One of the medical experts on Channel 4’s hit programme Embarrassing Bodies: Live From The Clinic is a man who grew up in Cwmbran and went to Fairwater comprehensive school.
William Murdoch, aged 39, told Cwmbran Life, how Fairwater helped him get to Birmingham University where he qualified as a doctor. An email from the TV programme led to a successful interview and he was soon in front of the camera alongside Dr Christian Jessen and Dr Dawn Harper giving advice to viewers.
“I spent the first couple years of my life in Abergavenny and then moved to Fairwater. My mum worked in supermarkets and my dad was a postman. We lived in Hassocks Lea until I was about 14 then moved to Ty-Canol. After that we moved around quite a bit and I lived in Pontnewydd, Llanyravon and Fairwater. We settled for a bit in Pontnewydd and then I went to University.
“Fairwater was life-changing for me. I was a very shy child but in the third year I think, I joined the school choir and started to become a different person. It was a brilliant environment to do something very different.
“I had a group of great friends, not all of whom were in the choir, so I was able to branch out and do different things. School for me was a very friendly place. I liked my teachers and got on well with them.
“They were very supportive. Mr Smith was especially supportive and did a lot of good things for me like arranging lunchtime lessons to do Russian GCSE and sorting out my work experience. I was terrible at anything sporting but did join a badminton club late on in school life. We always lost but it was good fun!
“I was also able to start doing some comedy. This started as doing some sketches at home with friends and then doing them on stage and finally doing a big sketch for our Sixth Form leavers ceremony. I was given a lot of freedom by the school to become the person I am now.”
“I went to Birmingham University. I applied to a range of places but my only offer was from Birmingham.
“Medicine was not something that I had always wanted to do. My biology teacher, Mr Oaten, suggested it. I think in the back of my mind, it was something I wanted to do but I had never explicitly wished for it as I didn’t think I was bright enough.
“I work in Aston which is very close to Birmingham city centre. It is a very deprived area with high rates of crime and unemployment. We serve a predominantly non-white population with people from, literally, all over the world but mainly from India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Africa and the Carribbean.
“I still come back to Cwmbran every few months. My parents and sister still live in Cwmbran. My nephew has just finished a Masters in Law at Glamorgan and it’s his graduation ceremony this week.
“My family come and visit me more than I visit them as I have a four year-old son so they often come up to see him. My ‘best friend’ from school still lives locally so occasionally I head over to Newport for a night out.
“It was luck that got me into Embarrassing Bodies. Lots of GPs had an email saying that the show was looking for people to help out. I applied and was interviewed and was successful. When I joined the show initially, it was just giving telephone advice but I offered a lot more help to guide them for the content of the show so over time I was given a small speaking part and then became one of the two medical advisors to the show.
“Informally I have been invited back to the next show, provided Channel 4 commission another series.
“Lots of my friends find it very funny that I am on the TV. I don’t think anyone is particularly surprised having seen the various stupid things I have done on stage over the years.
“My parents have become avid watchers of the show to see my 15 seconds of fame but I dread to think what they have to endure in order that they can see me!
“My main highlight has been saying ‘fungus on penis’ on live TV! I have been recognised a few times which has been very entertaining.”