Podcast Review: The Gift – Switched

We've all had those moments of boredom where we will do just about anything to pass the time – flipping through a magazine, watering the plants, maybe even washing some dishes. But for Tony, deciding to use a gifted at-home ancestry DNA test to avoid returning to work, turned out to have unforeseen and life-changing consequences.

The first two episodes of BBC Radio 4's 'The Gift' shares with its listeners an almost unbelievable story of what really happens when babies are swapped at birth. In 'Switched', British journalist and host of the show, Jenny Kleeman, introduces us to a woman called Joan, who found out over 50 years later that the daughter she raised wasn't hers biologically. Results of a DNA test, that her son, Tony, took, led her to find her biological daughter and set into motion a journey of emotional self-discovery and reconnection.

While 'The Gift' has covered other stories about the unforeseen consequences of at-home DNA testing, this might be the most astonishing yet. Indeed, this is the only recorded instance of babies having been swapped at birth in the UK. Kleeman walks us listeners through the consequences of this incident, and we get to follow the family's experience over the two episodes.

The podcast sets the warm and intimate tone right from the start, with an audio snippet of the show's focus, Joan, asking if Kleeman wants a cup of tea. We are drawn into Joan's world, as she shares how she reached out to Kleeman after listening to the first series. Through interchanging audio, we are introduced not only to Joan but to her home, as Kleeman's descriptions of her kitchen blend with Joan's storytelling.

I instantly found myself attentively listening to Joan talk about her husband and children as if I was sat in the room with her. She narrates how, after having three boys, she and her husband eagerly awaited a daughter, and in 1967, Jessica was born. She paints the picture of a big, warm family and Kleeman herself points this out to the listeners, telling us how they were 'a huge but ordinary family, or so they thought'.

The story then truly starts to unfold with Tony sharing his shock at the results of a DNA test revealing he had a full sibling called Claire. Certain it was an error in the database, he reached out to Claire, asking her when and where she was born. Her response, identical to the circumstances of his sister Jessica's birth, led them to discover the truth – Claire, not Jessica, was actually Tony's biological sister and Joan's biological daughter.

Together, Tony and Joan broke the news to Jessica. Both of them recount how this revelation was overwhelming for her, leaving her deeply emotional. Breaking the chronological narrative, Joan shares how Jessica has distanced herself, now refusing to answer her messages or call her 'mum'. Kleeman gently probes Joan on her feelings about this, allowing listeners to hear how, although it upsets her, Joan is understanding of her daughter's need for space.

Tony continues to narrate this series of events uninterrupted, making the listeners feel they are directly involved in a conversation with him, rather than listening to a podcast. It makes the story feel all that more genuine and the excited description of when Joan and Tony first met Claire, and their instant connection looking at family photos, is truly heart-warming to hear. The detail provided by Kleeman with her retelling the moment when 'Claire's car pulled up outside', added an extra layer of intimacy and closeness to the story, which allowed us listeners to share in the anticipation and then joy.

We find out more about Claire in the second part of the podcast and Kleeman shares with us how despite initially refusing, Claire later agreed to be part of the show. Although it felt odd in the first episode to learn so much about Claire without hearing from her, delaying her input for the listeners mirrored what Kleeman as a journalist experienced, thus allowing us to feel we were uncovering the story at the same time.

Claire reveals that chance also played a significant role in her discovery. Her son had also taken an at-home DNA test, so had Claire, only to find out her DNA didn't match any known locations linked to her parents' ancestry. At the time, she did not think much about it until she received the email from Tony.

Unlike Tony and Joan, Claire's initial reaction was more subdued, and she acknowledges that the discovery answered many questions for her. She confides that she always felt like 'an outsider in the family' and getting to know her biological relatives has brought her so much happiness.

The podcast paints Claire's experience in stark contrast with Jessica's. The discovery of Joan's biological daughter, Claire, is the focus of the show and the happy consequences of this are discussed throughout. We are told how close Claire and Joan have become, now meeting up several times a week.

In the second episode, Claire tells the listeners how elated she was to find out: 'I was related to all these people… this is my mum, this is my brother!' I couldn't help but be struck by how this sentiment sharply contrasted Jessica's reaction to the news: 'You're not my mum, you're not my brother.'

While more attention was given to the former experience, 'Switched' doesn't shy away from this more negative and deeply emotional side of this story. Kleeman balances this with respecting Jessica's wishes to not be involved in the show, still allowing the listeners to appreciate how this story changed these three women's lives in different ways.

The podcast concludes by emphasising how this story is still ongoing and how the family are yet to receive any compensation from the NHS's Resolution. Despite the NHS acknowledging they were at fault for the babies being swapped at birth, they are still waiting for proper closure on the matter. I did, admittedly, find the podcast's coverage of this side of the story brief and limited, especially considering its unprecedented nature and potential legal consequences. Indeed, there were only a few brief mentions to the legal happenings and a few minutes at the very end, which felt rushed and not sufficiently extensive.

Similarly, the podcast also briefly touched on the fascinating psychological question of nature versus nurture, with Claire sharing how not only does she look like her biological family but shares personality traits with them, such as a passion for learning and reading. Yet it also fails to properly delve into this topic and give it more than a few moments of coverage. The story the podcast tells is, in itself, gripping enough and yet, I felt as if there was more scope to discuss other questions and issues it poses.

Nevertheless, the podcast did this unimaginable story justice, and I don't think Kleeman could have better portrayed the experiences of Joan, Tony, and Claire. The interviews do not feel like interviews but rather relaxed yet personal chats, where we get to witness true emotions, such as when Joan recounts her joy at Jessica's birth after having experienced two stillbirths and when Claire tells us how her first thought when meeting Joan was, 'we have the same eyes.'

If you are looking for a genuine telling of unprecedented consequences of the seemingly harmless at-home DNA test, then 'Switched' is definitely the right listen for you.