A Pitmedden man, who had part of his hand amputated after his mother was exposed to toxic waste during pregnancy will have his story shared in an upcoming Netflix series and BBC podcast.
Now living on Blythe Bank in Pitmedden, George Taylor, was born in Corby in Northamptonshire.
It was in the English town that his mum Fiona was exposed to toxic dust from contaminated land that had not correctly cleared from a nearby steelworks.
Fiona was pregnant with George at the time and he was subsequently born with tumours in his hand.
Much of his hand had to be amputated as a result.
In subsequent years, many children in the town were born with defects, such as missing fingers.
It was the UK’s biggest case of child poisoning since thalidomide.
Solicitor Des Collins represented the affected families in a legal case against Corby Borough Council for over almost 11 years.
Eventually, his battle on behalf of 19 families whose children had been affected was successful and they were rewarded compensation – though the plant’s owners continued to deny liability.
A Netflix series on the litigation, “Toxic Town”, starring Jodie Whitaker and Robert Carlyle, will debut in the coming weeks.
George, now 32, will be narrating a podcast for BBC Sounds on the case, and sharing his experiences, together with those of others who were affected.
He said it has been “cathartic” to look back on the case, which was an ever-present part of his childhood.
Netflix and BBC to share toxic waste story which affected Pitmedden man
Set for its Netflix premiere on February 27, Toxic Town features Whitaker and Carlyle, as well as Brendan Coyle, Aimee Lou Wood and Jack Dempsey.
Netflix spoke to George about his experiences to help shape the series, though he does not himself appear as a character in the series.
George said: “Netflix spoke to me about their series.
“They explained to me that I won’t be featured as a character in the series as most of that will take place in Corby.
“It’s still going to be incredibly cathartic to be able to look back on something that had a huge impact on my early life.
“I was a baby at the time, so it’s really interesting to see the chain of events that led to it all.”
The tumour was so sore that even raindrops hurt
George explained that the tumour resulted in a series of operations and some excruciating pain.
He said: “The tumour caused me to get an initial amputation of the index finger. It was the size of a golf ball.
“It then came back the size of a fist and caused me to lose half of my hand.
“They had to retransplant my middle finger as a thumb in a 13-hour operation.
“The tumour was so sore that even raindrops hurt. I was often sick due to the pain.”
George said the challenges faced were something that just became normal for him.
He said: “As it was with me from birth, it’s something that I’ve always just had to try and get on with.
“Growing up, me and my family would always take the mick out of each other.
“That’s been a really good thing as if I ever hear anyone comment, the chances are I have heard it before.
“My brother had big ears as a kid so he got called the FA Cup!”
Following the conclusion of the case, and a childhood filled with legal battles, George got to travel the world, taking in Australia and New Zealand.
But while he has never let it stop him from doing anything, the complications from the exposure cause George issues to this day.
He explained: “In more recent years a tumour has developed in my shoulder.
“It just kind of sits there and causes me pain, but there’s not much we can do about it.”
George to narrate BBC podcast
Despite not featuring himself in the Netflix series, George will play a key role in a new BBC podcast.
“Side by side to the series, the BBC have decided to do a podcast on the story,” he said.
“After being interviewed by them, they decided they wanted one of the kids involved to narrate it.
“I’ve done some of it already and will be finishing it off over the next few weekends.
“It’s going to be a telling of the story from start to end.
“It was an emotional experience to take such a deep-dive into how it has affected other people’s lives.”
The podcast will be called the Toxic Waste Scandal and will feature as a part of the In Detail series on BBC Sounds.
It is to be made available around the same time as its Netflix counterpart.
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