Adam Hills on the Paralympics and how The Last Leg broke down stigma

What's the view from your sofa?

"The main, comfiest sofa looks at the TV. To the right, there's another sofa and, to the left, a lovely armchair. I'd be fooling myself if I said it’s arranged so that people sitting on different sides can converse… it's so we can all see the TV."

And which seat is yours?

"It depends on whether my wife and kids are here in London, because most of the year I'm on my own. I have my spot directly in front of the TV – I'll have my feet up on the footrest and a cup of tea. I make myself very comfortable. When the family are over from Australia, I’m relegated to the sofa on the side!"

Check out our Paralympics 2024 TV guide, including where to watch the action, exclusive interviews, and a day-by-day TV planner.

You were born and grew up in Sydney and first covered the Paralympics for Australian television in 2008 — what was that experience like?

"I'm a bit of a fraud because I never saw myself as disabled. I'm really only missing a tiny bit. I was born with one foot and my parents were told by the first specialist they met that I'd never walk. My mum was devastated. But I caught a bug as a baby and she took me to the GP – and he told her I could have a prosthetic made and I'd be absolutely fine.

"They were advised to treat me like any normal kid – if I fell over, I had to pick myself up, no fussing over me! I never even used the word disabled.

"At the 2008 Paralympics, I realised no one considered themselves disabled, they were all just cracking on with life. It was a real eye-opener. I saw my tribe – fit, young people playing sport. And then, in 2012, when ParalympicsGB came into the stadium and there were fireworks going off and Heroes was playing to 80,000 people – I thought, 'I want to be part of that crew.' And then I realised, 'Oh, I am! I'm disabled.'"

It's amazing how much change the Paralympics brings about, isn't it?

"Yes, it's incredible! If a 42-year-old can watch the Games and feel proud to be disabled – imagine what that's going to do to 12-year-olds! If you can see it, you can be it. Representation matters."

You have an MBE for services to disability awareness, and your show on Channel 4, The Last Leg, has helped to tackle stigma. How important is that?

"You wouldn't think a Paralympics highlights show hosted by three guys with four legs [between them] would end up raising awareness.

"After our first programme, I looked through tweets to see what people thought of it. Someone said, 'Is it OK to ask what some of the disabilities are, as some of them look able-bodied?' Another person said, 'Is it OK to say that I find some of the Paralympians quite fit?' So, we created a segment where people could ask us anything and we'd try to answer."

You were very sporty as a child and you were close to becoming a Paralympian yourself...

"When I was 12, I was asked to try out for the Paralympics. I wanted to play tennis – but that wasn’t an option in 1982. Fast forward to the Beijing Paralympics in 2008. The wheelchair tennis coach said to me, 'Do you want to play wheelchair tennis? I think your disability might be enough that we can classify you.'

"I went back home and had coffee with the head of the Australian team, who told me I'd have to start living life in a wheelchair so that it became second nature. If you’re on a tennis court and the ball goes short, your instinct is to move your legs – but I'd need to start moving my arms and rolling my wheels. But at that point I couldn’t spend my life in a wheelchair.

"Then last year, I found this global movement called Para-Standing Tennis [played without using a wheelchair] – and it made me realise that there are lots of people out there who have just been forgotten, so I made Foot Fault, a Sky Sports documentary to teach people about it."

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