Sarah Cronin-Stanley

No one expects much from Christy Brown, a boy with cerebral palsy born into a working-class Irish family. Though Christy is a spastic quadriplegic and essentially paralyzed, a miraculous event occurs when, at the age of 5, he demonstrates control of his left foot by using chalk to scrawl a word on the floor. With the help of his steely mother — and no shortage of grit and determination — Christy overcomes his infirmity to become a painter, poet and author.

"Bull" McCabe's family has farmed a field for generations, sacrificing much in the name of the land. When the widow who owns the field decides to sell it in a public auction, McCabe knows that he must own it. While no local dare bid against him, a wealthy American decides he requires the field to build a highway. "Bull" and his son decide they must try to convince the American to let go of his ambition and return home, but the consequences of their plot prove sinister.

A mysterious stranger presents a boy with a VCR that can "play" the past...and the future. How it affects the boy and his struggling middle-class family is the central story.

Mud was a 1994 CBBC television show, starring Russell Brand, Brooke Kinsella, Russell Tovey in their early appearances and a teddy bear called Steve. A group of disadvantaged children are taken by their social worker to an outdoor activity centre to escape their problems.