Chris Harding presents documentary on Hikikomori for BBC Radio 4

What can Japan’s hikikomori phenomenon teach us about loneliness, isolation and the role of creativity in helping people reconnect with the world?

For BBC Radio 4 Artworks programme, Chris Harding explores the lives and experiences of hikikomori – people living in extreme social isolation – across Japan, the UK, France and Italy, and asks whether art can provide a pathway out of isolation.

Chris is one of the UK’s leading experts on Japan. He is a senior lecturer on Asian history at The University of Edinburgh and is the author of several books, including most recently A Short History of Japan (Pelican Books) which Tom Holland called ‘essential reading’. Find him on Instagram and YouTube.

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 on 7 July, 4pm. Listen back on BBC Sounds shortly afterwards. 

To work with Chris, get in touch: info@northbanktalent.com