Read a transcript of this event [PDF, 196KB].

Marking the 50th anniversary of the withdrawal of the drug Thalidomide from the market, key figures involved in its history come together to tell their stories and answer questions.

In the UK between 1958 and 1962 (and occasionally beyond), many pregnant mothers took Thalidomide to offset morning sickness and insomnia. However, it had major side-effects on the growing fetus, leading to the death of an unknown number of babies as well as a range of impairments.

This event will allow a group of people closely involved with the aftermath of the drug and its history, in both personal and professional capacities, to contribute to an account of what could arguably be considered one of the greatest human tragedies in the history of medicine. We will hear about the social, emotional and medical aspects of the Thalidomide story in order to piece together aspects of the drug's history.

The event will also include the screening of extracts from the films 'One of Them is Brett' (1965), 'The Russian Arm' and 'Only the Beginning' (1969).

Speakers:

Geoff Adams-Spink, journalist and former age and disability consultant, BBC News.

Margarett Hogg, Trustee for the Thalidomide Society.

Claus Newman, retired Consultant Paediatrician and Director of the Leon Gillis Unit, Queen Mary’s Hospital, Roehampton, and current Medical Advisor to the Thalidomide Trust UK.

Anne Borsay, Professor of Healthcare and Medical Studies at Swansea University.

 This event included live speech to text transcription for deaf, deafened and hard of hearing visitors. For further information about speech to text, please contact Gemma Hopkins at access@wellcomecollection.org. Find out more about access at Wellcome Collection.

The image above shows a young Rosie Moriarty-Simmonds at the end of hours of rehabilitation. Photo taken 1963-4.