Lives Less Ordinary – Details, episodes & analysis

Gilbert Alaskadi grew up in the African country of Chad. His family was poor, and he spent much of his childhood hungry, with people frequently making fun of his small stature. Then, when he was a teenager, he encountered a bodybuilding pamphlet, promising quick muscle growth in a handful of weeks. He wanted the physique, but first he'd need money and calories. At the first oppurtunity he ran away from home, left the country, and jumped head-first into the world of bodybuilding.

Presenter: Mobeen Azhar Producer: Harry Graham Editor: Munazza Khan

Get in touch: [email protected] or WhatsApp: 0044 330 678 2784

Osel Hita Torres was a Spanish toddler when he was recognised by the Dalai Lama as the reincarnation of a well-known Tibetan Buddhist monk and teacher called Lama Yeshe. As a child he was sent to a monastery in India to prepare for life as a monk and scholar. Many expected him to carry on Lama Yeshe’s work of teaching Buddhism around the world when he grew up. But Osel had other ideas.

Presenter: Mobeen Azhar Producer: Zoe Gelber

Get in touch: [email protected] or WhatsApp: 0044 330 678 2784

(Photo: The Little Lama Osel with Geshe Gendun Choephel (left) and Lama Zopa Rinpoche (right): Credit: Jacie Keeley)

Alain Gachet quit a lucrative career in oil to search for water underground. Colleagues told him he was a 'crazy donkey', but he eventually developed an algorithm that allowed him to 'peel the earth like an onion' and detect water beneath the surface. Soon, he was asked to train his talents to help pinpoint areas of life-saving reserves of water for desperate refugees escaping the conflict in Darfur.

Presenter: Jo Fidgen Producer: Anna Lacey and Hetal Bapodra Editor: Munazza Khan

Get in touch: [email protected] or WhatsApp: 0044 330 678 2784

The Scottish rappers who fooled the music industry. Gavin Bain was one half of Silibil N’ Brains, a Californian rap duo on the cusp of greatness. But there was a problem - the story of these hip hop stars was fake. Gavin’s never even been to America.

Film clips: The Mask/Chuck Russell/  New Line Cinema and Dark Horse Entertainment. The Secret of My Success/Herbert Ross/Rastar Beetlejuice/Tim Burton/The Geffen Company

Presenter: Mobeen Azhar Producer: Louise Morris

Donnie Dunagan was a Disney child star in the 1930s before becoming a US Marine.

He was born in 1934 and grew up in Memphis, Tennessee, in the midst of the Great Depression. After winning a talent show aged four he was scouted and whisked to Hollywood where he starred in several movies – including a role as the voice of Walt Disney’s iconic animated deer Bambi in 1942. But the Second World War would put a halt to his movie career, and Donnie eventually became a US Marine – never telling anyone about his Hollywood history until he was publicly unmasked in 2004. On the 80th anniversary of Bambi's release, he shares his story.

Presenter: Mobeen Azhar Producer: Zoe Gelber

Growing up as the son of a sex worker and a Black US soldier in South Korea in the 70s, Milton Washington was seen as an outcast, and "not Korean." He couldn't even get a birth certificate. Still, he was loved and protected by his mum, the two of them against the world. She told him his dad was in America, a land of flying cars and ice cream mountains — and that was where Milton wanted to be, too. Milton's story continues.

Presenter: Jo Fidgen Producer: Laura Thomas

Growing up as the son of a sex worker and a black US soldier in South Korea in the '70s, Milton Washington was seen as an outcast, and "not Korean". He couldn't even get a birth certificate. Still, he was loved and protected by his mum, the two of them against the world. She told him his dad was in America, a land of flying cars and ice cream mountains - and that was where Milton wanted to be, too.

Presenter: Jo Fidgen Producer: Laura Thomas

Chasing the aurora helps Hugo grieve. By day Hugo Sanchez works in a school, but by night he hunts glowing light displays across the freezing Canadian wilderness. Capturing the aurora is more than just a hobby for Hugo. He took up photography after his son Emilio was born with complex disabilities. When Emilio died at ten years old Hugo found solace and hope in the dancing night sky.

Presenter: Emily Webb Producer: Louise Morris

How extreme kayaker Scott Lindgren's illness forced him to face his past. Scott’s hard, uncompromising attitude had made him one of the world’s top expedition kayakers in a sport that’s claimed the lives of many friends. But bottling up a harsh childhood and drinking for a release can only work for so long. When Scott became ill he faced a reckoning – be the tough guy and lose everything you love, or learn to embrace being vulnerable.

Archive is from a film about Scott's life called The River Runner directed by Rush Sturges for River Roots productions.

Presenter: Emily Webb Producer: Louise Morris

Hafsat Abiola Costello's dad was nearly Nigeria's president - but he had powerful enemies

His name was Moshood Abiola, also known as MKO, and he was one of Africa's richest men before turning to politics. He was the presumed winner of a 1993 Presidential election, but the incumbent military regime annulled the result and had him arrested. Hafsat and her mother fought for his release, but the family paid a high price for taking on the generals..

Presenter: Emily Webb Producer: Harry Graham Editor: Munazza Khan Sound design: Joel Cox