Disabled actors 'are getting more screen time'

23rd November 2009

Television roles for disabled actors are becoming more common, according to Mat Fraser.

The performer, whose mother took Thalidomide when she was pregnant, resulting in him being born with phocomelia in both arms, said that while there are still not enough jobs to go around, parts for disabled talent are more frequent, the Daily Telegraph reports.

He remarked: "Disabled actors are becoming mainstream. We are heading for a time when the disability won't have anything to do with the plot."

Fraser quoted a poll in which 40 per cent of viewers replied that they would be happy to see someone with a speech impairment or facial disfigurement reading the news.

Calling the results "pretty radical", the 47-year-old admitted that political correctness campaigners have played an important role in giving disabled people a voice.

Due to appear in a new Channel 4 spoof reality show about disability called Cast Offs, Fraser has also recently starred in an episode of Holby City.