Last Word

Photo: Sir Roger Bannister Matthew Bannister on Trevor Baylis, the eccentric inventor who came up with the wind up radio. Lerone Bennett, the American academic who wrote many influential books on black history including "Before the Mayflower". Penny Vincenzi the best selling novelist who told stories of glamorous heroines, romance and business intrigue. Ian Aitken one of the UK's most influential...

Photo: Sridevi Kapoor Matthew Bannister on Ernest Hecht, who founded the Souvenir Press, which published books from Nobel prize winners like Pablo Neruda, academics like Noam Chomsky and best sellers on sexual techniques and toilet paper. Lewis Gilbert who directed Alfie, Educating Rita and three James Bond movies. Dame Beulah Bewley who carried out significant research into the effects of smoking...

Photo: Billy Graham Matthew Bannister on The evangelist Billy Graham who preached to millions around the world and offered spiritual advice to 12 American Presidents. Laura Lee, the sex worker who campaigned for the rights of her colleagues. John Morris who composed many film soundtracks, including the music for Mel Brooks' comedies The Producers and Blazing Saddles. John Bosco McAtasney, the last...

Photo: Morgan Tsvangirai Matthew Bannister on Morgan Tsvangirai, leader of Zimbabwe's opposition Movement for Democratic Change and Prime Minister from 2008 to 2013. Douglas Botting, film maker, author and explorer who flew a hot air balloon across Africa and sailed a hovercraft down the Orinoco. Professor Patricia Lindop, who researched the effects of radiation on human tissue. Asma Jahangir, the...

Photo: John Mahoney Julian Worricker on: The actor John Mahoney who played Marty Crane in one of America's best-loved sitcoms, Frasier. Hannah Hauxwell, whose solitary life as a farmer in the Yorkshire Dales, was captured in an award-winning TV documentary. Scientist Ken Seddon, a global leader in his field of inorganic chemistry and pioneer of so-called 'super solvents'. Landowner Sir John Cotter...

Photo: Dorothy Malone Julian Worricker on: Ingvar Kamprad, the Swedish entrepreneur who founded Ikea and changed the way we furnish our homes Elizabeth Hawley, journalist turned chronicler, who documented every Himalayan climb from 1963 The musician, Robert Mann, who was the founding first violinist of the Juilliard Quartet Jon Castle, the Greenpeace activist who captained the first Rainbow Warrio...

Photo: Hugh Masekela Matthew Bannister on Hugh Masekela the South African jazz trumpeter and anti apartheid activist. Ursula K. Le Guin whose science fiction and fantasy books sold millions of copies. Mary Lee Berners-Lee, the computer pioneer and mother of the world wide web creator Sir Tim Berners-Lee. John Barton the director and writer who taught a generation of actors how to speak Shakespeari...

Matthew Bannister on Surgeon Captain Rick Jolly, the navy doctor who set up a makeshift field hospital during the Falklands War to treat both British and Argentine casualties. Dolores O'Riordan, lead singer of the Irish band the Cranberries who sold forty million albums. Cyrille Regis, the West Brom and England striker who experienced racism from fans in the 1980s. Jenny Joseph who wrote Britain's...

Photo: John W. Young Matthew Bannister on John W. Young the American astronaut who went into in space six times, including landing on the moon and commanding the first space shuttle flight. Peter Preston the long serving editor of the Guardian who re-designed and modernised the paper. Ray Thomas the flautist and singer who was a founding member of the Moody Blues. Sir Brian Neill, the barrister an...

Photo: Maureen Baker Matthew Bannister on Maureen Baker who designed clothes for Princess Anne, including her Tudor inspired wedding dress. Richard Cousins - the Chief Executive who transformed the fortunes of the world's biggest catering company Compass Group. Lady Astor - the model who was caught up in the Profumo Affair. Meic Povey - the Welsh playwright who also created award winning films and...

Photo: Tom Paley Julian Worricker on: The businessman Sir Peter Burt, who was in charge of Bank of Scotland when it merged with the Halifax, and was later chairman of ITV The woman credited with groundbreaking work as an architectural archivist, Jill Lever The horticulturalist and rose grower, John Mattock, who was chairman of the Chelsea Flower Show for twelve years The film and TV director, Pete...

Photo: Professor Heinz Wolff Matthew Bannister on Professor Heinz Wolff, the bioengineer who was known to millions of TV viewers as the presenter of "The Great Egg Race". Aline, Countess of Romanones, the model and socialite who wrote best selling books based on her experiences of spying on the Nazis during the war. Tony Whitten, the passionate conservationist who had eleven species named after hi...

(Photo: Keith Chegwin) Matthew Bannister on The disgraced publicist Max Clifford who was known as the king of the kiss and tell story, made up many tabloid headlines and was convicted of eight charges of indecent assault against teenage girls. The adventurer Norman Baker who sailed with Thor Heyerdahl from Morocco to Barbados on a papyrus raft called Ra II. The businessman Tony Garrett who was cha...

(Photo: Christine Keeler) Matthew Bannister on King Michael of Romania who ruled his country during the second world war and was forced to abdicate by the Soviet Union. . Bollywood actor Shashi Kapoor who starred in more than a hundred Hindi films as well as English language titles like Shakespeare Wallah and Heat and Dust. Christine Keeler, the model who was at the centre of the Profumo Affair in...

(Photo: Russian baritone Dmitri Hvorostovsky) Matthew Bannister on The Russian baritone Dmitri Hvorostovsky, known for playing leading operatic roles - and for his silver hair and matinee idol looks. Unity Spencer who overcame a dysfunctional upbringing as the daughter of the painter Stanley Spencer to be recognised as an accomplished artist in her own right. Lewis Golden, the war veteran who set...

Matthew Bannister on Lord Imbert, the Commissioner who tried to change the culture of the Metropolitan Police. He invited TV cameras to observe his officers at work, leading to a controversial film of them subjecting a rape victim to aggressive questioning. Pat Hutchins, the children's author and illustrator who created the book "Rosie's Walk" and presented the TV series "Rosie and Jim". Rodney Be...

Matthew Bannister on Lord Hutchinson of Lullington, the barrister who appeared in many celebrated cases, including defending the publication of Lady Chatterley's Lover and the director of the play Romans In Britain and securing the acquittal of Howard Marks on drug smuggling charges. Linda Nochlin the feminist art historian who wrote a celebrated article in the 1970s entitled "Why Have There Been...

Matthew Bannister on The chef Antonio Carluccio who transformed Italian cooking in the UK. Sima Wali who devoted her life to campaigning for the rights of Afghan women. The Pulitzer Prize winning American poet laureate Richard Wilbur. Mary Reveley, the Yorkshire based race horse trainer who saddled more than two thousand winners. And Dudley Simpson who composed the theme from the TV series Blake's...

Matthew Bannister on Howard Pendleton who made the Marquee Club a launch pad for scores of rock stars including the Rolling Stones, the Who and David Bowie and started the Reading Festival. Glenn Barr, the Unionist leader who brought Northern Ireland to its knees for thirteen days. Iona Opie who devoted her life to collecting nursery rhymes and studying children's use of stories and language. Gary...

Matthew Bannister on The campaigning Maltese journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia who was killed by a car bomb after exposing corruption in politics and business. Fats Domino - the rock and roll pioneer who was second only to Elvis in record sales. Rodney Bickerstaffe, the trade union leader who campaigned for the minimum wage. Geoffrey Schild, the virologist who laid the foundations for the creation...

Matthew Bannister on Sean Hughes, the comedian who pioneered stand up with a narrative and was a team captain on "Never Mind the Buzzcocks". Architect David Marks who mortgaged his house as he battled to turn his design for the London Eye into an international landmark. Major Khush Ahmad-ul-Mulk, the last surviving son of the Mehtar of Chitral who ruled the state in the North West of Pakistan for...

Julian Worricker on: Lillian Ross, who wrote for the New Yorker, and created a new form of journalism.... The Iraqi president after the fall of Saddam Hussein, Jalal Talabani - a prominent Kurdish politician.... The boxer Terry Downes, who held the world middleweight title in the 1960s.... Sybil Flory, a seamstress who evaded the Japanese in 1941, and found her sister six decades later.... Hedley...

Matthew Bannister on The actor Tony Booth, best known for playing Alf Garnett's left wing son-in-law in the TV comedy Till Death Us Do Part - and notorious for his womanising and heavy drinking. His daughter Cherie Blair shares her memories. Lillian Bettencourt who was the richest woman in the world - as heiress to the L'Oreal cosmetics group. She was also embroiled in a bitter court battle over h...

Matthew Bannister on Hugh Hefner who built the Playboy empire on a best selling magazine. Was he a libertarian who changed attitudes to sex or a sleazy pornographer? Soviet officer Stanislav Petrov who is credited with averting a nuclear disaster during the Cold War. The right wing Conservative M.P. Teddy Taylor best known for his outspoken opposition to the European Union. And actress Liz Dawn wh...

Matthew Bannister on David Shepherd, the artist who painted trains, aeroplanes and elephants and worked tirelessly to conserve wild animals. Nancy Hatch Dupree, the American born adventurer and writer who devoted her life to creating an archive of Afghan culture and history. Gordon Williams, the Booker prize shortlisted author whose novel The Siege of Trencher's farm became the controversial film...