In 1967, Douglas Gowan discovered a deformed calf at a farm in South Wales. The environmental campaigner spent the next five decades trying to blow the whistle on the secret toxic waste dumping he discovered had been taking place for years at a nearby landfill site, and the devastating impact of these "forever chemicals" on the food chain. Gowan died in 2018, but his extensive files form the basis of the BBC's disturbing 10-part series, "Buried: The Last Witness". After receiving the tip-off, married investigative reporters Dan Ashby and Lucy Taylor teamed up with Welsh actor Michael Sheen to delve into Monsanto's illegal disposal of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) – fire-resistant chemicals used in everything from paint to paper before eventually being banned in the late 1970s. Before he died, Gowan had given a seven-hour taped interview to Sheen. The actor had come across an article mentioning Gowan's work online and was so shocked by the scandal (and lack of coverage) that he travelled to meet him to listen to his story. The Week

 

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