TV documentary explores if Turner was neurodiverse

He is widely regarded as England's greatest painter, but despite his extraordinary output, elements of JMW Turner's personality have remained a mystery.

- Nadia Khomami

Now, a new BBC documentary delves into Turner's 37,000 sketches, drawings and watercolours to build an unprecedented psychological portrait - one that raises the possibility that his singular vision was shaped by childhood trauma, and maybe neurodivergence.

Among figures helping to unlock the artist's life story in Turner: The Secret Sketchbooks, are Timothy Spall (who portrayed the artist in Mike Leigh's film Mr Turner), theart-ists Tracey Emin and John Akomfrah, the Rolling Stones' Ronnie Wood, the psychoanalyst Dr Orna Guralnik, and the naturalist Chris Packham.

"It's impossible to provide retrospective diagnoses, so we can only offer conjecture," said Packham. "But if Turner did have significant neurodiverse traits, I imagine they would have had quite a profound impact on his art and thinking."