The Great ADHD Myth?; Race Against the Tide

“Presenter Max Pemberton, a psychiatrist in the NHS, Daily Mail columnist and author, and the experts he has assembled, waste no time in setting out their stall in The Great ADHD Myth?. This is a documentary that will incense and offend some of its viewers, and its scepticism regarding ADHD is clear from the outset. “It’s certainly not a medical condition as far as I’m concerned,” says the former president of the Royal College of General Practitioners, Dr Iona Heath. “We’re going to look back and think: did we actually put a chemical cosh on an entire developing generation of brains?” says a neurophysiological psychologist. “The industry around ADHD is about making money at the cost of the misery of others,” says a former president of the Royal College of Psychiatrists.”
Lucy Mangan, The Guardian

“If this had been designed as a dispassionate science film, it would have been flawed by a lack of balance: there was no real counter-argument offered to the idea of ADHD as a “myth”. Except this wasn’t Horizon; this was, really, a polemic. So the question is: was it a valuable one? Yes, because the issues raised do need to be discussed. At one point Pemberton proved how easy it is to be diagnosed when a single online assessment, for which he paid £1,200, told him he has ADHD (he is adamant that he doesn’t).”
James Jackson, The Times

“What the documentary failed to explore was how widely these tests are being exploited for benefits claims. More than 100,000 people claiming Personal Independence Payment [PIP] cite ADHD as their main ‘disability’. This one-off programme could have made an even more compelling case if it had tackled this side of the problem, perhaps over two hours. We’ve got the attention span.”
Christopher Stevens, Daily Mail

“Believe me, I am as exhausted by the conversations around ADHD as anyone else. There are far more pressing scientific and medical issues that ought to demand this much attention. But it feels like this film only seeks to spark more debate. Presenting ADHD as a “myth?” confirms that its objective is to enrage, not enlighten. In lieu of balanced testimony or the full picture of the condition in question, it has at least succeeded on that.”
Sarah Carson, The i

“The problem with Race Against the Tide is that if there is more to competitive sand-sculpting, you’re not told about it here. The programme suffers from the same problem all of the Great British knock-offs do, which is they’re never quite sure how seriously to take themselves. Of course, that wry tone of “isn’t this all a little daft?” as pioneered by Mel and Sue, is necessary in a programme that is quite obviously more than a little daft. But there’s a balance to be struck. If sand sculpting is just silly, then what are we all doing watching it? Race Against the Tide, at least in its first episode, was so self-mocking that it could never really expect the viewer to care.”
Benji Wilson, Telegraph