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BBC Radio 4


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


Desert Island Discs

Kirsty Young's castaway is the actor Martin Shaw. He has been one of Britain's most popular stage and television actors of the past 40 years and has taken on more than 100 different roles. Yet Martin has spent half a lifetime moving out of the shadow of one of his earliest parts: Ray Doyle in The Professionals.

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

Favourite track: Surely He Hath Borne Our Griefs by George Frideric Handel
Book: Post Captain in the Aubrey/Maturin series by Patrick O'Brien
Luxury: A synthesiser to make up my own music.

Martin Shaw

Kirsty Young's castaway is the food writer and cook Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall. Famous for making paté out of placenta and dining on such delicacies as squirrel and rook in his TV programmes, he has made a name for himself as a cook on the wild side. So perhaps it is not surprising that his first ambition was not to spend his life inside a kitchen but in the great outdoors because, he says, he 'wanted to be David Attenborough'.

A stint in the renowned River Cafe in London, however, set him on his way to establishing his own waterside haven for food lovers, his River Cottage in Dorset. From there, he has followed his passion for the environment by campaigning for ethically-produced food, including championing a creature not normally given time on our small screens - the humble supermarket chicken.

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

Favourite track: Love Reign O'er Me by The Who
Book: Moby Dick by Herman Melville
Luxury: Full set of Scuba gear.

Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall

Malala Yousafzai is an activist who was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize when she was 17 - becoming the youngest winner in its history. Today she is known globally for her human rights advocacy and her ongoing campaign to ensure all children have equal access to education.

She was born in the Swat Valley in northern Pakistan where her father Ziauddin was a prominent activist who believed boys and girls should sit side by side in the classroom and co-founded a school which Malala attended. After the Taliban began to establish its presence in the Valley, day-to-day life became synonymous with danger and fear – people were taken from their homes and killed for speaking out against the regime. Education for girls was forbidden and schools were shut down or bombed.

In 2009 Malala began writing an anonymous blog for BBC Urdu in which she spoke out about what was happening in Swat Valley. This made her a target. In 2012 she was shot by a Taliban gunman as she sat on the school bus. Two girls sitting alongside her were also shot. What Malala calls ‘the incident’ generated headlines around the world. Her injuries were severe and she was airlifted to the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Birmingham. After a long and painful recovery she settled in Birmingham with her family.

Now 23, Malala graduated from the University of Oxford last year and continues to campaign globally for girls’ education through the Malala Fund which she co-founded with her father. 

DISC ONE: Rang by Rahat Fateh Ali Khan & Amjad Sabri 
DISC TWO: Shinwari Lawangeena by Zarsanga 
DISC THREE: Never Say Never by Justin Bieber 
DISC FOUR: Hum Dekhen Ge by Iqbal Bano 
DISC FIVE: All I Ask of You by Sarah Brightman and Steve Barton
DISC SIX: Kaari Kaari by Qurat Ul Ain Balouch
DISC SEVEN: Love Always Comes as a Surprise by Peter Asher 
DISC EIGHT: Bibi Sherina by Sardar Ali Takkar 
 
BOOK CHOICE: Plato: Complete Works
LUXURY ITEM: Lip balm
CASTAWAY'S FAVOURITE: Hum Dekhen Ge by Iqbal Bano 

Presenter: Lauren Laverne
Producer: Paula McGinley

Malala Yousafzai, activist

Lauren Laverne talks to Ian Wright in an episode first broadcast in 2020.

Ian Wright is a former professional footballer and now a football pundit on TV and radio. He began his career at Crystal Palace before moving to Arsenal where he became their highest goal scorer of all time, a record only surpassed eight years later by Thierry Henry.

Born to a Jamaican couple in south-east London, Ian grew up with his mother and step-father. His biological father had left the family when Ian was under two years old. Things at home were difficult and Ian spent as much time as possible outside playing football.

At his primary school a teacher, Mr Pigden, took him under his wing and Ian would later credit him with changing his life. He left his secondary school at the age of 14 to get a job. Although he took part in trials for many professional football clubs as a teenager, he was never selected. He continued to play for amateur sides. By the age of 21, he had three children to provide for, so when Crystal Palace came calling in 1985, he turned them down three times before accepting a two-week trial, followed by a three-month contract. His football career had finally begun.

After impressing as a forward at Palace, he was bought by Arsenal for a record fee in 1991. He was called up to the England squad the same year and would go on to collect 33 caps. He spent his last couple of years in professional football at a number of clubs around the country and in total, he played 581 league games, scoring 387 goals for seven clubs in England and Scotland. Since his retirement from football in 2000, he has had a career as a pundit on both TV and radio.

He has eight children and has been happily married to his second wife, Nancy, since 2011.

DISC ONE: The Marriage of Figaro: Duettino - Sull'aria by Orchestra of the Deutsche Oper Berlin, composed by Lorenzo Da Ponte and Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
DISC TWO: Looking For You by Kirk Franklin
DISC THREE: River Deep Mountain High by Ike and Tina Turner
DISC FOUR: Redemption Song by Bob Marley & The Wailers
DISC FIVE: Mysteries of the World by MSFB
DISC SIX: Endlessly by Randy Crawford
DISC SEVEN: Crown by Stormzy
DISC EIGHT: Just Fine by Mary J Blige

BOOK CHOICE: The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime by Mark Haddon
LUXURY ITEM: A seven iron golf club and golf balls
CASTAWAY'S FAVOURITE: Endlessly by Randy Crawford

Presenter: Lauren Laverne
Producer: Cathy Drysdale

Classic Desert Island Discs - Ian Wright

Mark Steel is a writer, comedian and radio presenter. 

His performing career began as a poet in the alternative comedy scene in the early eighties at the Comedy Store. A regular presenter on Radio 4, he began his award winning series, Mark Steel’s in Town in 2009. 

Alongside his performing career, he’s been a regular newspaper columnist writing for the Guardian and Independent Newspapers.
 
Mark was born in 1960 and adopted at ten days old by Doreen and Ernie. He grew up in Swanley, Kent and left home at 18 to live in a squat in Crystal Palace. 
After his own son was born, Mark spent many years tracing his birth parents and eventually met up with his genetic father who had been a professional gambler and a friend of Lord Lucan.
Mark has two children and lives in London.

DISC ONE: My Boy Lollipop - Millie Small 
DISC TWO: Janie Jones - The Clash 
DISC THREE: San Quentin (Live at San Quentin State Prison, San Quentin, CA - February 1969) - Johnny Cash 
DISC FOUR: Killing in the Name - Rage Against The Machine
DISC FIVE: Trøllabundin - Eivør Pálsdóttir 
DISC SIX: Love Me or Leave Me - Nina Simone
DISC SEVEN: Into My Arms - Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds
DISC EIGHT: 1977 - Ana Tijoux
 
BOOK CHOICE: Wisden Cricketers' Almanack
LUXURY ITEM: A piano 
CASTAWAY'S FAVOURITE: Love Me or Leave Me - Nina Simone

Presenter Lauren Laverne
Producer Sarah Taylor

Mark Steel, comedian

Former cricketer Ebony Rainford-Brent is the first Black woman to play for England and she was part of the team which won the Women’s Cricket World Cup in 2009. Today she is a broadcaster and cricket commentator for Channel 4, Sky Sports and the BBC’s Test Match Special.

Ebony was born in south London and as a child it was football that caught her attention, especially Liverpool FC and her hero Robbie Fowler. At primary school she was encouraged to have a go at cricket through a charity called Cricket For Change which was set up to encourage more state school children into the sport. Holding a bat in her hands for the first time, she hit the ball as hard as she could and, as she watched it soar through the air, she was hooked.

Ebony started out playing for Surrey Cricket Club’s Under 11’s team as a bowler. In 2003 a serious back injury forced her to stop playing and she thought her sporting career was over. She was determined to prove the medics wrong so she retrained as a batswoman as batting was easier on her back.

In 2007 she made her debut for England and two years later was part of the World Cup-winning team. In 2020 Ebony joined forces with Surrey Cricket Club and founded the African-Caribbean Engagement Programme (ACE) to build grassroots cricket programmes for young people in black communities across the UK. In 2021 she was awarded an MBE for her services to cricket and charity.

DISC ONE: Cold Sweat - James Brown 
DISC TWO: Girlie Girlie - Sophia George 
DISC THREE: Pass Me Over - Anthony Hamilton 
DISC FOUR: A Long Walk - Jill Scott 
DISC FIVE: Rock Steady - Aretha Franklin 
DISC SIX: Never Forget - Take That 
DISC SEVEN: Superheroes - Stormzy 
DISC EIGHT: Work To Do - The Isley Brothers 
 
BOOK CHOICE: The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho
LUXURY ITEM: A drum kit 
CASTAWAY'S FAVOURITE: A Long Walk - Jill Scott 

Presenter Lauren Laverne
Producer Paula McGinley

Ebony Rainford-Brent, former England cricketer

Cher has been a global star for over six decades. Her career has spanned music, television and film and throughout that time her outfits have made flamboyant fashion statements. 

She was born Cherilyn Sarkisian in El Centro, California and had a peripatetic childhood. Her mother married six times and with each new husband the family moved house.

In 1962, when she was 16, Cher met Sonny Bono in a coffee shop. She moved in with Sonny as his housekeeper and personal assistant and began singing backing vocals for his boss, the music producer Phil Spector. In 1965 Sonny and Cher released I Got You Babe which reached number one in the US and UK charts – knocking the Beatles off the top of the chart.

Cher is an award-winning actor who has starred in films including Silkwood, Mask and Moonstruck. In October 1998 she released her 22nd studio album Believe – the title track remains the biggest-selling number one by a solo female artist in British chart history.

DISC ONE: Whiter Shade of Pale - Procol Harum 
DISC TWO: Love Me Tender - Elvis Presley 
DISC THREE: A Dream Is a Wish Your Heart Makes - Ilene Woods 
DISC FOUR: Evil - Stevie Wonder 
DISC FIVE: You’ve Lost That Lovin’ Feelin’ - The Righteous Brothers 
DISC SIX: I Can’t Make You Love Me - Bonnie Raitt 
DISC SEVEN: Minute By Minute - The Doobie Brothers
DISC EIGHT: A Change Is Gonna Come - Sam Cooke 
 
BOOK CHOICE: The Saracen Blade by Frank Yerby 
LUXURY ITEM: An eyelash curler 
CASTAWAY'S FAVOURITE: A Change Is Gonna Come - Sam Cooke 

Presenter Lauren Laverne
Producer Paula McGinley

Cher, singer and actor

Gareth Southgate OBE is the most successful England men’s football manger in the modern game. 

He holds the record as the man who has represented England in more games than anyone else, with 102 games as men's senior team manager, 57 caps as a player and 37 as men's under-21 head coach, leading to a total of 196 games in which he has been involved as a player or coach.

It’s a remarkable career and one which shows his resilience and determination. Ever since he joined a football team as a schoolboy, he dreamed of being a footballer and perhaps one day, wearing the England shirt. He was rejected by Southampton as a teenager and was determined to come back and succeed. He managed to do that, playing for Crystal Palace, Aston Villa and Middlesbrough as a defender and midfielder. After his playing career ended he went into management eventually becoming one of the England national team’s most successful managers. Along the way, his different approach to leadership in sport, together with his quest to understand what is Englishness makes him one of the most impressive football managers in England’s history. 

Southgate is an Ambassador for The Prince's Trust and Help for Heroes.

DISC ONE: The Way It Is - Bruce Hornsby and the Range 
DISC TWO: Rainy Days and Mondays - Carpenters 
DISC THREE: Everybody Wants to Rule the World - Tears for Fears 
DISC FOUR: The Whole of the Moon - Waterboys 
DISC FIVE: One - Mary J. Blige, U2
DISC SIX: Shape of You (Stormzy Remix) - Ed Sheeran 
DISC SEVEN: Someone Like You - Adele 
DISC EIGHT: Experience - Ludovico Einaudi 
 
BOOK CHOICE: The Chimp Paradox by Dr Steve Peters 
LUXURY ITEM: Coffee 
CASTAWAY'S FAVOURITE: Experience - Ludovico Einaudi 

Presenter Lauren Laverne
Producer Sarah Taylor

Gareth Southgate OBE, football manager

Marianela Núñez is a Principal dancer of the Royal Ballet and Opera. Born in Argentina in 1982, Marianela knew she wanted to be a ballet dancer from the age of five and joined the Teatro Colón Ballet School in Buenos Aires when she was eight.

She dedicated herself to becoming a professional ballerina and had the full support of her parents despite having to leave home at fifteen to join the Royal Ballet in the UK. After spending a year at the Royal Ballet School and learning English from watching episodes of Friends, she joined the corps de ballet and worked her way up the company to become Principal Dancer.
She has danced the lead roles in the ballet repertoire on the London stage and around the world as a guest artist. In 2018, she celebrated her 20th anniversary with the Royal Ballet with a performance of lead roles in Giselle, The Winter’s Tale, Manon, Marguerite and Armand, and Swan Lake in her anniversary year. Director of The Royal Ballet Kevin O’Hare called her “one of the greats of her generation”.
Marianela has many awards for her dancing including the Laurence Olivier Award for Outstanding Achievement in Dance in 2013. She lives in London with her two cats.

DISC ONE: Adíos Nonino (“Goodbye Grandad”) - Astor Piazzolla 
DISC TWO: Hoy Puede Ser Un Gran Dia (“Today Could Be a Great Day”) - Joan Manuel Serrat 
DISC THREE: Dancing Queen - ABBA 
DISC FOUR: Don’t Stop Me Now - Queen 
DISC FIVE: Tchaikovsky: The Sleeping Beauty, Op. 66, TH 13 / Act 1: 8a. Pas d'action: Introduction (Andante) - Adagio ("Rose Adagio") Performed by The Orchestra of the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, conducted by Mark Ermler
DISC SIX: Adam: Giselle / Act 2: Lever du soleil et arrivée de la cour. Performed by The Orchestra of the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, conducted by Richard Bonynge 
DISC SEVEN: Count on Me - Bruno Mars 
DISC EIGHT: I Can See Clearly Now - Johnny Nash 

BOOK CHOICE: The Collected Works of Jorge Luis Borges 
LUXURY ITEM: A cashmere blanket 
CASTAWAY'S FAVOURITE: Tchaikovsky: The Sleeping Beauty, Op. 66, TH 13 / Act 1: 8a. Pas d'action: Introduction (Andante) - Adagio ("Rose Adagio") Performed by The Orchestra of the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, conducted by Mark Ermler 

Presenter Lauren Laverne
Producer Sarah Taylor

Marianela Núñez, ballerina

Mark-Anthony Turnage is a composer of contemporary classical music. Once called “Britain’s hippest composer”, he has been in a rock band, got drunk with Francis Bacon, and tackled anything from drug abuse to football in his works.
Mark was born in June 1960 in the Thames estuary town of Corringham in Essex. His musical talent was nurtured by his parents and he studied composition at the junior department at the Royal College of Music from aged fourteen. There he met the composer Oliver Knussen who became his tutor, mentor, and life-long friend.
His first performed work, Night Dances, written while still at the Royal College, won a prize and heralded Mark’s evolution into what one critic calls “one of the best known British composers of his generation, widely admired for his highly personal mixture of energy and elegy, tough and tender”.
Greek, his debut opera, a reimagining of the Oedipus myth whose protagonist is a racist, violent and foul-mouthed football hooligan, shocked the establishment, which flinched, but accepted “Turnage, the trouble-maker” as a forceful voice. 
Over the past four decades he has sustained a distinguished and productive career that has seen him working closely with conductors of the stature of Bernard Haitink, Esa-Pekka Salonen and, particularly, Simon Rattle. He has been attached to prestigious institutions, such as English National Opera and both the BBC and Chicago symphony orchestras, and has written a vast range of music for many different instruments and ensembles.
His influences include soul, gospel, all sorts of jazz and the great symphonic works of the repertoire. He has written operas, ballets, concertos, chamber pieces and choral works together with orchestrating a football match. 
His key works include Three Screaming Popes and Blood on the Floor (both inspired by Francis Bacon paintings, and the latter containing an elegy for his younger brother, Andrew, who died of a drug overdose in 1995), as well as more operas including one about the former Playboy model Anna Nicole Smith. 
Mark lives in North London with his partner, the opera director, Rachael Hewer. 

DISC ONE: Symphony No. 9 in D Minor, Op. 125 II. Molto vivace - Presto - Molto vivace – Presto. Composed by Ludwig Van Beethoven and performed by The Berlin Philharmonic, conducted by Sir Simon Rattle 
DISC TWO: St. Matthew Passion, BWV 244 Pt. 1 No. 1, Kommt, ihr Töchter, helft mir klagen. Composed by Johann Sebastian Bach and performed by Bach Collegium Japan, conducted by Masaaki Suzuki 
DISC THREE: Two Organa, Op. 27 – 1 “Notre Dame des Jouets”. Composed and conducted by Oliver Knussen and performed by The London Sinfonietta 
DISC FOUR: Blue in Green - Miles Davis 
DISC FIVE: Living for the City - Stevie Wonder 
DISC SIX: Puccini: Madama Butterfly, Act II: Un bel dì vedremo. Composed by Giacomo Puccini and performed by Mirella Freni (Soprano) and Wiener Philharmoniker, conducted by Herbert von Karajan
DISC SEVEN: Symphony of Psalms (1948 Version): III. Alleluja. Laudate Dominum - Psalmus 150 (Vulgata) Composed by Igor Stravinsky and performed by English Bach Festival Choir and The London Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Leonard Bernstein
DISC EIGHT: Let’s Say We Did. Composed by John Scofield and Mark-Anthony Turnage and performed by John Scofield, John Patitucci, Peter Erskine, Frankfurt Radio Symphony, hr-Bigband and Hugh Wolf

BOOK CHOICE: Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier
LUXURY ITEM: A grand piano and tuning kit
CASTAWAY'S FAVOURITE: St. Matthew Passion, BWV 244 Pt. 1 No. 1, Kommt, ihr Töchter, helft mir klagen. Composed by Johann Sebastian Bach and performed by Bach Collegium Japan, conducted by Masaaki Suzuki 

Presenter: Lauren Laverne
Producer: Sarah Taylor

Mark-Anthony Turnage, composer

Emma Bridgewater is a British ceramic designer and businesswoman. She set up her pottery business in 1985 in Stoke-on-Trent, when many other manufacturers in the city were either closing down or going overseas. Her pottery is instantly recognizable, decorated with polka dots, stars, hearts or elegant lettering using 19th century sponge-printing techniques.

It is an unlikely career for someone who studied English at University. Together with her husband, illustrator Matthew Rice, Emma Bridgewater has played a part in keeping the pottery tradition alive in Stoke-on-Trent. The factory also now hosts an annual literary festival.

She was awarded a CBE in 2013 for services to industry.

Producer: Sarah Taylor.

Emma Bridgewater

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