The Boy in the River

Available for over a year

20 years ago, journalist Athar Ahmad walked through the gates of his secondary school in west London. The school was what everyone in the area described as a ‘rough’ school but its students all felt as though they faced many of the same challenges and went through many of the same experiences. But three of Athar’s classmates wouldn’t make it to the age he is now. In this raw and personal series, Athar asks why the lives of his classmates went down such different paths and why three of them ended up dead - murdered brutally and violently. As Athar tries to make sense of what happened, he explores issues around multiculturalism, identity and life for communities in the UK, told through the prism of a school at the crossroads of modern Britain. In this third episode, Athar looks at how the school tried to foster cohesion and opportunity for its pupils, but how it couldn't always stop the influence of a more dangerous and destructive identity waiting for students outside the gates. Presenter: Athar Ahmad Producer: Georgia Catt