From Passenger to ‘Problem’: The Making of an Accidental Activist with guest Mark Mardell

In this episode of The Way We Roll, we are joined by broadcaster and journalist Mark Mardell to unpack a shocking travel experience that raises bigger questions about disability, power, and dignity.

Airports and airlines often frame decisions around safety — but where is the line between care and control? Mark’s experience highlights how quickly concern can morph into blanket policies based on assumptions rather than evidence, leaving disabled passengers powerless and stranded.

Mark shares his story of being refused boarding on a flight from Istanbul to London simply because he has Parkinson’s—and no doctor’s letter to “prove” he was fit to fly.  It’s a deeply personal account of confusion, humiliation, and bureaucratic indifference in one of the world’s busiest airports. Mark describes the humiliation, isolation, and loss of autonomy, from being publicly questioned to wandering an airport alone without support or information.

Mark’s response to this experience — fuelled by anger and a strong network- has helped force a policy change. The episode explores how collective voices, media attention, and persistence can turn a personal injustice into wider change.

Links

Mark Mardell Wikipedia 

BBC article 27th October 2025

Rights on Flights 

Transcript

Welcome And Why This Matters

Simon 0:28

Welcome to The Way We Roll with me, Simon Minty.

Phil 0:30

And me, Phil Friend.

Simon 0:32

In October 2025, broadcaster and journalist Mark Mardell was told he could not board a Turkish Airlines flight from Istanbul to London, Gatwick, because he had Parkinson's disease and no doctor's report.

Phil 0:48

Now it's the kind of story that many disabled people hear and think, oh yeah, yeah, I recognise that. Airports can be places of heightened security, rigid policy, and sometimes a profound misunderstanding of what disability looks like in practice.

Mark Mardell And Accidental Activism

Simon 1:04

And many of us have had our own traumatic or demeaning trouble experiences. It's not just about disruption, it's about autonomy, dignity, and the assumptions made about disabled bodies in a public space.

Phil 1:16

And Mark has spoken and written about what happened. Today we want to go beyond the headline moment to explore what it reveals about how power, safety culture, and how quickly concern underlined can slide into exclusion.

Simon 1:33

Mark, thank you so much for joining us. Before we get into the incident, just in case someone's never come across you, could you give us a little intro to you?

Mark Mardell 1:43

Well, I've been a lifer at the BBC for ages. I was um, oh my goodness, what haven't I done there? I was politically editor for News Night. My still first story was um the fall of Jeffrey Howe or Jeffrey Howe's resignation. So I went back by the way, and I was North America Editor, Europe editor. Um then I got uh I I retired basically um and started up uh with others Movers and Shakers podcast about life living with Parkinson's, which um it's an award-winning show. We always say that at the beginning, and we go we record it in the pub.

Phil 2:17

We're not jealous at all, are we, Simon? We're not at all jealous.

Mark Mardell 2:20

I'm sure you've won awards, I'm sure you have.

Phil 2:23

Not really.

Mark Mardell 2:24

I mean, we got that award for uh campaigning, which was like quite surprised us, really, because well, I mean, not surprised us in the end, but I mean we didn't start off doing that, we just started off thinking, well, let's talk about what we've got in common. You know, we're all journalists, or at least one uh one of us is a high court judge, we all had high-profile careers. Let's just talk about it. Then stuff started coming in, and we thought a bit off really a lot of what people go through, not really very good. So we'll make a point of you know singling that out. We got outraged when nothing happened, and you know, so we turned that's what I say, coming the phrase accidental activist.

Refused Boarding Over Parkinson’s

Phil 3:01

So, Mark, I mean, obviously, you and I came across each other because of a different debate we were having about assisted suicide. But after that, um you contacted me about the incident, we'll call it. So you were refused permission in October 25, as I understand it, when they refused to allow you on the flight, citing that the reason was you having uh Parkinson's. Now, what struck you most? Was it the policy itself, the interaction with the people there, or the assumptions that were being made about what what was it that really got you annoyed and angered about this refusal?

Mark Mardell 3:40

Well, I think initially it was just being stranded in the bloody airport on my own. You know, it's so humiliating, so upsetting. Just staggering around, not being uh you know, just felt sort of out of touch with everybody. But I'll I'll take you through it if you like. But I mean, what what really got me was that um when I always try and turn up early for assisted boarding, which I think is a great thing. Yeah, and I try not to get confused with assisted dying. I don't want to ask for the wrong thing at that point. Yes, that wouldn't go down well, would it? Uh I had a lovely break with my son, my oldest son, who's uh 33 and he lives in Berlin mostly. And he was coming back from a conference somewhere in the starns, because that's the sort of thing he does, writes about. Um, and he said, let's stop off in Turkey and go around the Sea of Marlborough. Um just had four days out of it. It was great, apart from one day of the old, which was a bit annoying. So we um anyway, we had to put the car, take the car back to the airport. Bit of a tease because we were late and then we got the wrong airport. And well, we got weren't actually late for getting the car back, not for the flights. Anyway, so we turned up and um I was feeling a bit knackered, so I sat down and Jay went up and said, Can I just check if it's alright for my dad to have assisted boarding? Why does he need it? Well, he's got Parkinson's. And they said, Um, oh have you got your doctor's letter? What are you talking about? And I I think at first we thought, I mean when he told me this, it was like to prove that I had Parkinson's, you know, prove I had a need for assisted boarding. Right. So um then they said, no, no, you can't fly without it. And it's a russ, I mean, I can go through it in more detail what actually happened, but I mean what's what then struck me afterwards was that it's the only condition in the world you can have anything else wrong with you, but only Parkinson as something that you couldn't fly with. Now, why that was I don't know. I mean, I still haven't got to the bottom of it because although we've managed to change the policy, they still haven't talked to me directly, still haven't paid me back for the money, the extra money I spent. So they refused to sort of actually apologize or anything like that, even though they changed the policy. But I mean, it was so outrageous. And then the woman in charge, because Jake went off and said, Well, maybe I got it wrong to the supervisor. Maybe my dad hasn't got Parkinson's, maybe it's something else, you know, whatever. It's a bit of a white light to get on he came back and said, Yeah, that's all right, yeah, sure. Oh, which is partly, I mean, my foot footage has other problems apart from Parkinson's, so it's not too bad saying that. Anyway, she said, No, no, he's got Parkinson's, you can tell he's got a tremor. I haven't got a tremor, shaking with anger, perhaps. And she just sort of seemed to take great glee in humiliating me, and and other passengers as well. She was sort of shouting out and saying, Where's your husband? Why can't you travel? Wow. So she's been really nice. This is outrageous. And then Yeah, go on that. I was gonna say what made it really bad. I mean, what bad personally for me was that I'd put my bags on the airline and they said, you know, do you need to get them? So obviously I didn't need to get them. They said, I'll go to somewhere, row six or something in the in the building. Tried to go there, went there. They said, Oh no, you can't get your compensation money now, which is also something they said, because you haven't paid in Turkish currency, and then nobody could tell me where to pick my bags up from. I mean, that's awful. So I went around, I don't know if you've ever been to Istanbul airport, but it's huge. This was before I'd been through security or anything. So I just couldn't find out anywhere, anybody to tell me where to put my bags up. So I went downstairs to the sort of the pre-departures bit, wandered around, and this wonderful woman who was um Turkish American who was just travelling, saw me after about an hour staggering round, getting increasingly upset. Oh I said, um, I nearly burst into tears about six times, which I think makes me stoic, really. But um, and she managed to get me across to the right place to ask my back, which was a relief. But the trouble is also, you can't get internet there unless you've got a Turkish phone. And you can't get internet unless you've got various other things. So I couldn't even communicate with my family and tell them what was happening, because by this time Jake had had to go off. Um, because he had a fly. So he had to leave you there. Yeah, and he felt very guilty about it. I bet he did. I bet he did. Continually said, Oh, did I do the right thing? And well, no, you didn't in this circumstance, but I mean, you know, who's to say MS or polio or something.

Phil 8:34

Exactly.

Mark Mardell 8:34

I mean, that's the weird thing. Well, people play for God's sake, you know, I could have had anything. I don't know whether, you know, and I never got to the bottom. I'd love to know what it was about Parkinson's.

Stranded At Istanbul Airport Alone

Phil 8:43

Uh so after all this time then, Mark, you still don't know why Park you said earlier in the conversation that they changed the policy so it's no longer outlawed. Yeah, but they've never explained why it was the only reason for it, or Parkinson's was the only condition.

Mark Mardell 9:02

No, I don't know. I mean, you know, whether it's some sort of I mean, I have looked up that some Turkish people have a particular problem with Parkinson's, particularly with a younger people, not that that applies to me, but have it, but I think it's considered in a sort of slightly superstitious way as it is in some parts of Africa, but it won't be witchcraft. But I don't know, maybe maybe the CEO was um sitting next to somebody who went something like that and joked them in the face, and they thought, Right, I'm not having any of these answers on my flight.

Simon 9:30

You say it in jest, sometimes when we dig right down, you'll find one individual had one experience and then puts a blanket policy in, and that becomes the given until someone challenges it. So, yeah, I mean that that's absurd.

Mark Mardell 9:42

I think it might well be something like that because nobody can explain it, and nobody wants to explain it, and nobody has to explain it. So the reason they've come in line in the end was because of the civil aviation authority didn't. I mean, they they it's quite curious really because they didn't lots of people reluctant to get involved in the first place. Yeah, and the CLA um weren't great in terms of individual complaint, they were great in terms of policy when we got to the top. My friend Gillian Lacey Solomon, so a fellow um campaigner and uh mover and shaker. I went to the press office being a humble journalist. She went straight to the top, talked to the director general and or whatever it's called, CEO, and got him involved. But basically, they said that what Turkish Airlines were doing, whether they were flying to Europe or because they were flying to Europe, they were in breach of standards, breach of the guidelines. Right. And they nudged them along. And basically, I didn't think Turkish want to be in breach of the guidelines. Although they're more concerned about America, I think.

Simon 10:46

I I will we're gonna come back to the sort of the aftermath and the changes. You mentioned something which I empathise with, excuse me, that frustration when you're in the airport, that near to it's a mixture of fury and emotion. Um this is gonna be an unusual question. When Jake went, was there an element of relief in the sense of you're like, well, I'm the master of my own domain, I haven't got to worry about Jake or making sure he's not angry. I mean, was there some relief in that that you you have autonomy even though you have no autonomy? Or was it no, I'd have rather had everyone around supporting?

Mark Mardell 11:24

No, I think I know what you mean exactly, yeah. Because I put my bags on. I thought, well, just sneak on, really. They're not gonna tell me what they did. Unfortunately, you know, like sort of, I mean, okay, I walk with a stick, but I mean, that's not um sign of Parkinson's, particularly. And then I thought I could get around there because it wasn't a blanket ban on anybody else, only people with Parkinson. I just keep coming back to this so outrageous. I mean, why the hell? Only people with Parkinson's. And and oh, yeah, sorry, there is one other people on a stretcher. Do you think it's reasonable that if you're on a stretcher, you have a medical letter from your doctor? I also wonder whether it's a bit of a scam, because I mean the doctors, you could get one at the airport, which I refuse to do, but you'd have to because I'd have to well, it would have taken me less time than it did in the end. I thought, well, I'm gonna have to go off to some hospital outside, all the faff. There's um there's a case in America. I was talking to a journalist there, I'd fold somebody up, and they charged lights of £150 or something like that for the letter.

Phil 12:28

A bit like pets and vets, yeah.

Mark Mardell 12:31

Yeah, and they said to me, um, well, why can't you ring up your doctor and just get it? NHS. My GP is brilliant, absolutely. Got a huge amount of time for her. But I mean, the idea of ringing her up on a Saturday morning and saying, Oh, can you get me a letter? Not very likely, really.

Phil 12:48

But going back to the but did you feel that the the the Jake thing? Obviously, Jake was doing whatever he could to help, and once he'd gone, were you feeling worse then, or did you feel okay, I'll I've got to just fight my own battle here?

Mark Mardell 13:03

I was feeling okay initially because of the way they said go to this numbered place in the hall, thought it'd be quite simple to get my money back. Right. So another thing I thought, because they started led off with getting your money back. So I thought, yeah, well, the rest of it, just picking up my bags actually easy, isn't it? And of course, you know, then I mean as it evolved, not only couldn't I find where I went to pick my bags up, but then when I did, I was as then after after I actually found the right place to talk to, um, I was with other people who weren't, didn't have anything, uh, they hadn't lost their bags because of their disability or anything, they just lost their bags because they were crap airline. At least uh um not very efficient. And then they took the passports off us so we could go airside. They were trapped airside, so we couldn't get back because we can't leave without our passports. And um there's this guy saying, you know, I've got to go to Montreal tomorrow. I haven't got my bags, where are they? You know, and everybody getting upset. And I just had enough and I just cracked, and you know, I've been quite polite till that stage. If I wasn't impolite, I didn't swear anything. I just said, you know, what on earth is this about? I am being discriminated at because I've got a disability. Yeah. What are you doing? Why are you doing this? How are you how do you justify? How do you feel? Because most of them are just sort of looking at their nails and you know, being very slow about things and not really bothering, and you could tell they had loads and loads of complaints about missing missing bags the whole time. And there's this one woman who just she was human, she was she showed human sympathy, so I'm almost feeling like crying out. It's fantastic. And she said, Any identifying factors on your bag? Said, yeah, actually, yes, it happens because my uh daughter borrowed it and she's a ceramicist and she's a dirty ceramicist, so she's got play all over it, so it's all like a black bag with white marks on it. And um they found it with an instance. Just amazing, you know, and they could have done that with anybody's bag.

Getting Home Without Turkish Airlines

Phil 15:06

I mean, it's just it's not about disability necessarily, it's just just you know, if you should really but you'd you've got your bag back, so that's one problem solved, but you're still in Turkey and you're still not flying home, are you? So, how did you resolve that issue? How did you eventually get back?

Mark Mardell 15:23

Well, I mean, I got my bags back nine hours later. That's so that was oh god, right, okay. Yeah, a lot of time waiting around. By that time, I managed to get in touch with Jake and the family. Okay. I'm not sure whether they they were competing from Banster to wherever he was, not Berlin, I don't think then, um, to um to put me on the next flight possible, which was Wizair, she'd gone out with. So, and then you know, this is people keep saying, How'd you get home again then? Well, because you don't have to fly Turkish, it was just I wanted to get back on the Saturday, yeah.

Phil 15:56

Sunday that they didn't so the other airlines don't have the same restrictions, no, they certainly don't, no.

Mark Mardell 16:02

And they they the irony was I'd actually quite pleased I was got got there early because I was gonna write a little article about assisted boarding and how marvelous it was, and how marvelous I found it, because I generally have found it marvelous, yeah. It's some kids' magazine I write for.

Simon 16:18

So it's you said something quite profound in there, and I recognise it, where you have this wall of ridiculous bureaucracy that they can't justify, but they will not flex or move, and then you find someone with some humanity and something uh they're listening to you, and how suddenly they are an angel, it's almost like they're they're so wonderful. Uh and I I get that. I'm trying to think uh, in terms of what's happened, has it changed your approach to travel? And I think Phil and I talk about getting older as disabled people. You you go into battle and you're used to battling this with airlines and airports for years and years. But as you get older, you're like, I don't know if I want to keep doing this. It's a long, long way of me getting to the point, which is I mean, has this a change how you approach it? Are you more careful? Do you check more? Are you a bit more resistant to flying?

Mark Mardell 17:12

I'm more cautious, and I certainly tend to get. I think actually uh haven't done this. Um if I was traveling on anybody I didn't really know and trust, I think I would get a doctor's letter. But I haven't done that. I've just been out to Maligram holiday from Gatwick, and that's a fantastic. Gatwick is just brilliant to me. I mean, I I know people aren't always um you know, I'm willing to give the praise as well as the the hard knocks. And I think Gatwick and I, there's British Airways that time I've been with EasyJet before. I think they're fantastic and they really do a great job. So I wouldn't worry about that. I'm going out to the States for the World Parkinson's Conference. Um, I'm a bit more worried about that. Um, particularly if the ice have been written in their blog.

Simon 17:59

Yeah. You might get refused, uh, but not with your Parkinson's. Well, that's yeah, yeah.

Phil 18:05

Do you so so going going back then, Mark? So you got home okay, and then you your dander was clearly up, and you wanted answers to questions, and you began the journey of finding out what this was all about, and that's when I had my conversations with you. But um, I suppose very basic question is had you not been Mark Mardell and knowing what you know and and the the world you lived in, do you think anyone would have taken any notice of you?

Challenging The Policy And CAA Pressure

Mark Mardell 18:38

No, I really don't.

Speaker 1 18:40

I don't think that I think that's on several levels. I mean, first of all, it's that I'm used to doing I don't know if let's say I'm an accidental activist. Yeah, I'm used to doing a bit of activism, used to, I mean, used to broadcasting. So, you know, I and I'm used to not taking no for an answer. So there's the push in me that is part of me, I think. And the recognition factor that, yeah, people have heard of me, perhaps, heard of movers and shakers, perhaps. Um, and we've got a bit of a campaigning network. That was the brilliant thing when I came back and started to because I I because of my voice, uh I'd um I haven't done very much on I've done loads on social media, but I haven't done very much piece to cameras, as it were. And I was just a bit embarrassed about that. I thought, no, I'll just need to do this. And they got tremendous traction in our group because the previous year we'd done a campaign to get 100,000 signatures on uh what we call the parky charter to get a debate in House of Commons. Been tremendously successful um in the end, and and I think one of the great successes was reaching out to other people, getting them involved, so that now Linda in Bexhill is a brilliant campaigner, knows Adler in Twickenham who's a brilliant campaigner. And so all these people came in and rode behind me. That really gave me a tremendous boost. And like the first few days of it, I must say I was quite enjoying it really, because I hear I was campaigning. Here I was getting all the recognition. People say, Oh Mark, you're so brave and all that sort of stuff. Very nice. And then on the Monday night of those, I can't remember exactly, just crashed. I just felt so down and so depressed, and just began to hit me how humiliating this was. What a dreadful thing for anybody to go through. Yeah. But I mean, and that that gives you more determination, you know, if I can't do this, if I can't afford this, who cares?

Simon 20:28

Yeah. You're you're you're making me well up a little bit, Mark. And I I'm having my flashbacks to 50-minute arguments in Hong Kong or in Spain with airport officials that refuse to even I use a mobility scooter, um, and this is absurd. I do remember one of them. I was I wasn't gonna budge. We we reached a stalemate. In the end, the agreement was someone would stand behind my mobility scooter and have a finger on the back seat and pretend to push it. So I had my independence, but they had their control. I mean, absurd, but but the point is that humiliation that's that takes a while to get back to come back from.

Mark Mardell 21:08

It does, really. It does.

Phil 21:10

I think though there's there's something to be said, isn't there? I love this. I love the accidental activist label. I think that is so really on the money, actually, because because you decided and because you had connections and you were prepared to use them, and also you were now fired up with creative anger. I mean, you wanted to get something changed that attracted the attention of people who didn't have your clout, didn't have your skill sets and and so on, but had been on those bloody journeys. Yeah, they knew what that felt like. So, in a sense, this accidental activist, maybe I don't know, maybe this is who wants Parkinson's disease? Nobody, right? But if you've got to have it, why not? use it to make the world a bit of a better place because that seems to me what what this has led to, hasn't it?

Mark Mardell 22:06

I think so. I think that's absolutely right. I mean that we're when our next campaign is on the voice and trying to get number of the correct number of speech and language therapists. Right. Um and that's going to be sort of in the coming year. But I think you know using that network of people who come together. But I mean I think the other thing is that I mean Parkinson's is different. Everything is different of course and all your I think the difference between perhaps you and me is that I'm not used to I didn't start off.

Phil 22:37

No, no.

Mark Mardell 22:39

And that makes it in a sense not worse obviously I mean you know but I mean something that I even even just asking for assisted boarding was a struggle in the first place. Yeah I didn't want to say this but I mean um because it is the people way that people look at people with disability maybe even I have in the past is humiliating. Yeah even though when you when you start off asking you know I'm disabled you feel a bit of a fraud because you think am I disabled compared to somebody's spent their life in a wheelchair not really but I mean even just admitting you're disabled is because I mean when I think yeah yeah yeah absolutely it's a sort of Rubicon that people and they say oh I've given into it and you well you haven't you've just got smart and you're now getting the right support and the right help and hopefully years of other people campaigning means that support is there.

Simon 23:33

But there's no two ways about it. I think that's a kind of awkward moment when you first start to enter that world if I'm really selfish here I like newly disabled people getting a really gruff ride because then they go oh my god this exists and they become more furious than than us who go oh yeah this is the same old same old so you become this accidental activist but I don't want it to happen to you but I'm glad that it five I know I think you're right yes and and then all the things that follow I mean this is nothing to do with the airline but I mean the other day we went for a scan on my leg in Epsom hospital local hospital pretty good hospital um and because I was carrying a stick and my voice isn't strong the doctor doctor you know talk to my wife the whole time does he take sugar I mean it's just like the number of times I get that and because Jo's a bit more voluble and she likes people and she likes to talk to people more than I do perhaps sometimes she's quite willing to take that role but I mean it's just it's just astonishing the number of people who just think because you're disabled you're stupid or incapable whatever yeah can you get a t-shirt that says Mark Modell Newsnight editor that just it's almost like you've got to remind them. Yeah it's ridiculous.

Humiliation To Campaign Momentum

Phil 24:49

I I think this is at the hut the nub of it and I'm delighted that I met you because you remind me of all the things that in some ways not I can't speak for Simon but in some ways that I feel I've forgotten really and some of it is just the raw anger at being totally abused in all these micro we call it micro disablisms and things like that where people are always putting you down in all have you got a I'm in my wheelchair have you got a license for that do you drink and drive you know all that kind of bollocks and it and it it's meant not nastily it's not meant to humiliate or demeanor anything else it's meant to be funny. Well actually it's not funny when you've heard it 500 times and it's not relevant um but I think what I'm I'm sorry this is a bit confused. What I'm saying is that I think when we meet people who are new to the game in quotes and suddenly come across these things what many of them do sadly is give up. You're not that you're saying I'm not having this I have got this thing and I wish I didn't have it but that's not the same as saying I'm going to stay indoors and not do anything and by you tackling that issue the Turkish airline you without I don't know how many people were touched by your story I hope a lot more are after this podcast but it gives us all a bit of hope that there are that well you can change things it doesn't have to be like this and equally the message is I think Mark isn't it that asking for help does not mean you've surrendered absolutely absolutely it doesn't mean you've surrendered and I think it's really important with I was going to say with Parkinson's in particular I'm sure it's true of other disabilities as well people hide themselves away.

Mark Mardell 26:33

I feel tragic when I hear you know people well it's great but they're saying that about the podcast because they've heard the podcast they say I now feel the confidence to go out and talk to people you know I mean hiding away because people think I'm drunk or whatever. Yeah dreadful yeah and you know that people hide themselves away and the other thing with Parkinson's one of the things it can result in is apathy not just through low mood or you know apathy lack of dopamine so a lot of people don't really fight in the way that we do I think the other other thing maybe that's the drugs as well some people get you know really super activist and super involved in changing things and I think we're part of that end of the spectrum and I think that's really important too there's people like us.

Simon 27:17

Yeah yeah and even when you have to go through that experience and I remember this I would be fighting so hard 90% of it is selfish. I need this to be sorted but I also thought that means that the next person who follows they're not going to have to go through this grief. I mean just on a technical point did they you it's almost like an admission that they've changed the policy but no explanation of why they had it in the first place. So it has changed but it's an apology without um admittance of liability type thing.

What Changes And What Still Fails

Mark Mardell 27:47

Well it's not even an apology what happened was that the Sunday Times wrote an article on me quite late on I mean I'd been on the Jeremy Vine show I'd been on today a couple of times done loads of blogs have been picked up by loads of people but that made a difference because it was picked up in America by some big magazine and they just lifted it verbatim from the Sunday Times don't whether they asked permission or not doesn't really bother me mine above the Sunday Times anyway as part of that they obviously asked Turkish airlines for a statement and they the which everybody's led by the brilliant Simon Cauldron have been asking here nobody they just blanked us completely in Britain in America I don't know they're more on the ball more worried or whatever but they got a statement out of them which said sorry for the confusion and we're now asking for a doctor's letter from everybody basically so they thought oh no made it worse for everybody said like thanks Mark thanks a lot are you fit to travel that's what you've got to ask yourself so I said no no this isn't any good we got them doctor CA8 so I think the CAA behind the scenes were doing an awful lot and meeting with chief executives and they didn't want to publicize what they're doing because they'd rather change the policy than have a great hurrah and you know be annoyed. Um I think that's really good. So Turkish I'm just trying to think how it happened. So first of all they changed it to if you think you need it, if you might need a note. And I said no well that's you know first of all have you changed have you told your staff about this because no good turning up and it was like a bit chaotic because you found that some sites had changed in some languages and others hadn't but in the end it seemed that they often say it's no good saying you know do you need a doctor's letter order just don't and so they've changed it now something like it may be wise to ask your doctor whether you're fit to travel very much putting on the burden on you well not not not so much on the burden on you but on the the idea that is it safe for you rather than is it safe for us to carry you which I think is much better. And um but having uh done all that they they still there's a twin track when I was trying to get my money back. I've got my money back for the ticket haven't got the compensation back and they just keep on saying you haven't filled in this form correctly or I mean they said to get the money back go to one of their sales offices in London. Okay where are they? Or don't know that you don't know where your own sales offices in London are so all this time I've sort of wrote cross letters on their feedback forms. Haven't had a single acknowledgement that me as an individual has been affected. And um you know I've written to the embassy I've written to the CEO loads of times haven't got anything back from them.

Phil 30:41

So we need to draw this to a close so we're at the place where there's been a change where we now have to say whether we feel we need assistance to fly Turkish airlines um you are still battling to get compensation and presumably an apology but I think the message to all of us is don't travel on Turkish airlines isn't it very clear. I'm going nowhere near them I mean I don't think I would either I mean you know they And the the thing is that they claim to be great for disabled people I think in Turkey they so long as you haven't got Parkinson's yeah exactly but it you can Turkish another reason not to get Parkinson's you can't go to Turkey on Turkish airlines can you?

Simon 31:31

Well um and it would be remiss of us that you you did say something Mark which I totally agree with there's some fantastic airlines whether it doesn't matter it's budget or big end uh high end i some of them just get this brilliantly and it is a joy that the difficulty I still have is I have this anticipation beforehand in case it goes wrong. Yeah and then when it is brilliant I'm like oh my god this is amazing rather than as one of my good friends Liz once said that's how it should be we shouldn't have to write a piece to go they were great that should be the norm. There's also people like Sophie Morgan and others who are doing Rights on flights there's a lot of campaigning on this issue and the changes so I think it is incremental even if it's painfully slow this change.

Phil 32:13

I suppose the other thing Simon and Mark is there's something to be said here isn't there for joining us up i with Parkinson's group are doing all sorts of interesting stuff. Obviously they concentrate on people with Parkinson's of course they do that's what they're about but some of these issues are universally true for disabled people regardless of their impairment whatever it is they've got and perhaps we need to learn to be much more together coming together on like the Sophie Morgan thing which I don't think is exclusive to any disability at all it's just are you having aggro flying to places um but well maybe we're missing a trick by not talking to each other more.

Disability Solidarity And Closing Invite

Mark Mardell 32:52

I think that's right because I think something that we've done in the Parkinson's community is first of all reach out to other people with the neurological conditions because they're very similar. So um so those things get connected but also I mean somebody else that was very helpful was Lord Blanke who was fantastic. Right. And he's he's obviously a longtime disability campaigner but he also sits on the board of Ryanair's I don't know what their committee is and he was really helpful in just pushing it behind the scenes when you've got somebody powerful like that on your side really help. Yeah so yeah I think we should all join together.

Simon 33:27

And just as one that the the two there's such a vast array of different types of disabilities and conditions and so on.

Phil 33:35

And that doesn't unify us the the bit that unifies is when we all know we're being treated badly unfairly as a result of that and that's the bit I think that there's the commonality um sorry Phil you were going to I was just going to draw us to a close really yeah so Mark I mean thank you so much for giving us your time and sharing the story with us um perhaps we should invite you back on in a few months' time and see if you've got any further with your campaign but if anybody listening to this um has been through similar experiences maybe not with Parkinson's necessarily but if Parkinson if you have Parkinson's please contact um Mark we'll leave the show notes in the show notes we leave the links so you can do that but Mark it's been really good to meet you again and thank you so much for giving us your time well thank you for giving having it's been delightfully