Ten BBC radio documentaries examining big turning points in the life of Walt Disney and the Walt Disney Company. The programmes covered Snow White, Pinocchio, Fantasia, Dumbo, Bambi, Cinderella, Alice in Wonderland, Mary Poppins and the Jungle Book. We also had an episode focused on the construction of Disneyland in California in the 1950s, and EPCOT at Walt Disney World in Florida in the 1970s. Throughout we had snippets of Walt's life story, his marital problems, his health, the perilous financial state of the Disney Company until theme park revenue rescued it from the challenges of being forever millions in debt to the Bank of America, and the often dysfunctional relationships with his staff and family. It was really well done, and although as a Disney nut I already knew much of the story, hearing it presented in this way was very compelling. I wasn't aware however how relatively poor the box office and critical acclaim were for the films made in the years after Snow White, almost until the smash hit that was Mary Poppins. Fantasia particularly bombed at the box office initially and Alice in Wonderland was seen as a "difficult film". Disney was without a doubt a genius, and his legacy has been immense, but he spent most of his life with the worry that he would leave little in legacy to justify his life's work. He need not have been worried, but his death in 1966 at 65 was still all too early. Narrated by Mel Giedroyc, and incorporating archive footage from the Disney company, TV and radio specials of the time, and the films themselves.

Broadcast July/August 2023. Listened on BBC Sounds. A Novel production for BBC Radio 4.