Derbyshire Director Becomes First Wheelchair User to Helm EastEnders Episode

Owen Tooth, a 44-year-old director from Duffield, Derbyshire, has made history as the first wheelchair user to direct an episode of EastEnders since the BBC One soap opera began in 1985. The episode, which Mr. Tooth directed, was broadcast on 14 October and attracted an audience of over 3.5 million viewers. Mr. Tooth characterized his experience working on the prominent program as “dreamy.” He further stated: “It’s just so much to take on, it’s a big show and it’s a big accomplishment to take it on, so I felt really proud of it.” For the past four years, Mr. Tooth has relied on a wheelchair following a rock climbing incident that led to an autoimmune disease impacting his joints. He commented: “I’m so much more able in my wheelchair, but for a long time I tried to hide the problems I was having.” Mr. Tooth recounted that his professional career “just ended, it was literally like overnight” after he began using a wheelchair. He elaborated: “I was earning a 20th of what I’d been earning before, I couldn’t get work, I couldn’t get meetings.” He described the shift as “an overnight change, and going to meetings and pitching and networking, it was like I was invisible.” Mr. Tooth, an award-winning director at several film festivals, described his time on the EastEnders set as “overwhelmingly positive.” He explained: “They’ve got crew and they’ve got cast who are wheelchair users there, so for me I’m really used to being on a film set and them having an awful lot of questions and an awful lot of uncomfortable people around me.” He further noted: “It was just so relaxed there, it was kind of dreamy going into a place where the ground was already laid for me.” He stated that becoming a wheelchair user provided him with insight into the significant efforts required within the film industry regarding individuals with disabilities. He commented: “It’s not as easy to get into the industry if you have a disability.” He continued: “I think I still thought it was a meritocracy, I still thought talent would rise and that’s not actually true when there’s barriers in the way that really stop you from progressing, you can’t cultivate your talent if no-one is going to let you.”