Louis Theroux Extreme Love - Autism

Louis Theroux is renowned for immersing himself in the stories he covers. Who can forget the time he bagged a role in a gay porn film for one documentary? Or when he slept in Jimmy Savile's mother's bed?

The reporter's latest strand, the Extreme Love series, takes on autism for its first instalment. In America, an autism spectrum disorder affects nearly one child in 100, but there is a ray of hope for dealing with many of the range of conditions.

In the first of two shows, Louis Theroux travels to New Jersey where he meets pupils at one of the world's most innovative autism schools.

At DLC Warren, he discovers how specialised intervention can help children such as Joey whose condition causes an inability to socialise and communicate.

The show also features 19-year-old Nicky who has made good progress at DLC Warren and is about to leave, but the prospect of change leads to increasing anxiety and erratic behaviour.

Brian is one of the most extreme cases featured. He's a severely autistic 20-year-old who ended up in residential care after setting fire to his house and attacking his mother.

Louis meets Brian's mother and finds out how the school is preparing him for an adult life.

Louis Theroux - Extreme Love: Autism, airs Thursday 19 April at 9pm on BBC2