Viewers were left 'sobbing' and made a demand after John Bishop and his son's documentary about deafness aired on ITV on Thursday night (September 22). John and Joe Bishop: Life After Deaf saw the Scouse comedian learn British Sign Language (BSL) and perform a stand-up set to a deaf audience entirely through singing, inspired by his son.
His eldest son Joe, 27, has an autoimmune condition that causes progressive deafness and is now partially deaf because of it. The condition developed when Joe was a teenager after he contracted a virus which destroyed most of his hearing at the age of 15.
For the past 12 years the Bishop family had been trying to "fix" Joe's hearing, but the emotional programme saw the family reconsider their stance, instead looking to "embrace" Joe's deafness. The documentary followed John and Joe’s journey into the deaf community as they unpacked the issues the family had faced.
