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Programme Two
The World's Smallest Man and MeFrom one extreme to the other as this week Mark Dolan goes in search of the world's smallest man.
Following the death of 71cm Nelson de la Rosa in 2006, a number of possible contenders for the title of World's Smallest Man emerged. So Mark sets off to meet them, trying to discover what such a title might mean to them and their families.
Mark's journey first takes him to the village of Pokhara in Nepal, where a 16-year-old boy named Khagendra Thapa Magar lives. Khagendra, at 64cm, is certainly one of the smallest people in the world, but is he the very smallest? As Mark begins to learn more about Khagendra, he discovers that many people view the 16-year-old as some sort of deity or incarnation of God, and he is becoming so much of a celebrity that even when he goes to pray at a nearby Buddhist monastery there are monks keen to capture pictures of him on mobile phones. Being paraded around the country by his manager to make money for Khagendra and his family is one thing, but what price might the boy pay for the fame that may soon come his way if he is indeed crowned the smallest man in the world?
Mark's journey then takes him to Taiwan, to find a man he's read about named Lin Yu-Chih. Yu-Chih, whose height has been recorded at 67.5cm, has become something of a celebrity, and has written an autobiography and a song about his status as one of the world's smallest men. Having suffered from brittle bone disease since he was a child, Yu-Chih is very fragile and gets around in a motorised wheelchair.
The most exercise he can get is a game of Nintendo Wii tennis, which he plays with Mark as they get to know each other. It's during this visit that Mark discovers the dark side to Yu-Chih's fame, but finds Yu-Chih is a stronger man than his fragile body might suggest. As Mark's time with him comes to an end, Yu-Chih suggests Mark track down another contender for the title of world's smallest man – He Ping Ping.
Mark travels to Inner Mongolia. After unsuccessful attempts to contact He Ping Ping's family by phone, Mark travels to his home in a remote village to see if he can arrange a meeting face-to-face. But He Ping Ping's brother-in-law, who acts as his manager, demands Mark pay up before he can see the contender for the smallest man title. Parting with £400 – the equivalent of two years' income for a household in rural China – Mark finally meets He Ping Ping. A 19-year-old who plays poker and smokes two packets of cigarettes a day, He Ping Ping has the appearance of a man much older. He invites Mark to stay and celebrate Chinese New Year with him. At 74cm he's taller than Khagendra, but the Nepalese boy is still too young to be declared the World's Tallest. And with difficulties in measuring the actual size of Yu-Chih because of his deformed legs and brittle bones, He Ping Ping is technically the official World's Smallest Man. But does he want the title? Do Khagendra or Yu-Chih really seek it? Or is the title much more important to the people around them – the ones who stand to profit from the recognition?
