The Russian arm.

The film opens as a soldier is shown eating and smoking a cigarette, wearing a prosthetic right arm known as the Russian arm. He describes how it has changed his life. Voiceover narration describes how new prostheses are helping those with missing limbs, particularly the upper limbs and a mechanic demonstrates how the Russian arm works. We see inside the workshop at Queen Mary's Hospital, Roehampton, where prosthetic limbs are made. Professor Trueta describes what the new limb production is likely to mean for the future, particularly for children born without arms and / or legs as a result of the drug thalidomide. At the Mary Marlborough Lodge, Nuffield Orthopaedic Hospital, children born with no arms and legs as a result of the drug thalidomide are shown being fitted with artificial arms. A reluctant little girl is strapped into a heavy corset which holds two Heidelberg Arms, a form of gas operated prosthesis which is very heavy and cumbersome. She tries to perform some simple tasks wearing it, including playing a small wooden toy piano but she protests repeatedly. An older boy is shown eating using prosthetic arms; he is very proficient. Trueta speaks again and talks about the future of children affected by thalidomide in the light of new technologies to come. He speaks very optimistically about the use of prosthetic limbs, particularly electronic prosthetic limbs. The film ends with a shot of the thalidomide girl outdoors in a specially designed swing.