Desert Island Discs

Sue Lawley's castaway is one of the country's favourite actresses Prunella Scales. She's most easily recognised as Sybil Fawlty, wife of John Cleese, the manic hotelkeeper in the television series Fawlty Towers, but it's a role which represents a very small part of all she's done. Since her debut in Bristol 40 years ago, she has never been out of work, and recently she's scaled new heights with her portrayal of the Queen in Alan Bennett's A Question of Attribution. She'll be talking to Sue Lawley about the problems associated with playing such a well-known and much-loved figure, and also about the rest of her long and successful career.[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs] Favourite track: Ruht Wohl Ihr Heiligen Gebeine by Johann Sebastian Bach Book: Complete works in German by William Shakespeare and The Bible in Russian and a Russian dictionary Luxury: A huge tapestry kit

The castaway in Desert Island Discs this week is the country's most senior serving judge Lord Taylor of Gosforth. Recently appointed the Lord Chief Justice of England, he'll be discussing the public's perception of the English legal system, following the recent series of miscarriages of justice; and also, his plans to open up areas of the law and to rid the system of some of its more antiquated trappings, such as wigs and robes. He'll also be talking to Sue Lawley about how, as an accomplished musician, he might well have become a professional pianist rather than the Lord Chief Justice.[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs] Favourite track: Symphony No 41 in C K 551 by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Book: War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy Luxury: Piano

The castaway in Desert Island Discs this week is television executive Michael Grade. As a member of the famous Grade dynasty, he grew up in the showbiz atmosphere of London's West End. He'll be talking to Sue Lawley about being brought up by his formidable grandmother after his mother left him when he was very young; and about his career, which has taken him from Daily Mirror sports journalist to Hollywood producer, to the Controller of BBC1 and to his present position as the Chief Executive of Channel 4.[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs] Favourite track: Beim Schlafengehen Four Last Songs by Richard Strauss Book: The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame Luxury: Sports results

The castaway in Desert Island Discs this week is rugby player Will Carling. He'll be talking to Sue Lawley about how, as a six year old, he dreamed of captaining England, and then, having achieved his ambition at the startlingly early age of 22, he went on to take his team to the final of the World Cup and to win the Grand Slam for the last two years running.[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs] Favourite track: What A Wonderful World by Louis Armstrong Book: The Hobbit by J R R Tolkien Luxury: Flotation tank

This week's castaway in Desert Island Discs is Henrietta, Marchioness of Tavistock. She'll be talking to Sue Lawley about, amongst other things, her idyllic childhood, her passion for breeding horses and explaining why she initially refused to live with her husband in his family's ancestral home, Woburn Abbey.Favourite track: Cavalleria Rusticana Intermezzo by Pietro Mascagni Book: History of the English-Speaking Peoples by Sir Winston Churchill Luxury: Triangular pillow

The castaway in Desert Island Discs this week is the distinguished tenor Anthony Rolfe Johnson. He'll be talking to Sue Lawley about his Methodist upbringing in the East End of London, his years as a farmer in Sussex and explaining why he was 29 years old before he took his enormous talent for singing seriously.[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs] Favourite track: Gloria In Excelis Deo by Johann Sebastian Bach Book: Welsh-English Dictionary Luxury: Parquet floor and tap shoes

The castaway on Desert Island Discs this week is art historian Sir Ernst Gombrich. His most famous book, The Story of Art, was written more than 40 years ago, yet it remains the world's most popular introduction to great artists and their work.He'll be talking to Sue Lawley about his life and work recalling his first impressions of England to which he came from Vienna in 1936, his time translating German propaganda broadcasts for the BBC during the Second World War and explaining why he prefers to help people appreciate art rather than own it himself.[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs] Favourite track: Divertimento For Violin In E Flat by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Book: Goethe's Poems by Johann Wolfgang Goethe Luxury: Bath tub with an endless supply of hot water

The castaway in Desert Island Discs this week is Lady Soames, historian and only surviving child of Winston Churchill. A distinguished author and now Chairman of the Board of the National Theatre, she'll be talking to Sue Lawley about her extraordinary life - recalling her blissful childhood spent at Chartwell, the family's country home. She'll also be talking about the many state visits she made with her father and her husband - and remembering a conversation she had with General de Gaulle, who gave her lots of good advice on the best places to walk dogs in Paris.[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs] Favourite track: Symphony No 6 In F Major Op 68 Pastoral by Ludwig van Beethoven Book: Memories From Beyond The Grave by Chateaubriand Luxury: Supply of fine Havana cigars

The castaway in Desert Island Discs this week is philosopher and historian Sir Isaiah Berlin. Born in Latvia 80 years ago, he was brought to England by his family when he was ten years old and barely able to speak English. He is now internationally regarded as one of the most brilliant scholars of his age.He'll be talking to Sue Lawley about his early years in Russia, his commitment to, and respect for, this country, and explaining the philosophical implications of liberalism - his guiding principle for 60 years.[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs] Favourite track: String Quartet in C Sharp Minor Op 131 by Ludwig van Beethoven Book: Works, prose and verse by Aleksandr Pushkin Luxury: Large armchair stacked with cushions

The castaway in Desert Island Discs this week is entrepreneur, newspaperman and public servant Jocelyn Stevens. He'll be talking to Sue Lawley about his love of life - he works in London and spends his weekends in Gstaad - and his impressive career: he revitalised Queen Magazine, launched Radio Caroline, saved the Evening Standard and served as Managing Director of Express Newspapers.[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs] Favourite track: Siegfried Funeral March by Richard Wagner Book: Other Men's Flowers by Lord A P Wavell Luxury: One mile stretch of the River Test in Hampshire

The castaway in Desert Island Discs this week is geneticist Dr Steve Jones. Eminent in his field, he's made a lifelong study of the evolution of the snail, the reproduction of the fruit fly and the sex life of the slug. He'll be talking to Sue Lawley about the study of genetics, reflecting on its disreputable past, analysing the problems of genetic engineering and discussing the research that inspired his recent Reith Lectures, particularly the evidence that proves that most of the world has descended from 10 Africans.[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs] Favourite track: The Fossils by Camille Saint-Saëns Book: Valley of Bones by Anthony Powell Luxury: Stuffed body of the Minister of Education

The castaway in Desert Island Discs this week is singer-songwriter Elvis Costello. Widely regarded as one of the best British songwriters of recent years, he comes from a musical family - both his father and grandfather were trumpeters.He'll be talking to Sue Lawley about his eclectic taste in music, comparing classical singers to pop stars, and choosing eight records, not for pleasure, but to provide sustenance on his desert island.[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs] Favourite track: Vivace String Quartet in F Major by Ludwig van Beethoven Book: Selected Works by James Thurber Luxury: Upright piano

The castaway in Desert Island Discs this week is Sir Roger Bannister, the man who first ran the four-minute mile. Now an eminent neurologist, he is as proud of his research during the last 15 years into the effects of low blood pressure, as he is of his achievements on the athletics field.Master of Pembroke College, he's taken up sculling, and with a night school qualification in navigation as well, he'll be telling Sue Lawley how he plans to escape from the desert island.[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs] Favourite track: Violin Concerto in D Major by Ludwig van Beethoven Book: Anthology of Russian, American & English Stories Luxury: Solar-powered receiver to receive Radio 4

In memory of Robbie Coltrane. The actor was Sue Lawley's castaway in Desert Island Discs in 1992. He first became noticed in the early 1980s in television programmes such as The Comic Strip, The Young Ones and Saturday Night Live. After that he became an international star. He talked to Sue Lawley about, amongst other things, his love of Scotland, his passion for vintage cars and his fear of live performances.[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs] Favourite track: Letter From America by The Proclaimers Book: Lady In The Lake by Raymond Chandler Luxury: Pencil and paper

This week's Desert Island Discs castaway is writer JG Ballard. Since the early 1960s, he has been well-known as a science fiction writer. But more recently he has reached an even wider audience with his autobiographical novels Empire of the Sun and The Kindness of Women.He'll be talking to Sue Lawley about his extraordinary life - his childhood in Shanghai, his adolescence spent in a Japanese prisoner-of-war camp and how, after the sudden and tragic death of his wife, he raised his three young children alone.[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs] Favourite track: Falling In Love Again by Marlene Dietrich Book: Moby Dick by Herman Melville Luxury: Unicycle

Few people will be surprised to hear that the castaway in this week's special 50th anniversary edition of Desert Island Discs is the Prime Minister John Major. He'll be talking to Sue Lawley about his very happy childhood years, his more traumatic adolescence and his transformation into the perfect Conservative parliamentary candidate. He'll also be discussing his love of music and books, and revealing the luxury that was a surprise even to Sue Lawley.[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs] Favourite track: O Giusto Cielo (Lucia Di Lammermoor) by Gaetano Donizetti Book: The Small House At Allington by Anthony Trollope Luxury: Oval cricket ground replica and bowling machine

The castaway in Desert Island Discs this week is one of Britain's most well-known church leaders, the Right Reverend David Jenkins, the Lord Bishop of Durham. At the age of 60, after a career spent mainly as an academic theologian, he was catapulted into controversy: his views on the virgin birth and the resurrection caused outrage, and his opinions on the divisions between rich and poor infuriated politicians.He'll be talking to Sue Lawley about his surprise at the controversies he caused, and the faith which helped him to remain steadfast through the storm.[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs] Favourite track: The Sanctus (Harmoniemesse) by Franz Joseph Haydn Book: Complete Sherlock Holmes by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle Luxury: Binoculars

The castaway in this week's Desert Island Discs is actor, writer and director Steven Berkoff. Irreverent, energetic and compelling, his work has brought him an international reputation and his last West End production, Kvetch, was voted comedy of the year. He'll be talking to Sue Lawley about his love of drama and why it changed his life, his short spell in Hollywood playing archetypal villains and his time spent in Paris studying mime.[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs] Favourite track: Koyaanisqatsi by Philip Glass Book: A gardening book Luxury: Piano

The castaway on Desert Island Discs this week is actor Gorden Kaye. Lovers of British situation comedy knew him a long time ago as a familiar supporting figure in It Ain't Half Hot, Mum and Are You Being Served?, but for most people he has only one part: that of the French cafe owner Rene Artois in 'Allo 'Allo. He'll be talking to Sue Lawley about his childhood years in Yorkshire, his love of comedy and natural talent for it, and the loyalty of his audience through good and bad times.[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs] Favourite track: Hallelujah Chorus by George Frideric Handel Book: This Is Your Life by Gorden Kaye Luxury: A clock given to him for turning on the Oxford lights

The castaway on Desert Island Discs this week is writer Sue Townsend. Her most famous creation is Adrian Mole, and, in many respects, his life mirrors her own: like her hero, she comes from a poor but not deprived background and always nursed a secret ambition to be a writer. She'll be talking to Sue Lawley about her life and work and carefully selecting eight records which remind her of some of the most significant events in her life.[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs] Favourite track: Violin Concerto in D by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky Book: Lucky Jim by Kingsley Amis Luxury: Swimming pool of champagne

The castaway on Desert Island Discs this week is a man who, for the past 26 years, has earned his living by helping to alter the industrial landscape of northern Britain - steeplejack Fred Dibnah. Renowned for his philosophising as much as for his engineering expertise, he'll be talking to Sue Lawley about his life, which has been spent swinging from factory chimneys and wrestling behind the wheels of steam engines.[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs] Favourite track: The Power Of Love by Jennifer Rush Book: Bound volumes of the Engineer magazine Luxury: Steamroller

The castaway in Desert Island Discs this week is the film critic Dilys Powell. She began reviewing films for The Sunday Times in 1939, and since then her forthright and pithy comments have served as a natural accompaniment to the pleasures of going to the cinema. Today, at the age of 90, she still reviews three or four films a week and she'll be talking to Sue Lawley about her receipt of what she describes as "a very liberal education" from her lifelong devotion to the big screen.[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs] Favourite track: I Remember It Well (from Gigi) by Honore and Grandmama Book: Oliver Twist by Charles Dickens Luxury: Mouth organ with instructions

The castaway on Desert Island Discs this week is scientist James Lovelock. The son of a South London gasman, he'll be talking to Sue Lawley about his passion for science and recalling some of the experiences he had whilst working on the American space programme, which eventually led him to invent the Gaia Theory - a theory which, amongst other things, argues that the human race is not necessary for the planet's survival.[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs] Favourite track: Et Incarnatus Est by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Book: The Golden Treasury by Francis Palgrave Luxury: Pen and paper

The castaway in Desert Island Discs this week is the man who brought the Folies Bergere to Britain and ran the Talk of the Town in its heyday - the theatrical impresario Lord Delfont. He'll be talking to Sue Lawley about his extraordinary life: he was raised in the East End of London, his family having settled there after escaping the pogroms in the Ukraine, and is now, at 82, the president of his own leisure corporation; worth £450 million.[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs] Favourite track: My Heart And I by Carole Lynne Book: 1515-1985 British Music Theatre Book Luxury: Cigars and matches

The castaway in this week's Desert Island Discs is the historian EP Thompson. As a lifelong peace campaigner, Edward Thompson enjoys making history as much as writing about it. He'll be talking to Sue Lawley about his disillusionment with the Communist Party, how and why he founded the magazine which has become The New Left Review, and enjoying his carefully-selected eight records.[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs] Favourite track: Carolan's Receipt by Derek Bell Book: Songs of Innocence and Experience by William Blake Luxury: Typewriter and paper

The castaway in this week's Desert Island Discs is the American actor Alan Alda. The son of a vaudeville artist, he shot to fame portraying the wise-cracking, womanising Hawkeye in the television series M.A.S.H. He'll be talking to Sue Lawley about the part that transformed his life and his initial reluctance to accept it, his childhood years in the burlesque houses of America, and explaining why, despite being a millionaire, he continues to work.[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs] Favourite track: Weekend In The Country by Stephen Sondheim Book: Robinson Crusoe by Daniel Defoe Luxury: Italian pasta

The castaway in Desert Island Discs this week is Elizabeth Esteve-Coll, Director of one of Britain's most famous museums, the V & A. She'll be talking to Sue Lawley about her career at the V & A and the controversy she caused within her first year of office. She'll also be recalling how, at 19, she abandoned her university career and married a Spanish sea captain with whom she sailed the world.[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs] Favourite track: Christus Natus Est (Mode I V) by The Choir Of Monks Of Saint Pierre De Solemes Book: The Four Quartets by T S Eliot Luxury: Expensive perfumed hand cream

The castaway on Desert Island Discs this week is the film director John Schlesinger. Like many other British filmmakers, he learnt his craft at the BBC but soon moved on to directing feature films including A Kind of Loving, Far From the Madding Crowd and the Oscar-winning Midnight Cowboy. He'll be talking to Sue Lawley about his long and successful career, the controversy he caused with his films Darling and Sunday Bloody Sunday and choosing eight records to take to his island exile.[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs] Favourite track: Zueignung by Richard Strauss Book: Dictonary of English Quotations Luxury: Magimix (battery-powered )

The castaway in Desert Island Discs this week is the Pakistani cricketer Imran Khan. Educated at Oxford and dividing his time between England and Pakistan, his fame extends well beyond the cricket field. He'll be talking to Sue Lawley about his faith - he is a devout Muslim - the constant speculation surrounding his love life and how his mother's death from cancer dramatically changed his life.[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs] Favourite track: Us And Them by Pink Floyd Book: Bang-E Dara by Iqbal Luxury: Shotgun and clay pigeon trap

The castaway in Desert Island Discs this week is the photographer David Bailey. Born and bred in the East End of London, he took the fashion business by storm in the 1960s - discovering, photographing and often marrying some of the world's most beautiful women. He'll be talking to Sue Lawley about success in the 1960s, the first time he saw Jean Shrimpton and his desire to carry on working, like his hero Picasso, until he's 90.[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs] Favourite track: Dance Of The Earth (Rite Of Spring) by Igor Stravinsky Book: Vioces of Silence by Malraux Luxury: Nelson's Column

The castaway in Desert Island Discs this week is the conductor Klaus Tennstedt. When, at 45, he defected from East Germany, he was virtually unknown in the West. But three years later, after conducting the Boston Symphony Orchestra, he was acclaimed as an international maestro. He'll be talking to Sue Lawley about his impressive musical career, his defection from East Germany and his battle against cancer of the vocal chords.[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs] Favourite track: Symphony No 6 In A Minor Finale by Gustav Mahler Book: Dr. Faustus by Thomas Mann Luxury: Mountain bike

The castaway in Desert Island Discs this week is one of the most important figures in British industry today - the Director-General of the CBI John Banham. He'll be talking to Sue Lawley about his impressive and varied career, his passion for sailing and how he very nearly lost his life during the Fastnet Race of 1979.[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs] Favourite track: Sanctus by Gabriel Fauré Book: The collected works by A E Houseman Luxury: Cigars and matches

The castaway in Desert Island Discs this week is the writer Bernice Rubens. She'll be talking to Sue Lawley about her childhood with musically-gifted brothers and sister, and how, despite having written 17 novels - one of them won the Booker prize, another was also shortlisted - she still sees herself as merely a successful novelist who failed to become a musician.[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs] Favourite track: String Quintet C Major Second Movement by Franz Schubert Book: Poems For Joy & Sermons For Solace by John Donne Luxury: Daughter's painting

The castaway in Desert Island Discs this week is the architect Maxwell Hutchinson. Unafraid of controversy, he attacked Prince Charles' criticisms of contemporary architecture - a move which secured him presidency of the Royal Institute of British Architects. He'll be talking to Sue Lawley about his love of tower blocks and requiem masses, of 17th-century cottages and his desire to write a number one hit.[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs] Favourite track: First Symphony In A Flat Minor Slow Movement by Edward Elgar Book: The Four Quartets by T S Eliot Luxury: Guitar

The castaway in Desert Island Discs this week is playwright Alan Bleasdale. Often controversial, and always funny, Bleasdale's work focuses on life in Liverpool, a city he loves and whose characters people his most famous plays - Boys from the Blackstuff and GBH. He'll be talking to Sue Lawley about his intense love of family, his work and, as a self-confessed hypochondriac, he will be revealing some of his fears.[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs] Favourite track: Shelter From The Storm by Bob Dylan Book: Catch 22 by Joseph Heller Luxury: Nail clippers

The castaway in Desert Island Discs this week will be the lawyer and politician Lord Shawcross. As Attorney General in the Labour government of 1945, he was responsible for leading the British prosecution case at the war crimes tribunal in Nuremberg.He'll be talking to Sue Lawley about the atmosphere in that courtroom, his reasons for leaving the Labour Party and his unconventional upbringing. Now 89 years old, he'll also be recalling the days when he was known as 'handsome Hartley Shawcross', the best-looking man in public life.[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs] Favourite track: Some Enchanted Evening by Ezio Pinza Book: They Way We Live Now by Anthony Trollope Luxury: CD player / solar battery-powered radio

The castaway in Desert Island Discs this week is Ron Todd - leader of Britain's largest trade union, the Transport and General Workers' Union. He'll be talking to Sue Lawley about his childhood as the son of a Walthamstow street-market trader, his rejection of Catholicism and conversion to socialism and about how he feels about the modern Labour Party and the role of trade unions in the 1990s.[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs] Favourite track: Black And White Rag by Emmy Todd Book: The collected works by Robert Burns Luxury: Piano

The castaway in Desert Island Discs this week is responsible for many of the images which grace our television screens and billboards. He is advertising man John Hegarty, and he'll be talking to Sue Lawley about some of the slogans and scenarios he has created - from Vorsprung durch Technik to the Levi's advertisement which features the hero removing his trousers in a laundrette.[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs] Favourite track: Stand By Me by John Lennon Book: The Crock of Gold by James Stephens Luxury: Clarinet

The castaway in Desert Island Discs this week is the novelist and critic A S Byatt. Winner of the 1990 Booker prize for her novel 'Possession' - the story of a clandestine romance between two Victorian poets - she'll be talking to Sue Lawley about the isolation of her school days as a highly academic child, the release of university life at Cambridge and her subsequent life at the forefront of the British literary world.[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs] Favourite track: Jetzt Fand Ich's by Richard Wagner Book: A La Recherche Du Temps Perdu by Marcel Proust Alternative to Bible: King James Bible Luxury: Large filing cabinet full of A4 paper & pens

The castaway in Desert Island Discs this week is poet and playwright Derek Walcott. Recent winner of the WH Smith award, and described by his admirers as one of the greatest contemporary exponents of the English language, he'll be talking to Sue Lawley about his early life in St Lucia - a place he frequently returns to, when not at his post of Professor of Poetry at Boston University.[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs] Favourite track: You Can Call Me Al by Paul Simon Book: Ulysses by James Joyce Luxury: Carton of cigarettes

The castaway in Desert Island Discs this week has been described as the 'enfant terrible' of the restaurant world. Marco Pierre White opened his first restaurant at the age of 27, where he established a reputation both for extraordinary culinary expertise and for outrageous behaviour.He'll be talking to Sue Lawley about the route which took him from the Leeds council estate where he was born nearly 30 years ago, to the moment when he became the youngest chef to be awarded two Michelin stars at his restaurant, Harvey's.[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs] Favourite track: A Good Year For The Roses by Elvis Costello Book: Ma Gastronomie by Fernand Point Luxury: Picture of his daughter

The castaway in Desert Island Discs this week is a politician who is seen in many quarters as the Labour Party's strongest weapon in their battles with the government - John Smith, Shadow Chancellor of the Exchequer. A man of great resilience, he'll be telling Sue Lawley why he still loves politics in spite of the frustration of his years in opposition, his having a heart attack two and a half years ago and having to live for much of the time away from his beloved homeland of Scotland. [Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs] Favourite track: The Marriage Of Figaro - Final Aria by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Book: Anthology of Poems Luxury: Case of champagne

The castaway in Desert Island Discs this week is John Simpson. Recently honoured by the Royal Television Society as Journalist of the Year, he'll be talking about his life covering foreign affairs for the BBC. In that capacity, he has reported on most of the momentous upheavals of the last few years - from Tiananmen Square to the release of Nelson Mandela, from the fall of Ceausescu to the collapse of the Berlin Wall.More recently, he was one of the very few journalists to stay on in Baghdad when the Allies began their bombardment of Iraq. He'll be talking to Sue Lawley about his time there, as well as his other - more frightening rather than thrilling - experiences as the BBC's Foreign Affairs Editor.[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs] Favourite track: Il N'y A Plus D'Apres by Juliette Greco Book: A title in French by Marcel Proust Luxury: Flute

The castaway in Desert Island Discs this week is an author and adventurer. Now 93 years old, Cecil Lewis will be talking to Sue Lawley about his extraordinary career, embracing his time as a fighter pilot during the First World War, his brush with the Red Baron, and later how he helped Lord Reith set up the BBC, which he then left for Hollywood where he was to win an Oscar for his screenplay of George Bernard Shaw's Pygmalion.[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs] Favourite track: Adagio No 5 by Gustav Mahler Book: Sagittarius Surviving by C S Lewis Luxury: Fax machine

The castaway on Desert Island Discs this week is Dame Shirley Porter, who, as Lady Porter, was the flamboyant leader of the ruling Conservative Group at Westminster City Council - a post she held from 1983 until she stepped down in April 1991. She'll be telling Sue Lawley about what it was that made her go into politics at the age of 40, about her campaign for cleanliness on the streets of the capital and about her plans for the future.[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs] Favourite track: The Ode To Joy (Symphony No 9) by Ludwig van Beethoven Book: SAS Survival Manual Luxury: Large Swiss Army knife

Chief Rabbi Elect Dr Jonathan Sacks is the castaway on Desert Island Discs this week. This avowedly 'unconventional' future leader of Britain's Jews was brought up in an Orthodox Jewish household but went to Church of England schools and wanted to be an accountant before deciding that his life's work lay in his faith. Rabbi Sacks reveals how he gained, and many years later lost, his beard as well as what he hopes to achieve in his new role.[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs] Favourite track: Tzomoh Lecho Nafshi by The Lubarvitches Chorus Book: The Talmud Luxury: Large supply of pencils

The castaway in Desert Island Discs this week will be the industrialist Lord King of Wartnaby, Chairman of Babcock International and of British Airways. He recalls for Sue Lawley, among other things, his early beginnings in the engineering industry, an unfortunate incident with a small plane he once owned, and what it was which made him want to take over an ailing airline more than 10 years ago.[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs] Favourite track: Concerto in A Minor by Edvard Grieg Book: Brewer's Dictionary of Phrase and Fable Luxury: Supply of cigars and matches

Sue Lawley's castaway is writer Naomi Mitchison.Favourite track: Kishmull's Galley by Kenneth McKellar and Orchestra Book: Book of Modern Poetry Luxury: Endless supply of writing materials

This week's castaway in Desert Island Discs is the entertainer Marti Caine. Although her public life is one as comedienne, television presenter, star of a sit-com series, singer and glamorous pantomime performer, Marti Caine's private life is one that is very different. Her father died when she was seven, she was taken into care before she was 10, her first marriage broke up, and then, about four years ago, she was diagnosed as suffering from cancer of the lymph glands. She talks about the way in which she's coped with all these things and the way her sense of humour helped her through.[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs] Favourite track: Thanksong by Dave Grusin Book: A DIY manual Luxury: Do-it-yourself solar-powered kit

The castaway in Desert Island Discs this week is the industrialist and ex-president of the CBI Sir Trevor Holdsworth. He'll be talking to Sue Lawley about his time at the helm of the giant engineering firm Guest, Keen and Nettleford and his recent involvement with British Satellite Broadcasting - BSB - as well as some of his earlier brushes with history.[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs] Favourite track: Vocalise by Sergei Rachmaninov Book: Collected Plays by J B Priestley Luxury: Upright piano