'My new voice is a dream come true'

Christian Wilson, who has verbal dyspraxia, selected two voices to blend into his own after receiving 15 submissions from people

A man who uses text-to-speech software to communicate is celebrating his "dream come true" after receiving a new voice from two donors.

Christian Wilson, 22 and from Bromsgrove, has verbal dyspraxia, with which he finds difficulty in placing muscles in the correct position to produce speech.

Now though, Stephen Robotham, from Warwickshire, and Martin Brennan, of Birmingham, have had their voices combined to create just the Brummie/Warwickshire accent Mr Wilson was hoping for.

"It's a dream come true - when I first heard my new voice I cried for five minutes thinking about all the things I could do," he said.

"With this new voice I am able to do things I never felt confident to do using my old voice."

Mr Wilson said he was tired of sounding robotic and wanted a more natural voice inspired by his late father who was from Warwickshire but also a Birmingham City supporter.

"At the start of this journey, the aim was to sound like my dad, I think I've achieved that. My mum, when she first heard, it told me to say, 'I love you mum', over and over," Mr Wilson continued.

"With my new voice, I was able to read my nephew's favourite book to him and he enjoyed that... I have my own voice."

The voices were combined by engineers at Speak Unique to create his new way of speaking.

'Unlocking the potential'

Mr Brennan said he heard Mr Wilson's appeal on radio, and he immediately wanted to help him.

"Part of my role as a performance coach is unlocking the potential in others and this was a perfect way to help unlock Christian's voice, by donating mine."

He said hearing Mr Wilson's voice for the first time left him feeling "so emotional, but so honoured, to have met [Christian] and hear that voice".

Mr Robotham said someone's "unique voice" was integral to their character and he was proud to have been on the journey with Mr Wilson to find his.

"It sounds amazing, he has this unique voice and identity," he said.

"I'm happy we were able to help you find that," he told Mr Wilson.