At a school assembly, 16-year-old Simon Day discovers an acute fear of public speaking. Faced with a crowd of expectant faces, panic begins to set in.Soon, Simon finds that words fail him at almost every turn, threatening his career, relationships and, ultimately, his happiness.Matthew Syed follows Simon’s journey to find his voice, uncovering the science of how we speak and the complex factors that leave us lost for words.With Joe Moran, author of Shrinking Violets: The Secret Life of Shyness; psycholinguistics expert Dr Alissa Melinger; and former palliative care consultant Dr Kathryn Mannix, author of Listen: How to Find the Words for Tender Conversations.Presenter: Matthew Syed Producer: Pippa Smith Series Editor: Katherine Godfrey Music, Sound Design and Mix: Nicholas Alexander Theme Music: Seventy Times Seven by Ioana Selaru A Novel production for BBC Radio 4

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“What did the council decide on item 42?” — answered with the speaker and the moment.

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