The Assembly

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2024

Documentary

Summary

Actor Michael Sheen is interviewed by a cast of 35 individuals who are neurodivergent or learning disabled. No subject is out of bounds and no question is off the table as the Good Omens star is quizzed on everything from ex-girlfriends and on-screen kisses to the OBE he returned and even his favourite motorway

Review

David Butcher

To mark World Autism Acceptance Week (2-8 April), the BBC has commissioned an unusual one-off, designed to give a voice to people who may find communication or social interaction hard — and who rarely make it onto peak-time television.

The idea is adapted from a successful French format, in which a panel of autistic and neurodivergent interviewers question a celebrity. In one case, they grilled President Emmanuel Macron himself — he was asked with admirable frankness whether he thought it set a good example to marry your teacher…

Here, the interviewee is actor Michael Sheen. He has agreed to put himself through what is likely to be a no-holds-barred conversation with a panel of 30 or so autistic volunteers, which may or may not prove less hazardous than a press junket full of fired-up reporters.

Previews were unavailable, but Sheen relished the prospect: “I can’t wait for what I’m sure is going to be a challenging experience,” he said. “I really don’t know what to expect, which is both exhilarating and a little bit terrifying.”