BBC Radio 4

Desert Island Discs

Society EN ↓ 2000 episodes

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

Author

BBC Radio 4

Episodes

Lindsay Anderson 35:04

Roy Plomley's castaway is director Lindsay Anderson. Favourite track: Brandenburg Concerto No. 6 In B Flat Major by Johann Sebastian Bach Book: Les Thibault by Roger Martin Du Gard Luxury: Mixed flower seeds and a watering can

Natalie Wood 30:56

Roy Plomley's castaway is actress Natalie Wood. Favourite track: American Pie by Don MacLean Book: Poetry by e e cummings Luxury: Piano

Rt Hon Lord Denning 33:33

Roy Plomley's castaway is Master of the Rolls The Rt Hon Lord Alfred Denning. Favourite track: Fantasia On Greensleeves by Ralph Vaughan Williams Book: The Golden Treasury by Francis Palgrave Luxury: Indian tea

Earl Hines 33:24

Roy Plomley's castaway is jazz pianist Earl Hines. Favourite track: Trust In Me by Dinah Washington & Quincy Jones and his Orchestra Book: The World of Duke Ellington by Stanley Dance Luxury: Physical culture equipment

Robert Tear 23:15

Roy Plomley's castaway is tenor Robert Tear. Favourite track: Concerto For Double String Orchestra by Michael Tippett Book: The Wisdom of Insecurity by Alan Watts Luxury: Postcards of paintings with poems on the back

Freddie Jones 33:31

Roy Plomley's castaway is actor Freddie Jones. Book: The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame Luxury: Liebig condenser for distilling gin

General Sir John Hackett 33:51

Roy Plomley's castaway is soldier and writer General Sir John Hackett. Favourite track: String Quartet No. 13 in B Flat Major by Ludwig van Beethoven Book: 1001 Gems of English Poetry Luxury: Six dozen bottles of Chateau La Tour 1962

Barbara Woodhouse 32:16

Roy Plomley's castaway is dog trainer Barbara Woodhouse. Favourite track: Skye Boat Song by Adrian Brett Book: Talking To Animals by Barbara Woodhouse Luxury: Mother's ormolu clock

V S Naipaul 34:46

Roy Plomley's castaway is writer V S Naipaul. Favourite track: Piano Sonata No. 32 in C Minor by Ludwig van Beethoven Book: Teach yourself mathematics Luxury: The Enlightened Buddha

Tom Lehrer 30:22

Roy Plomley's castaway is composer Tom Lehrer. Favourite track: Der Rosenkavalier Waltzes by Richard Strauss Book: The Oxford English Dictionary Luxury: Piano

Daley Thompson 19:42

Roy Plomley's castaway is World Champion decathlete Daley Thompson. Favourite track: Unchained Melody by George Benson Book: Novels by John Wyndham Luxury: Guitar and instruction book

David Scott Blackhall 30:45

Roy Plomley's castaway is broadcaster David Scott Blackhall. Favourite track: Our Love Is Here To Stay by George Gershwin Book: The Oxford Book of English Verse Luxury: Perkins Brailler and paper

Gregory Peck 43:58

Roy Plomley's castaway is actor Gregory Peck. Favourite track: Symphony No. 7 In A Major by Ludwig van Beethoven Book: Abraham Lincoln by Carl Sandburg Luxury: Cases of Chateau Lafite-Rothschild

William Trevor 32:33

Roy Plomley's castaway is writer William Trevor. Favourite track: Clarinet Quintet In B Minor by Johannes Brahms Book: Lives of the Saints by Alban Butler Luxury: Grapevines

Stephen Sondheim 32:31

Roy Plomley's castaway is composer Stephen Sondheim. Favourite track: Porgy and Bess by Lawrence Winters and Others Book: Collected works by E B White Luxury: Piano

Tristan Jones 35:42

Roy Plomley's castaway is sailor and writer Tristan Jones. Favourite track: 1812 Overture by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky Book: Modern wooden yacht construction Luxury: 12 foot by 8 foot Union Jack

Renata Scotto 33:10

Roy Plomley's castaway is soprano Renata Scotto. Favourite track: Sola, Perduta, Abbandonata by Giacomo Puccini Book: Divine Comedy by Dante Alighieri Luxury: Silver shadow Rolls Royce

Earl Of Snowdon 35:13

Roy Plomley's castaway is photographer Antony Armstrong-Jones, The Earl Of Snowdon. Favourite track: Swan Lake (Finale) by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky Book: A History of Architecture on the Comparative Method by Sir Banister Fletcher Luxury: Painting Materials

Antal Dorati 25:37

Roy Plomley's castaway is conductor Antal Dorati. Favourite track: Rondo Capriccioso by Felix Mendelssohn Book: The Golden Man by Yokoi Luxury: Italian landscape drawing from his collection

Michael Powell & Emeric Pressburger 34:33

Roy Plomley's castaways are producers Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger. Favourite track: Der Rosenkavalier by Richard Strauss Book: Essays by Michel de Montaigne and Herzog by Saul Bellow Luxury: Brandy and a blank log book

Andrea Newman 37:01

Roy Plomley's castaway is novelist and TV writer Andrea Newman. Favourite track: Im Abendrot by Richard Strauss Book: The Weather in the Streets by Rosamund Lehmann Luxury: Champagne

Ronald Lockley 35:25

Roy Plomley's castaway is naturalist and writer Ronald Lockley. Favourite track: Prelude A L'Apres Midi D'Un Faune by Claude Debussy Book: The Natural History of Selborne by Gilbert White Luxury: Telescope

Sir John Tooley 34:28

Roy Plomley's castaway is the General Administrator of the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, Sir John Tooley Favourite track: The Marriage Of Figaro (Act 2 Finale) by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Book: The Oxford Book of English Verse Luxury: Sugared apricots

Brian Glover 30:50

Roy Plomley's castaway is actor and playwright Brian Glover. Favourite track: Like A Rolling Stone by Bob Dylan Book: Card Games by John Scarne Luxury: MGTD 2952 car

Catherine Gaskin 40:05

Roy Plomley's castaway is writer Catherine Gaskin. Favourite track: String Quartet in C Sharp Minor by Ludwig van Beethoven Book: The Story of Civilization by William Durant Luxury: Piano