Last Word

Pictured: John Singleton Andrea Catherwood on: British Athlete Winnie Jordan who won a silver medal in the Empire Games in 1938 and became a celebrated British Champion after the war. American psychiatrist and lawyer, Richard Green, who advanced acceptance and understanding of gay and trans people. Founder of Poland's Solidarity movement, Karol Modzelewski. Liz Howe, the ecologist who spearheaded...

Pictured: Peter Mayhew Matthew Bannister on Grand Duke Jean of Luxembourg, who served with the Irish Guards during the war, liberated his own country and then presided over its prosperity. Terry Rawlings, the film editor who worked on Alien, Chariots of Fire and the Bond film Goldeneye. Neus Català, the Spanish communist who fought Franco, joined the French resistance and survived a Nazi death cam...

Pictured: Lyra McKee Matthew Bannister on Lyra McKee, the 29 year old Northern Irish journalist who was shot dead by the New IRA. Una-Mary Parker who was the social editor of Tatler, a commentator on the Royal family and the author of best-selling novels. Mira Markovic, the wife of the Serbian President Slobodan Milosevic, who denied her husband's responsibility for atrocities during the Bosnian w...

Pictured: Nadja Poderegin Julian Worricker on: David Thouless, whose work in the world of quantum mechanics earned him a share of the Nobel Prize for Physics. The Serbian actress, Nadja Poderegin, who went from 'Bond girl' on screen to be a publisher and novelist. Stand-up comedian, Ian Cognito, whose act was much loved on the comedy circuit but never allowed on TV. Michael O'Donnell, who combined...

Pictured: Sydney Brenner Matthew Bannister on Sydney Brenner, the Nobel Prize-winning biologist who worked with Francis Crick to map DNA. Dan Robbins, the artist who invented painting by numbers. Edda Tasiemka, the archivist who kept a comprehensive newspaper and magazine cuttings collection in her North London home. Ian McDonald, the Ministry of Defence spokesman during the Falklands War who beca...

Pictured: Agnès Varda Matthew Bannister on Michel Bacos, the pilot of the Air France jet that was hi-jacked to Entebbe in 1976. He was offered the chance to leave, but chose to stay with the hostages until they were freed in a dramatic raid by the Israelis. The film director Agnès Varda, known as the mother of the French New Wave. The impresario Victor Hochhauser who specialised in bringing top Ru...

Pictured: Baroness Warnock Matthew Bannister on Baroness Warnock, the philosopher who set down the principles which govern human fertilisation treatment and embryo research. William Hucklesby, the Police Commander who led the anti-terrorist branch at the time of the Hyde Park and Brighton bomb attacks. Rose Hilton, the artist who put her career on hold to support her husband, but gained recognitio...

Pictured: Dick Dale Matthew Bannister on Gillian Freeman, the novelist and screenwriter whose books include The Leather Boys, a story of a gay love affair between two working class men in the 1960s. Sir Peter Hutchison who travelled to remote parts of the world to collect rare plants. Sister Dorothy Bell, the nun who after a career devoted to education, turned her attention to AIDS awareness. And...

Pictured: Jacques Loussier Matthew Bannister on Mike Oliver, who was paralysed from the neck down after diving into a swimming pool as a teenager. He became the UK's first Professor of Disability Studies and transformed the debate about disabled people's rights. Jacques Loussier, the French pianist and composer best known for his jazz arrangements of the works of J.S. Bach. Professor Richard Lacey...

Pictured: Simon Norton Matthew Bannister on France-Albert René, the Seychelles President who came to power in a coup and stayed in office for more than 25 years. Simon Norton, the brilliant but eccentric mathematician who became fascinated by public transport. Belle Tutaev who campaigned for better early learning provision for the UK's children. Ian Adamson, the Northern Ireland doctor who wrote m...

Pictured: André Previn Matthew Bannister on André Previn, the conductor and pianist whose repertoire ranged from the classics to film and jazz music. He took part in a celebrated sketch with Morecambe and Wise. John Haynes, publisher of the Haynes manuals which gave amateur mechanics a step by step guide to repairing their cars. Tony Mendez, the CIA operative who smuggled American diplomatic staff...

Matthew Bannister on Lady Falkender who was the controversial political secretary to Harold Wilson for twenty seven years. Karl Lagerfeld, the designer who re-vitalised Chanel, developed Fendi and became an icon in his own right. John Stalker, the Deputy Chief Constable of Greater Manchester Police who led an investigation into allegations of a shoot to kill policy in Northern Ireland. Andrea Levy...

Matthew Bannister on Gordon Banks, the goalkeeper in England's 1966 World Cup winning team, who made one of the greatest saves of all time in 1970. Vikki Orvice, the first woman to work as a football writer on a national tabloid newspaper. David Garman, the inventor of the portable bath lift and many other devices to help people with disabilities. Mary Oliver, the American poet known for her works...

Pictured: Rosamunde Pilcher Andrea Catherwood on: Activist Hugh Lewin who was jailed for his stand against apartheid in South Africa, Iraqi archaeologist Lamia Al-Gailani who helped rebuild the National Museum of Iraq after looting, Dr Stewart Adams, the Boots pharmacist who invented Ibuprofen, Scottish ecologist Adam Watson who devoted his life to protecting the Cairngorms, and author Rosamunde P...

Pictured: Jeremy Hardy Julian Worricker on: Comedian Jeremy Hardy, a mainstay of The News Quiz and I'm Sorry I Haven't a Clue on Radio 4.... Editor and author, Diana Athill, who wrote candidly about her personal life especially in her later years... Sir Conrad Swan, who, as Garter King of Arms, was the senior heraldic authority of England... Oscar-winning composer, pianist, conductor and arranger,...

Pictured: Hugh McIlvanney Matthew Bannister on Hugh McIlvanney, the respected sports writer known for his love of language and combative approach to life. Jennie Buckman, the theatre practitioner who trained a generation of famous actors and founded a company to give voice to the disadvantaged. John Beavis, the surgeon who was forced to retire from the NHS through ill health but then spent the nex...

Pictured: Joe Casely-Hayford Matthew Bannister on Joe Casely-Hayford, the fashion designer whose creations ranged from punk to Savile Row tailoring. His children, who followed him into fashion, pay tribute. Nicholas Crichton, the judge who pioneered specialist family drug and alcohol courts in the UK. Professor Sophie Oluwole, who was a powerful advocate for African philosophy. Professor Paul O'Br...

Pictured: Nancy Roman Matthew Bannister on Nancy Roman, the American space agency NASA's first Chief Astronomer. She was known as the mother of the Hubble Telescope. Ralph Koltai, the influential theatre set designer who worked on more than 250 productions. Julia Grant, the transgender activist who allowed her transition from male to female to be filmed by the BBC. Jin Yong, the Chinese writer who...

Pictured: June Whitfield Matthew Bannister on Dame June Whitfield, the comic actress whose long career spanned classic radio shows and Absolutely Fabulous. Sir Jack Zunz, the civil engineer who led the construction of the Sydney Opera House and became chairman of Ove Arup. Thomas Baptiste, the Guyana-born actor who appeared in Coronation Street and The Ipcress File and campaigned for colour blind...

Pictured: Sister Wendy Beckett Julian Worricker on: The nun, Sister Wendy Beckett, who became an unlikely television star when she brought her knowledge of the history of art to the small screen... Nicolas Roeg, the film director behind such classics as Don't Look Now and The Man Who Fell to Earth... The German soprano, Inge Borkh, described as one of the most exciting operatic performers of her e...

Pictured: Nancy Wilson Matthew Bannister on Sir David Weatherall, the world renowned haematologist and geneticist who pioneered molecular approaches to medicine. Penny Marshall, the first woman to direct a film which grossed more than a hundred million dollars. She also starred in the US TV sitcom Laverne and Shirley. Evelyn Berezin who invented the first computerised word processor for secretaria...

Pictured: Peter Boizot Matthew Bannister on Peter Boizot who founded the Pizza Express chain of restaurants and invested heavily in his home town of Peterborough. Judith Kazantzis, the feminist poet, novelist and activist. Sir Sze-Yuen Chung, the Hong Kong businessman who led the campaign for residents' views to be heard during the handover negotiations between the UK and China. Cecylia Roszak, th...

Pictured: Pete Shelley Matthew Bannister on Harry Leslie Smith who grew up in poverty in Yorkshire. He became an outspoken campaigner for the welfare state and a social media star in his nineties. Pete Shelley, lead singer and songwriter of Buzzcocks. Monica Sims, the BBC executive who ran children's TV, then became Controller of Radio 4. Wendy Atkin, the epidemiologist who devised a breakthrough...

Pictured: Baroness Trumpington Matthew Bannister on Baroness Trumpington, who worked for Lloyd George and at Bletchley Park during the war then became a government minister noted for her cheerfully unstuffy attitude. Roy Bailey the socialist folk singer who teamed up with Tony Benn in an award winning live act. Henry Stevens, the police officer who won the George Cross for repeatedly tackling a bu...

Pictured: William Goldman Matthew Bannister on William Goldman, the Hollywood screenwriter behind a string of hits including Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, All The President's Men and The Princess Bride. John Large, the respected nuclear engineer who highlighted the safety risks facing the industry. Richard Baker, the long serving BBC television newsreader who also presented classical music p...