.uk and tell us details of why you'd like to hear it. ** Can a 14th-century Italian food taster protect his master when they visit the Borgias? Can a 14th-century Italian food taster protect his master when they visit the Borgias? Stars Alex Jennings and John Woodvine. Senses is a six-part comedy drama boasting a stellar list of star names, including Joan Sims, Charles Gray, Alex Jennings, Sylvestra Le Touzel, Geoffrey Palmer, Lynda Bellingham, Brian Murphy, Rodney Bewes, Liz Fraser, Rory McGrath and Maurice Denham. As writer Bob Sinfield explains: 'The six half-hour plays dealt respectively with the five obvious senses plus the er... other one'. Producer: David Tylerl
05	Smell	19900130	20160303 (BBC7) 20160304 (BBC7) 20190909 (BBC7) 20190910 (BBC7)	Throwing off the scent poses problems for hunters and hunted alike, in a Boxing Day fox hunt. Ken - Rodney Bewes Vera - Liz Fraser Diane - Lynda Bellingham Leonard - Maurice Denham Glynn - David Neville Beasley - Michael Starke The Horses and Hounds - David Goudge/ Judi Maynard /John Hollis Senses is a six-part comedy by Bob Sinfield who explains: 'The six half-hour plays dealt respectively with the five obvious senses plus the er...other one'. Producer: Neil Cargill First broadcast on the BBC Radio 4 in January 1990. Throwing off the scent poses problems for hunters and hunted alike in a Boxing Day hunt.
05	Synaesthesia: When Senses Merge	20210113		Neurologist. Dr Guy Leschziner, explores the extraordinary sensory experiences of individuals with synaesthesia - a mash-up of senses where one sense automatically triggers another. Some synaesthetes hear colours, others feel sound. We meet James who perceives the world differently from most people, due to his brain's unusual wiring. Whenever he hears a word he immediately gets a taste and texture in his mouth. As a child, he'd go by train to school with his mum, reading out loud the stations they passed through. His favourite was Tottenham Court Road because the word sounds taste of sausage, crispy fried egg and toast. Whilst James tastes words, 23 year-old synaesthete Valeria sees colours and feels textures when she hears music. She assumes everyone has that sensory experience until, at aged 14, she sees her dad's astonished reaction! For Valeria, some music is so utterly exquisite it causes her intense, physical pain. Such variations in perception can also affect our internal world as Sheri, a painter from Canada, illustrates. After a stroke in her twenties she can no longer picture images in her mind. The condition, aphantasia (meaning without a mind's eye') is so devastating Sheri calls it `internal blindness`. Our understanding of reality comes from how we perceive the world around us. But as we discover in this programme and throughout this series, each of us experiences a unique reality constructed by our brain and our sensory system. Leading us to question what is real and what is an illusion. Presenter: Dr Guy Leschziner Producer: Sally Abrahams Synaesthesia: We meet the man whose sister tastes of blackcurrant yoghurt Neurologist Guy Leschziner explores the surprisingly strange world of our senses.
06	The Sixth Sense	19900206	20160310 (BBC7) 20160311 (BBC7) 20190916 (BBC7) 20190917 (BBC7)	Conversation is far from neighbourly when the occupants of an old cemetery greet a new arrival and discover their lack of common ground. Buckmaster - Geoffrey Palmer Sarah - Sylvestra Le Touzel Mildred - Joan Sims Kitchie - Brian Murphy Ridley - Peter Blythe Olivia - Jane Booker Gordon - Michael Kilgareth Last in Bob Sinfield's comedy series who explains: 'The six half-hour plays dealt respectively with the five obvious senses plus the er...other one'. Producer: Neil Cargill First broadcast on the BBC Radio 4 in February 1990. Will the occupants of an old cemetery be pleasant to a new arrival?