Jess Thom: Touretteshero

Touretteshero co-founder Jess Thom will share the secrets of her transformation from ‘sufferer’ to superhero.  This is a talk for everyone: the curious, the creative, those with and without Tourettes Syndrome. Touretteshero’s mission is to reclaim the most frequently misunderstood condition on the planet, challenge people to think differently, and build a more inclusive society. Come and hear how Jess is using laughter to change the world, ‘one tic at a time.’

Writer, artist and part time superhero, Jess Thom co-founded Touretteshero in 2010 as a creative response to her experience of living with Tourettes Syndrome. Touretteshero celebrates the humour and creativity of Tourettes and shares it with as wide an audience as possible. In 2014 Jess co-devised Backstage In Biscuit Land, which debuted at the Edinburgh Fringe that year, winning the Total Theatre Award for Best Emerging Company. She has written in the mainstream and disability press including The Guardian, The Observer and Disability Now. In 2012 she published Welcome to Biscuit Land – A Year In the Life of Touretteshero, with a foreword by Stephen Fry. Jess has spoken widely about her life with Tourettes, including a TEDx talk on at the Royal Albert Hall and the Annual Disability Lecture at St John’s College Cambridge. Jess is a visual, performing, and participatory artist based in London. She graduated from The Royal College of Art in 2005.

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