Channel 4 ADHD documentary sparks complaints: 'Grossly irresponsible'

To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video Up Next Previous Page Next Page Channel 4’s new documentary, The Great ADHD Myth, has left viewers bitterly divided with its ‘controversial’ content. The episode centres on full-time NHS Psychiatrist, Dr Max Pemberton, who is on a quest to find out if we ‘should really be giving children mind-altering drugs to treat’ the condition.

According to NHS data, as of May 2025, an estimated 2,498,000 people in England had ADHD (including those without a diagnosis) and, of those, 741,000 are children and young people aged five to 24. His investigation includes meeting with several medical experts ‘who are questioning’ the conventional narrative around ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder), including consultant child and adolescent psychiatrist Dr Sami Timimi and Prof Katya Rubia.

Elsewhere in the episode, he looks at the problems children are currently facing in their environment and speaks to young people diagnosed with the disorder. All boiling down to the question: is ADHD a ‘social construct?’ At one point, he meets with a child, Mason, who comes off the medication and whose mother, Shauna, says he is ‘funnier, happier, more of a character, more himself’, despite more behavioural issues. In a note at the end, it is confirmed Mason is back on medication.

Channel 4’s new production, The Great ADHD Myth, has sparked controversy (Picture: Minnow Productions) ‘As a psychiatrist, I’ve watched ADHD go from a diagnosis that was only occasionally made and after careful assessment, to one that is increasingly demanded and dispensed, and I wanted to understand why,’ Dr Pemberton told Channel 4.

During one stunt in the doc, he pays £1,200 for a single online assessment and is diagnosed with “combined” ADHD and provided with medication – despite insisting he doesn’t have it. The 60-minute documentary – which explores how diet and lifestyle changes could help those with ADHD, beyond medication – has already proved to be contentious as it’s hailed ‘thought-provoking’ by some and ‘shameful’ by others.

The Guardian’s four-star review dubbed it ‘the most controversial show of the year’. It’s helmed by Dr Max Pemberton, who, at one point, is himself diagnosed with ADHD (Picture: Minnow Productions) What is ADHD? NHS describes ADHD as ‘a condition that affects people’s behaviour. People with ADHD can seem restless, may have trouble concentrating, and may act on impulse.’

Is it often diagnosed in childhood, but in some cases isn’t recognised until adulthood. ‘Research has also identified a number of possible differences in the brains of people with ADHD when compared with those without the condition. Other factors suggested as potentially having a role in ADHD include:

being born prematurely (before the 37th week of pregnancy) having a low birth weight smoking or alcohol or drug abuse during pregnancy.’ For children, treatments include ‘appropriate educational support, advice and support for parents and affected children, alongside medicine, if necessary.’ For adults, ‘medicine is often the first treatment offered, although psychological therapies may also help.’

The review continued: ‘We live in a time when to question any prevailing orthodoxy will, in many cases, be met with an emotional outpouring. Casting any form of doubt on ADHD will absolutely not be the exception. But Pemberton answers his questions convincingly.’ Meanwhile, The Times called it a ‘provocative film against overdiagnosing’. It concluded: ‘Alarmist or alarming? Everyone watching will have had their view. To me, much of this hour felt convincing, or at least the start of a necessary discussion.’

What has Channel 4 said? A Channel 4 spokesperson told Metro that the network ‘has a remit to stimulate public debate and challenge the status quo, which includes offering a platform to a range of different views across the broadness of our slate. They continued: ‘Not everyone will agree with everything included in the programme and we acknowledge the strength of feeling that this subject evokes, however there is considerable public debate in this area and testing conventional thinking and exploring different ideas, as is the case with The ADHD Myth?, is a legitimate part of Channel 4’s remit.

‘Channel 4 has also aired a number of other programmes on the topic of ADHD, which cover a variety of other viewpoints including: Do You Have ADHD?, Johnny Vegas: Art, ADHD & Me and Sam Thompson: Is This ADHD?’ Mother and son, Shauna and Mason, are involved in the documentary (Picture: Minnow Productions)

On the flip side, The Irish Independent declared the show was ‘brazenly one-sided’ and ‘grossly irresponsible TV’. Viewers feel much the same. ‘Disappointingly one-sided documentary on ADHD from Ch4. …Where were the counterarguments, the medical experts that have a different view on ADHD & its treatments?’ PopCReview shared on X.

LisKallisto wrote they worried this was ‘going to do more harm to individuals with ADHD’ and Danny F echoed it appeared to be a ‘completely one-sided documentary that will negatively impact hundreds of thousands.’ Comment nowDid you watch the documentary? Share your thoughts in the comments belowComment Now

The documentary takes a particular interest in medication as part of tackling ADHD (Picture: Getty Images) Georgie said the network ‘should be absolutely ashamed for airing this about an already potentially vulnerable group of people’. Conversely, Julie Bingham said ‘It’s the most thought-provoking thing I have ever watched’, and Jo Hemmings called it ‘inspirational’.

The charity ADHD UK also shared an official response to the documentary, and encouraged people to ‘send Ofcom a complaint’. ‘We watched. We said we’d be fair. Here is our verdict. ‘ADHD is not a myth. It is not a social construct. And the programme’s own end credits told you what its 60 minutes wouldn’t: the boy at its centre went back on his medication, and his schoolwork improved. Their experiment disproved their conclusion. They aired their version anyway,’ the statement said.

The Great ADHD Myth is streaming on Channel 4 now.