The secret genius of Uncle Eric

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Joe Tucker has fond memories of his unconventional Uncle Eric. Eric lived most of his life with Joe's grandparents in a small terraced house in the north-west of England. He was a former boxer and it could seem that his main passion in later life was his daily trip to the betting shop. But he was also a self-taught painter - and it was only when he died at the age of 86 in July 2018, that his family found out his artwork had a story of its own. Joe's written a book about Eric Tucker. It's called The Secret Painter. When German archaeologist Harald Meller saw photos of a bronze-age metal disc illustrated with depictions of the stars and the sun, he knew immediately that it was very important - and that it could change everything we thought we knew about astronomy in the prehistoric era. There was just one snag: it was in the hands of the wrong people. Harald became the front man in a daring police operation to recover what would become known as the Nebra Sky Disc from the black market. This interview was first broadcast in 2022. Presenter: Mobeen Azhar Producer: Jo Impey Get in touch: [email protected] or WhatsApp +44 330 678 2707 (Photo: Eric Tucker as a young man in Warrington_Date Unknown_Credit Estate of Eric Tucker)