1. Warning Signs

2. Wonder drugs


3. Dopamine Hits


4. Big Pharma, Big Secret


5. Restless


6. Chasing Losses


16 February 2026


When Freddie's daddy Bill is detected with Parkinson's, his medication gives him a brand-new lease of life. He starts ticking things off his retiree pail list - travelling, skydiving, golf.


But then Freddie notifications that his formerly practical daddy has actually begun behaving .


BBC Investigations correspondent Noel Titheradge has actually spent more than a year speaking with people whose behaviour changed drastically after taking a classification of prescription drugs called dopamine agonists.


These drugs enhance dopamine activity in the brain - they were recommended more than 1.5 million times in the UK in 2015 to deal with Parkinson's illness and other movement disorders.


But they have well established adverse effects - around 1 in 6 people who take them develop impulse control disorders, which can consist of hypersexuality, binge eating, compulsive gaming and shopping.


If these adverse effects have been learnt about for years, why weren't some clients and their families properly warned or kept an eye on?