The Limping Chicken

Deaffest review: Retreat, directed by Ted Evans
The Limping Chicken Ted Evans’ last film, The End, was an incredible success, winning numerous awards around the world for its depiction of the decline of Deaf culture when a ‘cure’ for deafness is found. Evans went on to direct the film for the Paralympics opening ceremony and this time last year, won Deaffest’s Ben Steiner bursary of […]
Fri, May 17 2013 · 12 hours ago

“Read off the rent those reindeer.” Hilarious...
The Limping Chicken Looks like subtitling mistakes are not confined to UK television after all, as shown by these side-splitting errors from American television. With thanks to Buzzfeed for allowing us to share… The Limping Chicken is the UK’s independent deaf news and deaf blogs website! Check out our supporters: Remark! – Deaf media company producing television programmes, vid...
Fri, May 17 2013 · 23 hours ago

Becky Fenton-Ree: Leaving British Deaf culture behind, and...
The Limping Chicken I’m staring at six suitcases in our huge hire car. My just-turned two year old toddler is fidgeting with her dolly in her car seat whilst my husband is repeatedly checking passports and the mammoth pile of paperwork in the driving seat. Meanwhile, I’m sat looking at our military home with nostalgia; it was the […]
Fri, May 17 2013

Kelly Dougher: Why I no longer mention being deaf in job...
The Limping Chicken I didn’t get my first job until I was a sophomore in college, but since then I think I’ve held a pretty wide range of positions. I’ve worked at a daycare, at a local newspaper, at a Gap outlet, at a self-publishing literary journal, at two different college libraries, and as a writing tutor for […]
Thu, May 16 2013

The Question: Should deaf clubs be a social sanctuary or a...
The Limping Chicken Learning sign language is something basically everyone I have ever met says they want to do. Learning a few signs is fun and memorable. Some people I bump into remind me of the signs that I taught them yonks ago. You know, the cute ones like turtle or snail. There is something about the visual […]
Thu, May 16 2013

“I am a different Gerry now to the Gerry I was when I...
The Limping Chicken Before interviewing Gerry Hughes, I call him up on FaceTime and his wife Kay answers. Kay tells me how pleased she is that he is home, and how tired he’s been since he arrived back in Troon to a hero’s welcome. I ask her if she was ever worried about him while he was away. […]
Wed, May 15 2013

Ted Evans talks about Deaf filmmaking ahead of this...
The Limping Chicken Award winning filmmaker Ted Evans has had an incredible two years. It began when his thought provoking film, The End, was premiered at Deaffest in 2011 and then went on to win awards at film festivals around the world. Ted also co-directed a ten-minute film for the opening ceremony of the London Paralympic games and then began work on his […]
Tue, May 14 2013

Charlie Swinbourne: The story behind The Limping Chicken
The Limping Chicken Last week, Beth Abbott, who runs Bee Communications, who support this site, asked me to write about setting up The Limping Chicken for deaf awareness week. We’ve also shared this article below. If you ever wanted to know more, then read on!  I set up The Limping Chicken, a deaf news and blogs website, in February […]
Mon, May 13 2013

Diary of a Deaf Mum: Being back in front of a camera
The Limping Chicken Last week, despite my best attempts at sabotage (return of vertigo, making farty noises in the audition, growing a massive spot in the middle of my eyebrows, having a Derby accent; spoken and signed) I found myself back in the habit and in front of a camera. They needed me for two days, which is […]
Mon, May 13 2013

The Limping Chicken’s Saturday Selection
The Limping Chicken Here’s what rocked The Limping Chicken’s world this week with the top five most viewed stories. Will Mager looked at how Google Glass could dramatically change the lives of deaf people: Could Google Glass be the Deaf community’s ‘disruptive innovation’? History was made when: Gerry Hughes became the first British deaf man to sail around […]
Sat, May 11 2013

Mike Gulliver: The politics of Deaf history
The Limping Chicken Wednesday, taking advantage of a trip to London, I found myself in the UCL Ear Institute and Action on Hearing Loss archives. It struck me sitting there, that although I’ve known about that archive for some 10 years, that was the first time I’d ever been in it – and I wondered why. And I realised […]
Fri, May 10 2013

Watch: Saucy BSL flashmob marks deaf awareness week in...
The Limping Chicken Commuters at Richmond Station in London got more than they bargained for on Tuesday as members of staff from interpreting company CommunicationID and their friends performed a sign language ‘Rocky Horror flashmob’ dressed in revealing outfits. A flashmob dance is a planned performance foisted on an unsuspecting crowd in a public place. This  BSL flashmob was st...
Fri, May 10 2013

Watch: Gerry Hughes – the animated journey! By Amy Dawson
The Limping Chicken There are no words to describe this, except for one. Genius. Well done Amy Dawson!
Thu, May 09 2013

(e: Why I do not use the term ‘audism’
The Limping Chicken Before I discuss racism and ableism in an upcoming blog post, let me explain why I don’t use the term audism. What is audism? Gallaudet Univerisity Library offers a few different definitions of this term: “The notion that one is superior based on one’s ability to hear or to behave in the manner of one [...]
Thu, May 09 2013

Deaf News: Police criticised after arresting Deaf man for...
The Limping Chicken The Daily Mail has reported that police officers who mistook a deaf man’s frantic signing for rude gestures have been criticised by magistrates for arresting both him and his brother. (unfortunately, the paper uses the term ‘deaf and dumb’ in the article below). Extract: Shaun Phuprate, 22, had raised two of his fingers to his [...]
Thu, May 09 2013

In pictures: Emotional scenes as Deaf sailor Gerry Hughes...
The Limping Chicken There were emotional scenes shortly after midday today in Troon, Scotland, with the return of Deaf sailor Gerry Hughes after over 8 months away in his quest to circumnavigate the world. On Monday, he became the first Deaf man from Britain to circumnavigate the globe. He is the first Deaf man in the world to [...]
Wed, May 08 2013

Watch: Deaf sailor Gerry Hughes’ return from his...
The Limping Chicken There’s a slow internet connection up in Troon, but you can see what’s happening on the live stream below! The crowds are already looking out, waving Scottish flags and watching for a boat appearing on the horizon… Remember to give your support to Gerry by donating at this link:  [link]
Wed, May 08 2013

Deaf news in BSL from Remark: Deaf man has rib bone hearing...
The Limping Chicken Click on the titles to go to Remark’s website, then click ‘BSL’ to watch the news in beautiful sign language! Son explains how he had to tell his Deaf father he was going to die One day, at what Matt thought would be a routine appointment, a consultant arrived, and explained that his Deaf father [...]
Wed, May 08 2013

“I wore my hearing aids during brain surgery to save my...
The Limping Chicken Debbie Powell is a sign language teacher from Peterborough in Cambridgeshire. Debbie is deaf, uses speech, and has worn a hearing aid all her life. For Debbie, her hearing aid had been essential for as long as she could remember; but when Debbie needed brain surgery to potentially save her life, her hearing aid became [...]
Wed, May 08 2013

William Mager: Could Google Glass be the Deaf community’s...
The Limping Chicken The video below is an interesting time capsule. It’s Eric Sykes, talking to Jack Ashley on See Hear about his special glasses, which are in fact hearing aids. They use bone conduction technology to transmit sound into his inner ear. A year from now, Google will be selling a pair of glasses that transmit sound [...]
Tue, May 07 2013

Deaf News: Gerry Hughes becomes first British Deaf person...
The Limping Chicken The British Deaf community was celebrating today, when Gerry Hughes, the Deaf sailor, completed his circumnavigation of the world – becoming the first British Deaf person to complete the feat. Gerry achieved the feat at around 9am this morning when he crossed his outward route. Having achieved his goal, Gerry is now sailing home, with [...]
Mon, May 06 2013

“I’m fluent in many sign languages.” Meet Carola, the...
The Limping Chicken Carola Wisny is a 28-year-old deaf fashion model born in Norway – but her career has taken her all over the globe since she broke through as a newcomer in 2011. Carola’s story and philosophical view on life is infectious and truly inspirational. She describes herself not only as a model but as a ‘chameleonic [...]
Fri, May 03 2013

Diary of a Deaf Mum: Me versus Spring. Who’ll win?
The Limping Chicken It would appear Spring has finally sprung. Daffodils and bluebells, bumblebees and butterflies, sunshine and showers… And terrible public nappy incidents. What is it about Spring that means we have to start going outside again? Oh, I know; it’s hard-wired biorhythms, harking back to the days when we lived in caves and could only venture [...]
Thu, May 02 2013

Deaf news in BSL from Remark: BSL Act campaign boost |...
The Limping Chicken Click on the titles to go to Remark’s website, then click ‘BSL’ to watch the news in beautiful sign language! BSL Act campaign boosted as over 100 MPs sign Early Day motion The number of signatures took a while to grow, but now the speed of support has increased, with 110 MPs having signed the [...]
Wed, May 01 2013

Eleanor Craik: How not knowing what you’ve missed (when...
The Limping Chicken I went to see the band The Script at the o2 a few weeks ago and it was amazing. I’ve always liked The Script, even though I’ve not heard much of their latest album (well I’ve had it playing several times in my car but I can only learn the words by reading them – [...]
Wed, May 01 2013

The Question: Do hearing people fake their sneezes? We need...
The Limping Chicken I’m partially deaf, but that hasn’t stopped me from detecting a distinctive difference in the way different people sneeze. Every sneeze has its own sound, and its own look. You could say every sneezer has their own distinctive Sneeze Signature. Some people’s sneezes arrive as though they are deeply unexpected. An interruption. A shock. Picture [...]
Tue, Apr 30 2013

Deaf News: Deaf leaders look to the future as 30% of MPs...
The Limping Chicken The closing date to sign Early Day Motion (EDM) 1167 passed on Friday with 122 MPs from across the political spectrum showing their support for government action on BSL. The EDM was tabled by Sir Malcolm Bruce MP on the tenth anniversary of the official recognition of BSL (British Sign Language) with the support of the [...]
Mon, Apr 29 2013

Charlie Swinbourne: Come and see my play (and 3 more!) at...
The Limping Chicken One day in 2006, I struck up a conversation with Deafinitely Theatre’s Artistic Director Paula Garfield at Deaf Day in Covent Garden. That one chat, lasting only five minutes or so, was my first step into scriptwriting, because afterwards, with Paula’s encouragement, I went on to join Deafinitely Theatre’s scriptwriting group. I remember arriving for [...]
Mon, Apr 29 2013

Deaf News: Deaf father who allowed daughter to take off...
The Limping Chicken An American Deaf man who shares custody of his deaf daughter could be charged with contempt of court because he has refused to force her to wear her cochlear implants when she is with him. Orton Miller, who is the mother of Shaun McLaughlin’s daughter, won a court order requiring the daughter to wear her [...]
Fri, Apr 26 2013

Alison Leach: Mainstream education isn’t always inclusive...
The Limping Chicken The general consensus is that mainstream education is meant to be inclusive – and that special education is often looked at as a last resort. While mainstream education may work for some deaf children, I would like to highlight a recent experience I had as a Deaf parent with a hearing daughter in a hearing [...]
Fri, Apr 26 2013

Simon Herdman: How I became one of the presenters of the...
The Limping Chicken For most Deaf people, learning poetry is like trying to master the 292 languages of China in just one class. And it’s not just about learning one single poem; you have to take into account the aesthetics of poetry, such as rhyming, verse forms and repetition. Poetry resonates with contrasting images, is filled with layers [...]
Thu, Apr 25 2013

Deaf News: MPs rush to put BSL into the top 15 Early Day...
The Limping Chicken A rush of 12 MPs signing an EDM (Early Day Motion) this week to promote the rights of sign language users has pushed the number of MPs signatures up to 122 and now makes EDM 1167 the 15th best supported of this parliamentary year. With only five days left for MPs to back the motion, [...]
Thu, Apr 25 2013

“I had to tell my dad he was going to die, because he...
The Limping Chicken Matt Dixon is the only hearing person in his family. His parents, along with his brother Simon and sister Rebecca are deaf. Being the only hearing person in the family, Matt had been used to interpreting English into sign language and vice-versa, but never before had he been asked to interpret on a matter of [...]
Wed, Apr 24 2013

Ni Gallant: How much can people learn about being deaf from...
The Limping Chicken One of perhaps the nicest things about being a student on a Health Course only campus is the universities ‘In their shoes day.’ The basic idea is that every student should have the opportunity to experience life from the point of view of the client/patient/service user they are working with and therefore, hopefully, have some [...]
Wed, Apr 24 2013

“I had to tell my dad he was going to die, because he...
The Limping Chicken Matt Dixon is the only hearing person in his family. His parents, along with his brother Simon and sister Rebecca are deaf. Being the only hearing person in the family, Matt had been used to interpreting English into sign language and vice-versa, but never before had he been asked to interpret on a matter of [...]
Tue, Apr 23 2013

Amy Claridge: Deaf Studies BSc at Bristol’s Centre for...
The Limping Chicken Growing up in a Deaf family, I suppose a career in the Deaf sector always made sense. However it wasn’t until I was flipping through the University of Bristol prospectus on my way to check out the French department on an Open Day that I realised it. I always knew my passion lay in education [...]
Mon, Apr 22 2013

Tara Sethi: Did being deaf mean we missed out on a...
The Limping Chicken A few friends and I recently met up for dinner one night, to catch up and have a few drinks and a yummy meal. We found a bar, and next to it, a Thai restaurant, which was advertising a special offer outside: 50% off your main meal. My friend, W, decided to go check out [...]
Mon, Apr 22 2013

Alison Bryan: How to get a BSL Act onto the government...
The Limping Chicken This article was first published on Grumpy Old Deafies here: www.grumpyoldeafies.com and is republished here under a Creative Commons licence and by by kind permission of the author. Recently, I posted my thoughts on Twitter (@Deaf) about any current campaign for a BSL Act, as well as discussion with a few people. This blog post is a fuller [...]
Fri, Apr 19 2013

Kathryn Wilkins: Feeling like I’m in limbo, between the...
The Limping Chicken When I found out I had got the funding to go to Mary Hare Sixth Form it was Christmas Day. I jumped around the room with excitement, smiling from ear to ear as if there was a hanger in my mouth – I just couldn’t believe I had finally achieved my dream! So that was [...]
Fri, Apr 19 2013

Deaf news in BSL from Remark: Cornwall Deaf Centre open...
The Limping Chicken Click on the titles to go to Remark’s website, then click ‘BSL’ to watch the news in beautiful sign language! Campaign to get MPs to sign EDM 1167 There are roughly 517 available MPs who can sign the petition, and whilst it’s fair enough to say that any EDM won’t get the full support of all [...]
Thu, Apr 18 2013

Watch: Stand-up comedy from Abnormally Funny People!
The Limping Chicken Subtitled in English, here’s a ten minute highlights package of the Abnormally Funny People comedy show at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. Abnormally Funny People are a group of comedians who each have a disability, except for a token non-disabled person. This clip features deaf comedian Steve Day as well as Steve Best, Liz Carr, Tanyalee [...]
Thu, Apr 18 2013

“YouTube’s auto captions? Don’t make me laugh!”...
The Limping Chicken I first worked with Claire Hill when she provided speech-to-text for live comedy at Soho Theatre. I was amazed at how quickly and accurately the words that the comedians spoke appeared on screen. Put it this way, if Claire was providing live subtitles on TV on a constant basis, we wouldn’t have nearly as many [...]
Wed, Apr 17 2013

Go see: Only the Lonely – conference on deafness, autism...
The Limping Chicken A conference organised by the St George Healthcare Group (a supporter of this site) called: Only the Lonely – Deafness and Autism / Learning Disability will be held in Manchester on Thursday 13th June 2013. The Conference will be a unique opportunity to access the most up to date knowledge and information provided by high [...]
Tue, Apr 16 2013

The Question: Should BSL videos have English subtitles for...
The Limping Chicken Most deaf people agree that subtitles need to improve, but there is one subtitling issue that is not so black and white. It’s whether BSL videos ought to be subtitled for people who don’t understand sign language. Or in other words, should there be subtitles for the ‘signing impaired?’ The digital revolution means deaf associations [...]
Tue, Apr 16 2013

Diary of a Deaf Mum: From food, to time, and you. What...
The Limping Chicken Hey, Toto. I don’t think we’re in Kansas anymore… For one thing, there’s a wicked witch poking out from under the house. That’s never happened before. I’ve also permanently got dried baby milk on the inside of my wrist, sticky little knots in the ends of my hair and a distinct lack of interest in [...]
Mon, Apr 15 2013

Catherine Cooper: 8 months after having my cochlear...
The Limping Chicken The answer? Probably that I’ve spent far less time focusing on my August 2012-fitted cochlear implant than I was hoping. The last eight months have been a hectic combination of moving home, decorating, gardening and navigating endless, gritless, ice and snow-laden roads in our new rural location. I admit to initially feeling rather guilty that I wasn’t focusing...
Fri, Apr 12 2013

Robert Mandara: Programming your own hearing aids, part 3....
The Limping Chicken Last year, the BBC reported that more and more hearing aid users are programming their own hearing aids. Here, in the third part of a three-part series, Limping Chicken reader Robert Mandara explains how you can do it. Read part one by clicking here and part two by clicking here. In my last article I suggested [...]
Fri, Apr 12 2013

Deaf Dad: Becoming a name hunter – to help my daughter...
The Limping Chicken Things are settling down now after our move in the new year. We’ve spent our weekends exploring the Yorkshire Dales, walking around the streets of our new town and learning that, like the song says, you really are taking your life into your own hands if you go up on Ilkley Moor without a hat [...]
Thu, Apr 11 2013

Christina Hartmann: A confession of sorts (on having Usher...
The Limping Chicken I’ve agonized over writing this confession (for the lack of a better word) for months. I’ve decided just to come out with it. Many of you know that I was born profoundly deaf and received a cochlear implant when I was six. What many of you don’t know is that in the same year, I [...]
Wed, Apr 10 2013

Deaf news in BSL from Remark: iPhone hearing aid | Award...
The Limping Chicken Click on the titles to go to Remark’s website, then click ‘BSL’ to watch the news in beautiful sign language! Northern Ireland politician says deaf students are being failed by government the number of deaf students attending university in Northern Ireland has decreased by over 50% in the last five years. Deaf patient in Scottish [...]
Wed, Apr 10 2013