Speaking on BBC Radio 5 Live Breakfast, actor Richard Mylan has told Rachel Burden why he and his autistic son, Jaco, are continuing their daily visits to Cardiff Market through the ongoing lockdown.
They’ve previously visited the market hundreds of times as it closes up for the night – now it’s closed indefinitely, but it’s still a key feature of their daily walks.
Richard Mylan, who appeared in BBC drama Waterloo Road, said: “In normal life, we would walk around town regularly. He would go into Cardiff Market at 5pm and they would ring the bell and all the stores close down – he loves to watch that happening because it happens the same way every day.”
He continued, “It’s been challenging at times but on the whole it’s not been that bad, because all the changes that we went through were gradual and we were able to explain things to Jaco and he was able to understand them. I think Autistic people generally can deal with change as long as its gradual and explained.”
Mylan then went on to explain to Rachel Burden why he and his son are continuing their daily visits to Cardiff Market, despite the fact that the market is now closed.
He said, “It really does help. It kind of explains what’s happening. I was able to explain that what’s happening now is kind of like the Cardiff Market on a global scale. Everything’s closed down at the same time and everyone has to stay at home at the same time.”
After Rachel Burden mentioned that lockdown restrictions have been lifted slightly in Wales and other parts of the UK, Mylan discussed the importance of being able to leave the house more than once per day.
He said, “Generally speaking, many autistic people are socially isolated anyway. This is almost like a doubling down of that. If any autistic people are struggling with changes in routine and regular exercise, just being able to go out more than once a day will be a lifesaver for many autistic people and their families.”
To listen to Richard Mylan’s interview with Rachel Burden on BBC Radio 5 Live Breakfast visit the link below: https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p08bdrcj
