{"id":2243236,"date":"2026-11-06T06:36:45","date_gmt":"2026-11-06T03:36:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=2243236"},"modified":"2026-11-06T06:36:45","modified_gmt":"2026-11-06T03:36:45","slug":"teen-with-cerebral-palsy-finds-escape-in-music-and-tv-dream","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=2243236","title":{"rendered":"Teen with cerebral palsy finds escape in music and TV dream"},"content":{"rendered":"

[analyse_image type=”featured” src=”https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/news\/1024\/branded_news\/62e3\/live\/c7d3fff0-d857-11f1-a701-fddedf244c16.jpg”]<\/p>\n

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\"BBCBBC<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n
Izzy was diagnosed with cerebral palsy when he was two years old<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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“Music takes me to a different place,” says a teenager with cerebral palsy who has landed the chance to perform on national television.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Some days 16-year-old Izzy struggles to get around because of pain caused by his condition. But when he picks up a guitar or starts singing, he says he can escape into another world.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Known by friends and family as “the happiest person in the world”, Izzy, from West Lavington in Wiltshire, has been selected to perform in the 2026 BBC Children in Need Choir.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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“It’s really exciting, a once-in-a-lifetime experience to do something that special,” he said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Despite living with cerebral palsy and a spinal condition that can leave him fatigued and in pain, Izzy rarely stops smiling.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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“Music takes me to a different place, into how the music is described and the places they are – that’s where I’m escaping to,” he said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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His mum, Rachael, said: “He just loves life and makes the best of everything. He likes to talk, to be involved, to help.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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The choir will perform on the national Children in Need broadcast on 13 November, an opportunity Rachael described as a “crazy dream” come true.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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\"Izzy<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
Izzy says the excitement of performing with the Children In Need choir will outweigh any nerves<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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Izzy was born nine weeks premature, and spent the first month of his life at Salisbury District Hospital. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Early on, his family noticed he wasn’t developing as quickly as other babies – he couldn’t sit, crawl or walk – and was eventually diagnosed with cerebral palsy aged two and a half. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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“I also have a spinal problem where my bones rub together, which isn’t the most comfy,” explained Izzy. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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“It can affect my daily life. One day I may be able to get around, the next I can’t. Sometimes I feel uncomfortable and in pain,” he said. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Izzy – who was named after Isambard Kingdom Brunel – walks with splints on his lower legs to help with balance. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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\"Izzy<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
Izzy was born nine weeks premature<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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“Yes it’s true, I’m known for always smiling. I do things that are happy. I think it makes other people feel better too,” he said. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Izzy has started volunteering to help younger children at the West Lavington Youth Club (WLYC), where he’s been going for five years. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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The club has received money from Children In Need in the past. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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“He brings a load of energy to the group, even though he has physical disabilities it doesn’t hold him back,” said Josh Newton, the manager of WLYC. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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“He doesn’t need to be asked to help, he just does.” <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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\"Izzy<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
Izzy has attended West Lavington Youth Club since he was in primary school<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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The choir will perform a mash up of ‘Stargazing’ by Myles Smith and the Candi Staton classic ‘You Got The Love’ as part of the national CiN show. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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“It’ll mean everything to him,” said Rachael. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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“He’s just blown away by it. It’s like a crazy, crazy dream” <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Follow BBC Wiltshire on <\/i>Facebook<\/i>, <\/i>X<\/i> and <\/i>Instagram<\/i>. Send your story ideas to us on email or via <\/i>WhatsApp on 0800 313 4630<\/i>.<\/i><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n

[analyse_source url=”https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/articles\/cx1l36mn09vyo”]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

[analyse_image type=”featured” src=”https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/news\/1024\/branded_news\/62e3\/live\/c7d3fff0-d857-11f1-a701-fddedf244c16.jpg”] BBC Izzy was diagnosed with cerebral palsy when he was two years old “Music takes me to a different place,” says a teenager with cerebral palsy who has landed the chance to perform on national television. Some days 16-year-old Izzy struggles to get around because of pain caused by his condition. But […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[35,226],"class_list":["post-2243236","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-politics","tag-bbc-com","tag-crawlmanager"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2243236","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2243236"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2243236\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2243236"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2243236"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2243236"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}