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A Stillbirth
Jo and Nick's daughter was stillborn,"You realise at that moment what love is - the depth of feeling that you’d do anything to have Agnes back..."

Complicated Families
Maurice's on a quest to find a new word for the term 'step-father'. He says, "It's not as bad as 'step-mother', but it’s not nice, somehow…"

Prisoner of Conscience
James Mawdsley is serving a 17 year sentence in a Burma jail, "My guard is one of millions of prisoners in Burma - my heart went out to him..."

Dishwasher Detente
"I thought a dishwasher stopped the kitchen from looking a terrible mess - you hide dishes in it - but he leaves them lying around the kitchen!"

Alternative Living
"My children say, 'There’ll always be a granny flat for you' - I’ve seen friends who’ve got elderly parents with them and I really don’t want that for my children."

Living With Autism
"You can’t separate our son from his disability - you celebrate that person you’ve got in front of you rather than some expectation - often false."

Handing Things On
One item always reminds Stanley of his mother, "A fruit knife to break the skin on fruit - the false teeth in those days weren't sharp!"

Memories of Dad
"When I saw him dead in his bed at the hospital, I felt pity, because he’d wrecked his own life, and others - but fear is the major memory."

Waifs and Strays
"My mother died when she was 28. I was 4 and my brother was 2. Father couldn’t go to work and look after us, so we had to be put in homes..."

Sex, Marriage and the ´óÏó´«Ã½
"We’d love you to be on the show - your problem is a nationwide one." Ruth’s mother protested, "What problem? I didn't contact the ´óÏó´«Ã½!"

Digging Paradise
"It was a learning experience - the first time I weeded the allotment we had a perfect row of weeds and no carrots! I didn’t know which was which..."

Smile! You're on Webcam
The Athertons wave to their daughter in America via a webcam in their local market, "We wave two little Union Jacks - they've got a bit tatty now..."

Missing Lives
As a World War I 'unofficial executioner', Keith's father told him,"A soldier would be tied against a post - I'd have to shoot him - I had no choice..."

Liverpool Slaves
"When I think my family could have been slaves, it's sickening! Their traditions were stripped from them and they were labelled as cargo."

The Singing Cabbie
Tone-deaf cabbie, Patrick, learned to sing for his father's 75th birthday party, "I got someone to get pictures of the audience's reactions for a keepsake!"

Wife Swapping
Anita's married to Teresa's ex-husband, "Teresa and I get on very well. In fact I sometimes feel like I’m her mother ..."

Escape from Sarajevo Pt. 2
"Mum described the hospital in Sarajevo - people with limbs missing, blood everywhere - it becomes irrelevant that you are being picked on at school."

Observing My In-Laws
Uncensored extracts from Tom Rhodes holiday audio diary, "I feel like David Attenborough. Just being around family seems to do it to you ..."

Escape from Sarajevo
"I felt my parents lying on top of me, realising they were prepared to sacrifice their lives to save us - I wanted to protect them."

Bedroom Farce
When I left home I had such a good time that I rarely felt homesick - but I really missed Dad "declaring my bedroom open" every morning..."

Instant Parent
When his parents died, Steve became his brothers' guardian, "It was really difficult to go from being a brother to being their mum and dad - overnight."

Dead Simple?
Kenneth, was two when his mum told him she couldn't make a dead bird fly again. He asked, ‘What does dead mean?’ "

A Toad in my Trainer
"When I arrived in Beijing, I opened my suitcase, and a toad popped out of my trainer - a live toad - with a big smile on its face…"

Rodent Rage
"The mouse leapt out and hit me on the shin - I thought I can’t live with this mouse in the car. Enough is enough. I bought a trap..."

Happy Endings
Cathy loves funerals, "I want a Victorian glass hearse, horse drawn carriage, make-up, hair, hat, nails - everything. Why not?"

The Awakening
When Nick Pierce awoke from his drug induced fog his mother said, "To have somebody who never... ventured an opinion, hold their hand up... I love it."

Wildest Dreams
When 68 year old rock guitarist Derek was asked,
"Why at your age put yourself through all that? The
answer - because I enjoy it."

Goodbye Miss Wheelhouse
Ex-headmistress, Anne Wheelhouse finds civilian life strange. "It feels odd to sit down and eat without first having heard the bell..."

Going to the Dogs
Gambling addict Ian walked out on his wife and children. His wife said, "You can't come back as if nothing has happened..."

A Near Death Experience
"There was a big black thing sticking into the side of the ship - the walls all peeled back like a sardine can - and water spraying ..."

The Hardest Decision
Paul and Carol's three year old daughter, Katie, has cerebral palsy, "Early on we decided to have her adopted..."

Childhood Games
"I was a mermaid on my island sofa - my brother was the 'doormat' - I'd jump up and down on him ..."

My Son Is Free
"I'm standing outside the prison, my palms sweaty - I can't wait to get Ollie out of there ..."

Kissing Cousins
Helen married her cousin, "I do see my grandfather in him and my sister, oddly! It's very reassuring ..."

My Father's Will
"I'd find it easier if my parents had had the courage to say ‘we’re not leaving anything to you' ..."

This Isn't My Family
Amnesia left Philip unable to recognise his own children, "It was like having a family of step-children."

Steam Days
"You only get out of steam engines what you put in - they're the nearest thing to a human being!"

House Boat Harmony
"For 8 months, Mark and his father lived on their house boat - 'it was a sort of Indian summer - very pleasant...'"

Foundling and Finder
"I went into the church porch and there was a baby on the table - it was new born - blood still on its head and cord attached..."

Stormy Honeymoon
"As the radio in their boat cut out Joe thought, 'that's it, we've been married for 12 days and we're going to die!'... "

Honeymoon
"She used to shine a torch along the passage through the door to see what we were up to..."

Meringue Phobia
"There was a sound of a small detonation. It was the meringue going off! I removed a large piece from Madame's coiffure."

Life On The Road
Thomas Newton travels the country's fairgrounds, "People who live in houses, we call 'flatties' - we call ourselves showmen..."

Living With Alzheimer's
"The diagnosis was hard to cope with - I howled. Now I take each day as it comes - I notice things more, like the sunshine on a leaf..."

Only Child
"I used to image that I was other people and pretend I was like them and make it all wonderful for them and surround myself with other imaginary children."

Foster Teacher
"How dare this woman interfere in my life....but I thought about it and she was doing it because she felt there was an issue."

Close Sisters
"A weekend away with my big sisters is a joy - we get on because we'll put up with whatever the others are saying or doing, and still love them for it."

The Hated Sister
"I think the birth of my sister ruined my life - I was obsessed with trying to hurt her, get her into trouble or wish she didn't exist ..."

Dead Gorgeous!
"As a leaving present my work colleagues bought my burial outfit - from Oxfam! I tried it on, and laid on the office floor - I looked quite stunning!"

Love In A Cold Climate
"I'd never have travelled with Justin if I'd not been sure about him, but this experience changed our relationship. I really saw his caring side ..."

Woven Lives
"We all sat at a corner of the rug and of worked inwards - it was a competition to see who could do the most squares in one go."

Unwanted Child...
"Everyone in the family was very individual and in a way isolated from one another. I don't feel their treatment of me was with malice aforethought..."

A Refreshing Break
"The driver-courier was so kind and friendly - I decided I'd find holidays which he was on. It involved a great deal of detective work and subterfuge ..."

Voices From The Past
"When people die, the memory of the voice fades - it is a comfort to to listen to my mother's voice on tape when she is no longer here..."

A Life's Work...
"The minute I started, radionics was going to be my work for the rest of my life - it was my mission and a huge burden - I was taking over a life's work of 50 years."

Life After Suicide
"People get into thinking you'll be better off without them. I'm sure my husband felt it at the time of his suicide... We're not ...we wish he was here."

A Friend In Need
"When I saw my friend in prison for the first time I said, 'you did this to get out of helping me do the garden' - otherwise I'd have cried..."

Snake Woman
"I said to my new neighbour, 'You're going to think this strange, I've got a boa constrictor in my trousers and he's about to escape'."

The Wrong Wedding
"Mark was at my first wedding. When we were all preparing to leave, we ended up in a clinch. I'm not sure how it happened -it was quite surreal."

Bank Holiday Kisses
"Geoff was never romantic. He only kissed me on Bank Holidays, Christmas and Easter - I was rather looking forward to August ..."

Bad Mother, Good Mother
"I just love being a mum today, whereas I didn't before, I just hated it. I hated the responsibility. Now I feel I am the centre of my children's world."

Exchange Trouble
"I was woken by my daughter asking if it was true that the police were looking for her. Casually she explained that she had left a note stuck on the door - and went to bed!"

Shocking News?
"When Steve broke the news to his wife, her reaction was one of absolute astonishment. 'What do you mean you're gay?'"

Child Role Reversal
"On holiday, we hired a car. Joey said 'But mummy, what about the insurance? There's not many 7 year olds that are even aware of insurance, let alone worrying about it."

Stranger in the Home
"Florient never stands still. I keep asking him if he's tired - he looks at me with big brown eyes all innocence and says 'Non'. It's like having a mad puppy in the house..."

She's Leaving
"Once your wife has left you for a person of the same sex, you know your marriage is over. There's no lingering hope that you'll get back together ..."

Strange Meeting
"I often wish that I could thank that stranger; he achieved more in an evening for my son than the whole family had in five years. If you believe in Angels - that man certainly fits the specification."

Unfaithful Mother
"Far from being a virtuous wife, my mother had several affairs after her first marriage and I was the product of a brief fling, not the daughter of the man I had known as my father..."

Warm Feet
"My mother went to the car window and said to Albert 'I've been told I've got to kiss you goodbye.' She pecked him on the cheek and thought that was that ..."

Teacher Crush
"My English teacher was brilliant. We all adored her although we'd never say so to each other. I was devastated when I found out she was pregnant..."

Does Your Mother Know...
"I screamed which woke his mother who discovered us in this incredibly compromising position with a dead mouse and the cat being chased around the room by my boyfriend..."

Child Carer
At school, Meg went from grade A student to D but nobody took any notice. "I was having to cope with my mum's sanitary towels, buying her underwear and doling out her tablets..."

Goodbye Mr Chips?
Pupils and teachers at Bedales are on first name terms. "It's confusing: they're there to enforce the rules but also have to be supportive and to be a kind of parent-figure"..."

Hillsborough 10 years On
"I'd never been told where Andrew was found, all I knew was that he had died at a football match. I owed it to my brother to find out the truth..."

Surprise Babies
"I remember being sick a few times, but to me that wasn't being pregnant. I just told myself I had eaten something funny."

Strange But True
"I am the middle child of five, who has three brothers and a sister. I married a middle child of five, who has three brothers and a sister."

The Oldest Profession
"I remember running a bath and scrubbing myself and feeling quite disgusted I'd done that. It did get easier because you accept what you are doing, once you've crossed that line."

A Terrible Secret
"I sort of flipped. I decided the time had come to sort this out. I began to talk and people who had known me for years were amazed."

Blast Survivors
"It appeared that we'd all been blown in different directions. I spoke to both my parents and Mandy but I never actually found the children immediately after the bomb blast."

Life After Heroin
"I didn't recognise his eyes ... something started to click. I was terrified ... I thought he would die."

Caring Work
"I have to confess that I didn't say goodbye to them... I just left a note in their beds and went. I thought I would distress them more by saying goodbye."

The Love Bug
"I like the man selling the car because his chief mechanic has two Boxer dogs and I have one, so as far as I'm concerned, this car is a must."

Time Please!
"If you have a cluster of things, you can do them much more efficiently when you should be somewhere else. Just become more thoughtless - that'll make you really late"

An Instant Family
"If you meet somebody, and the child puts you off, then you're not in love with the person. Whatever that person brings into the relationship, if you love them enough, it doesn't matter."

Accent on Survival
"I do remember being ostracized in the Brownies - sitting in a corner trying to tie a reef knot on my own."

Grandad's Departure
"'Kids,' I said, 'this is your Grandad's funeral. Understand?' So far the only death they've known is the hamster's..."

Shipwrecked!
"What I didn't realise that if a shark stops swimming it drowns. I held onto this thing, and after a while, I realised it wasn't moving. I flopped it into the life raft ..."

An Unusual Friendship
"I've always appreciated the huge compassion in consenting to organ donation and it was wonderful to meet the man and find out about Lillian. I was truly grateful for the opportunity"

Large Families
My father would start to carve away, and everybody always wanted to sit on his left-hand side, because he started to serve from the left. The further away you were from him, the less you got"

One Man And His Accent
"It was my sister who first told me I was a fraud. It was an unpleasant truth, made all the more uncomfortably real by the fact that it was uncovered by someone whose opinion I could hardly dismiss."

Life-saving Lorry Driver
"I wouldn't be here if it hadn't been for him, because the petrol tank was punctured, the engine was running and it was in danger of exploding ..."

The Etiquette of Arguing
"There’s a certain art form to doing it, body language, eye contact and how you hold yourself in general - you’ve always got to dominate a room and never let the other person get anywhere at all."

Two Little Girls
"When she arrived she was wearing a Pixie hood and she had ribbons in her hair that stuck up like ears. She reminded me of a little rabbit."

Living In A Car
Experience has taught them the best places to sleep at night, although Carol says "You're always sleeping with one ear open all the time, and one eye open."

Money Matters
"It is not easy to impress Grandma by spending money. If you were born in 1906 when a frock cost 3/6d, it is difficult to adjust to your grand-daughter spending one-hundred-and-fifty pounds in a flash on clothes, or even 26p on a stamp."

Working With Mum
"She'd ring me and I'd think she wanted to talk about school so I stopped answering the phone. We ended up not being able about to talk about anything other than school and the kids and it drove me mad...."

Message in a Bottle
"My message had been picked up on the beach by the islanders of a very small island called Pam and in order to get it translated, they got into their dug-out canoe and paddled 40 miles to another island..."

Childhood Fervour
"Lunchtime was spent in front of the Virgin Mary waiting for her to give me a message, but she never did. The Nuns thought it was wonderful - here was this little Anglican girl who was more devoted than the Mother Superior..."

Entrance Exam Fever
"I was awful after one exam. He'd made such a silly mistake and I said, "Oh, Jack you could easily have answered that," and he got really upset and stormed off down the road. So I had to run off down the road and apologise..."

The Facts of Life
"The mummy and daddy get very close and there's lots of kissing and hugging and mummy and daddy get very, very, close and that's when a baby is made..."

Room-mates?
"I'd wait until our bedroom light had been put out, then lift the corner of my mattress and gob on her. I was disgusting! I don't know how she put up with me..."

Rock-a-bye-baby
"My sister used to get up on all fours, smash her head into the head board and sing any songs she knew the words to, especially, "I am woman, I am invincible"...I don't know whether she knocked herself out..." - original ideas for getting a good night's sleep.

When Doggie met Baby...
"Our dog thought that after eight weeks a couple of strangers would arrive, hand over a cheque and take the baby away in a cardboard box...after all that's what had happened to him..."

Warning: Parent at School
"Before term I worried I'd have to modify what I say. A few of my jokes are anti-parent and I don't want to embarrass her either. I'm rather boring and rather unpleasant at home...."

Cyberlove
"We got married in October. I've moved to Jersey, sold my flat and moved lock, stock and barrel to Jersey and I'm loving every minute of it..."

Tough Love - Cautionary Tales
"I said, 'either come to your senses or I want you out. If you haven't gone when I get back, then I'll put your stuff in the road.' When I got back, he'd gone. I never heard from him again...

Tough Love
Barbara tried to get her son to face up to his addictions. "Being confronted by my mother made me angry. I wanted to protect my drugs and drinking, to blame other things for my life falling apart......"

New Year Changed My Life
"I thought there must be a self-help group but Social Services said that there wasn't. So I came out of their office saying that I'd start one and I've been running it since 1982...