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Desert Island Discs — Personal Journals
Desert Island Discs

Eight tracks, a book and a luxury: what would you take to a desert island? Guests share the soundtrack of their lives.

Copyright: © (C) BBC 2023

Latest Episodes:

Warren Mitchell Nov 28, 1999

Show notes

Sue Lawley's guest this week is Warren Mitchell. Arthur Miller praised his portrayal of Willie Loman in Death of a Salesman. His King Lear and Shylock won critical acclaim. But he will always be remembered for Alf Garnett, the bigoted, bully from Till Death Us Do Part. He chooses eight records to take to the mythical island.

[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs]

Favourite track: Marie Theres I Made A Vow from Der Rosenkavalier by Richard Strauss Book: Master and Commander by Patrick O'Brien Luxury: Organ (from the Royal Albert Hall)

Clarissa Dickson Wright Nov 21, 1999

Show notes

Sue Lawley's guest this week is Clarissa Dickson Wright.

Born into a home where caviar was more common than fish paste, she has always been surrounded by fine food. Yet she came to cooking as a profession late in life, having first practised as a barrister. Finding success on television, she has recently had to come to terms with the death of her co host Jennifer Paterson and being just One Fat Lady.

[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs]

Favourite track: Rasputin by Boney M Book: Complete Works by Saki Luxury: Wind-up radio

William Gibson Nov 19, 1999

Show notes

This week the castaway on Desert Island Discs is William Gibson. Long before the existence of the Internet, he wrote about 'cyberspace', a boundless world reached only through computers. External space travel, to the Moon and Mars, had become old hat. By creating internal space, he breathed new life into science fiction. In conversation with Sue Lawley, he talks about his life and work and chooses eight records to take to the mythical island.

[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs]

Favourite track: (Are You) The One That I've Been Waiting For? by Nick Cave Book: Complete Works by Jorge Luis Borges Luxury: Junk yard

Willard White Nov 07, 1999

Show notes

Sue Lawley's guest this week is Willard White.

Teased as a child for his deep bass voice, it has made him one of the most popular opera stars today. Happy to sing Wagner or Gershwin, he's renowned for his ability to get under the skin of his roles, and audiences still remember how, as Porgy, he wept real tears at the loss of Bess.

[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs]

Favourite track: Piano Concerto No 21 in C Major- Andante by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Book: The Power of Positive Thinking by Norman Vincent Peale Luxury: Seeds

Ralph Fiennes Oct 31, 1999

Show notes

Sue Lawley's guest this week is Ralph Fiennes. His first Hollywood film role was as the Nazi concentration camp leader in Schindler's List, a part which, he says, had a profoundly disturbing effect on him. His latest project, playing the jaded hero Onegin, is the culmination of a long held desire to bring Pushkin's novel to the big screen.

[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs]

Favourite track: Mir Ist So Wunderbar by Ludwig van Beethoven Book: A la Recherche du Temps Perdu by Marcel Proust Luxury: Pen and limited supplies of ink and paper

Rita Dove Aug 22, 1999

Show notes

Sue Lawley's guest this week is the poet Rita Dove. The first African-American to become the US Poet Laureate, Rita Dove was brought up to believe that education was the key to the Great American Dream. As a child she would lose herself in the local library, but she learned the art of story-telling from her aunts as they swapped tales about the Great Depression, civil rights, and, of course, motherhood.

[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs]

Favourite track: Koln Concert by Keith Jarrett Book: 100 Years of Solitude by Gabriel Garcia Marquez Luxury: Ballroom and robotic dance instructor

Sir Roger Norrington Aug 15, 1999

Show notes

Sue Lawley's guest this week is the conductor Sir Roger Norrington. Known for conducting music at a cracking pace, he argues that it's the way the great composers would have played it. Music should be fun, he says, it should entertain - and never, ever, be pompous. He chooses eight records to take to the mythical island.

[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs]

Favourite track: Brandenburg Concerto No.6 by Johann Sebastian Bach Book: Complete Works by Thomas Hardy Luxury: Chocolate

Patricia Routledge Aug 08, 1999

Show notes

Sue Lawley's castaway is the actress Patricia Routledge.

Once voted the nation's favourite actress for her television roles as Hyacinth Bucket and Hetty Wainthrop, she has also been successful in the theatre, in musicals, and of course in Alan Bennett's monologues Talking Heads. In conversation with Sue Lawley, she talks about her life and work and chooses eight records to take to the mythical island.

[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs]

Favourite track: String Quintet in C Major - Adagio by Franz Schubert Book: The collected works by John Donne Luxury: Tea service with tea

Rick Stein Aug 01, 1999

Show notes

The castaway on this week's Desert Island Discs is Rick Stein.

When the police closed his discotheque down because of too many fights on a Saturday night, all he had left was his restaurant licence. Living by the sea, he took the obvious option and opened a fish restaurant. Today he is Britain's best sea food chef and a passionate advocate for the pleasures of cooking and eating fish. In conversation with Sue Lawley, he talks about his life and work and chooses eight records to take to the mythical island.

[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs]

Favourite track: Concerto for Flute, Harp & Orchestra in C Major by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Book: Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy Luxury: Thai fish sauce

Rod Steiger Jul 25, 1999

Show notes

Sue Lawley's guest this week is Rod Steiger. He talks about The Method, Marlon Brando and the depression which dogged him for nearly a decade. And he confesses why he couldn't go to the desert island without Frank Sinatra.

[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs]

Favourite track: Send in the Clowns by Sarah Vaughn Book: Complete book of poetry by e e cummings Luxury: Self-contained external electric fan

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