The Repair Shop expert Amanda Middleditch issued a stern safety warning to one guest who brought in his beloved teddy – Po – which saw him through his health struggles as a child.
Jamie Gane entered the barn with his husky teddy bear, wanting help from Middleditch and Julie Tatchell after he began to fall apart.
Revealing the history behind Po, Gane noted: “I got Po when I was about six years old. As a child, I spent a lot of time in hospital. I had a chronic pain condition.
“So as a young child being in and out of hospital, it was quite sort of an isolating time. I remember kind of lying in hospital beds and just feeling really alone, and then suddenly I’d remember that Po was there.
“It started when I was about nine. I had a condition called complex regional pain syndrome and it effectively is a nerve pathway problem so it was a problem with my brain and my foot.
“Couldn’t wear anything on my foot, couldn’t get it wet, couldn’t wear shoes or socks, couldn’t do anything, even the wind would be really, really painful.
Amanda Middleditch and Julie Tatchell were stunned with the bears backstory
BBC
“It got to a point where I was a full-time wheelchair user. I was 16 years old, I had had 25 operations and I just reached the end of my tether and said, ‘I kind of want an amputation.
“I just want to live my life’. And eventually, it was done in 2016. As soon as I had my amputation that was the beginning of my life.”
Gane went on to reveal that after getting his life back and walking for the first time after 14 years, he got into obstacle racing – becoming the number one in the world.
Curious, Tatchell asked: “So how does Po fit into your life now? Obviously, you don’t need him in hospital anymore.”
Jamie Gane was left over the moon with the repair
BBC
Gane said: “No! He has been all over the world, been to America, and Germany, and we climbed Snowdon together. But unfortunately, now he is not in a state where he can go anywhere.
“I don’t feel comfortable travelling with him. He is at risk of falling apart. His neck has quite a bit hole and he’s missing quite a lot of his fur and you can see that he has been stitched several times.”
Taking Po away, the ladies got to work and left Tatchell to explain: “I did have a little idea. It worried me a little bit when Jamie said that he wanted him to travel to competitions with him.
“I’m still very worried about these areas, even when we have strengthened them from inside. How about, we make him a husky onesie!”
Middleditch loved the idea and got started on the piece of clothing right away, adding: “This will help protect him when he goes off on his adventures with Jamie.”
After working tirelessly to get the bear back to his former look, it was time for Gane to return to the barn where he stated: “I am a bit nervous now I am here, but I have missed him! I’m really looking forward to him being there again!”
The teddy bear restorers gave the bear a new life
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Revealing Po from underneath the cloth, Gane gasped in amazement before getting emotional: “He’s great, thank you so much! I don’t have to worry about hugging him anymore.
“He’s all right. Oh… He does very much look like Po, I have my little buddy back.”
Surprising Gane with the onesie, Middleditch urged: “He’s got his own little onesie. That will protect him when you’re holding him and handling him when he’s in your bag and all those things.”
