Desert Island Discs

Thomas Quasthoff

01 Feb 2009

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is the bass-baritone Thomas Quasthoff. He has performed in concert halls the world over under the batons of the fine...

Alan Sillitoe

25 Jan 2009

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is the writer Alan Sillitoe. 50 years ago his debut novel Saturday Night and Sunday Morning captured the truth and b...

Vincent Cable MP

18 Jan 2009

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is the Liberal Democrat Treasury Spokesman, Vince Cable. He studied economics at Cambridge and had a rich career bef...

Ruth Padel

11 Jan 2009

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is the poet Ruth Padel. She is a highly acclaimed writer who is fascinated with the natural world around her. She's ...

Simon Murray

04 Jan 2009

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is the adventurer and businessman Simon Murray. What many of us would struggle to do over three life-times he has ma...

Baroness Haleh Afshar

28 Dec 2008

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is Baroness Haleh Afshar. An expert in Middle Eastern Affairs, she's a professor of politics and women's studies and...

James Nesbitt

21 Dec 2008

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is James Nesbitt. He is one of our most popular and successful actors and his long list of credits includes Cold Fee...

Michael Deeley

14 Dec 2008

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is the Oscar-winning film producer Michael Deeley. Over the past 40 years he's been involved in some of the most hig...

Marcus du Sautoy

07 Dec 2008

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is the mathematician Marcus du Sautoy. A professor of mathematics at Oxford University and a fellow of New College, ...

Michael Eavis

30 Nov 2008

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway on Desert Island Discs this week is Michael Eavis. It's more than 30 years since he launched the Glastonbury Festival at his d...

Janet Street-Porter

23 Nov 2008

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is Janet Street-Porter. Born, she says, with 'frilly teeth, big glasses and beige hair' she also came with a healthy...

David Davis MP

16 Nov 2008

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is the Conservative politician David Davis. Born just before Christmas in 1948 to a single mother he was brought up ...

Allan Ahlberg

14 Nov 2008

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway in Desert Island Discs this week is one of our best-loved children's authors, Allan Ahlberg. He started writing stories for ch...

Shami Chakrabarti

02 Nov 2008

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is the director of Liberty, Shami Chakrabarti. A pithy and incisive speaker, she is rarely out of the media spotligh...

Ian Bostridge

26 Oct 2008

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is the tenor Ian Bostridge. He is regarded as one of the great Lieder singers of our time and has delighted audience...

Randy Newman

19 Oct 2008

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is the American composer, singer and song-writer Randy Newman. Colleagues say he stands shoulder-to-shoulder with mu...

Sanjeev Bhaskar

12 Oct 2008

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is Sanjeev Bhaskar. A writer, comic and actor, Sanjeev has brought the British Asian experience into mainstream come...

David McVicar

05 Oct 2008

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is the opera director David McVicar. He is hailed as the opera director of his generation and is in such great deman...

Miriam Margolyes

28 Sep 2008

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's guest on Desert Island Discs this week is the actress Miriam Margolyes. Her rich career has seen her work with directors such as Martin...

Ruthie Henshall

17 Aug 2008

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is the actress Ruthie Henshall. A West End and Broadway star she has performed in many of the most successful produc...

AC Grayling

10 Aug 2008

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is the philosopher Professor A C Grayling. He was a child growing up in Africa when he was first drawn to philosophy...

Richard Ingrams

03 Aug 2008

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's guest on Desert Island Discs this week is Richard Ingrams. Former editor and a founder of the satirical magazine Private Eye, he's one ...

Antonia Fraser

27 Jul 2008

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway on Desert Island Discs this week is the writer Antonia Fraser. Born Antonia Pakenham, the eldest of eight children, it was whi...

John Stefanidis

20 Jul 2008

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is one of the world's leading interior designers, John Stefanidis. Described as brilliant and inimitable, his work h...

Felicity Lott

13 Jul 2008

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is the soprano, Dame Felicity Lott. She is one of Britain's best known and best loved singers and has given performa...

Antonio Carluccio

06 Jul 2008

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is the cook Antonio Carluccio. He's been hailed as perhaps the best Italian cook in Britain today and the flavours a...

Posy Simmonds

29 Jun 2008

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway this week the cartoonist, writer and illustrator Posy Simmonds. Her social observation and sharp wit gained a loyal following ...

Ara Darzi

22 Jun 2008

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is the pioneering surgeon Professor Ara Darzi. He was born in Iraq and brought up in Baghdad but he moved to Ireland...

Peter Carey

20 Jun 2008

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is the author Peter Carey. He says he grew up in his homeland "thinking that Australian history was dull and Austral...

Bill Bailey

08 Jun 2008

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty's castaway this week is the comedian and actor, Bill Bailey. Lauded for his hugely inventive stand up, he has carved out a highly successful ca...

Lord Woolf

01 Jun 2008

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is the former Lord Chief Justice of England and Wales Lord Woolf. Throughout his career, he has been at the forefron...

Howard Goodall

25 May 2008

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is the composer Howard Goodall. He's a man of eclectic musical tastes and talents creating choral works, popular TV ...

Diane Abbott

18 May 2008

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is the MP Diane Abbott. She was the first black woman to become a Member of Parliament and, after her election in 19...

Annie Lennox

11 May 2008

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is one of our most successful singer-songwriters, Annie Lennox. Her extraordinary voice has captivated us for more t...

Penelope Wilton

30 Mar 2008

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is the actress Penelope Wilton. Her first love is the theatre and she's been highly acclaimed for her stage work in ...

Stanley McMurtry

23 Mar 2008

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is the cartoonist Mac. He's been the Daily Mail's cartoonist for the past 38 years - and it's his job, he says, to m...

Tariq Ali

16 Mar 2008

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is the radical thinker, writer and broadcaster Tariq Ali. Forty years since the streets of London were filled with d...

Liz Smith

09 Mar 2008

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is the actress Liz Smith. Her story is a triumph of talent and perseverance over circumstance. Her mother died when ...

Michael Ball

02 Mar 2008

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is the actor and singer Michael Ball. For more than 20 years he's been the West End's leading man - winning stacks o...

David Dimbleby

24 Feb 2008

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is the broadcaster David Dimbleby. When he was born, in 1938, his father Richard was already a national institution....

Martin Evans

17 Feb 2008

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is the Nobel Prize-winning scientist Professor Sir Martin Evans. He is known as the grandfather of embryonic stem-ce...

Oleg Gordievsky

10 Feb 2008

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is Oleg Gordievsky. He is the highest-ranking KGB officer ever to become a spy for the British. The insights he gave...

Beryl Bainbridge

03 Feb 2008

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is the writer Dame Beryl Bainbridge. She grew up in Liverpool - in a home filled with acrimony and argument - and st...

Rory Stewart

20 Jan 2008

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is the former diplomat, traveller and writer, Rory Stewart. His life has been part establishment convention, part wi...

Simon Rattle

13 Jan 2008

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is Sir Simon Rattle. For the past five years he has been Principal Conductor of the Berlin Philharmonic - regarded b...

John Humphrys

06 Jan 2008

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is the broadcaster and journalist John Humphrys. For 21 years he has been at the helm of Today, Radio 4's flagship n...

Karren Brady

30 Dec 2007

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is the businesswoman Karren Brady. She is known as the First Lady of Football - and it's a moniker that is well earn...

Victoria Wood

23 Dec 2007

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is Victoria Wood. For decades she has been one of our best-loved writers and performers. The television series she's...

Paul Weller

16 Dec 2007

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is the musician Paul Weller. As the lead singer of The Jam, the founder of The Style Council and a hugely successful...

Alec Jeffreys

09 Dec 2007

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is Professor Sir Alec Jeffreys - the scientist who discovered genetic fingerprinting. It is 25 years since his 'Eure...

Steven Isserlis

02 Dec 2007

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is the cellist Steven Isserlis. It is, perhaps, little surprise that music has been central to his life. He was born...

Armistead Maupin

25 Nov 2007

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is the author Armistead Maupin. Regarded as one of the 'great social satirists of his era', he made his name with hi...

Eliza Manningham-Buller

18 Nov 2007

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is Dame Eliza Manningham-Buller. She has recently stepped down as Britain's top spy-master - or more correctly, the ...

Jung Chang

16 Nov 2007

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is the author Jung Chang. Jung was born in the years after Mao came to power in China and as a child she took part i...

Nicholas Parsons

04 Nov 2007

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is Nicholas Parsons. Actor, quizmaster, cabaret performer, straight man, panel show host and fully-qualified marine ...

Lord Joffe

28 Oct 2007

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is Joel Joffe. For many years he was the chairman of Oxfam, before that he set up a hugely successful insurance comp...

Ronnie Corbett

21 Oct 2007

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is an entertainer so central to British popular culture he can be identified by the outline of his glasses alone - R...

Jill Balcon

14 Oct 2007

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is the actress Jill Balcon. She has the voice of an old friend - and it's not surprising, she was a BBC radio announ...

Alan Johnson

07 Oct 2007

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is the Secretary of State for Health, Alan Johnson. He has the task of managing one of the most challenging briefs o...

George Michael

30 Sep 2007

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is George Michael. As a singer and songwriter he has enjoyed massive global success for a quarter of a century. He's...

Vladimir Jurowski

19 Aug 2007

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is the conductor Vladimir Jurowski. Described as the most active and influential conductor in Britain today, he has ...

Felix Dennis

12 Aug 2007

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is the publisher Felix Dennis. He blossomed among the flower power generation, finding fame as one of the defendants...

Andrew Davies

05 Aug 2007

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is the writer Andrew Davies. He is the king of television adaptation; Pride and Prejudice, Vanity Fair, Middlemarch ...

Nicola Horlick

29 Jul 2007

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is the investment banker Nicola Horlick. She has, perhaps, done more than anyone else to shatter the glass ceiling -...

Thomas Keneally

22 Jul 2007

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is the writer Thomas Keneally. He had already been nominated for the Booker Prize three times when he published a hi...

Oliver Postgate

15 Jul 2007

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is the animator Oliver Postgate. As the creator of Noggin the Nog, The Clangers and Bagpuss, Oliver holds a special ...

Simon Russell Beale

08 Jul 2007

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is the actor Simon Russell Beale. Critics are torn over their descriptions of him: to some, he's the greatest stage ...

Wangari Maathai

01 Jul 2007

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is the environmentalist and human rights campaigner Wangari Maathai. Known these days as 'Africa's Forest Goddess' f...

Ricky Gervais

24 Jun 2007

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is Ricky Gervais. In just twelve episodes, his show The Office changed the face of British television comedy. At its...

Christy Moore

17 Jun 2007

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is the Irish musician Christy Moore. His stature and influence in folk music is unparalleled - Bono, Elvis Costello ...

Yoko Ono

10 Jun 2007

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is Yoko Ono. She was already an avant-garde artist in her own right when, in 1968, she started dating one of the mos...

Tom Blundell

03 Jun 2007

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is the leading scientist Professor Sir Tom Blundell. His specialism is in molecular biology, which involves studying...

Paul McKenna

27 May 2007

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is Paul McKenna. He is Britain's best known hypnotist and made his name on prime-time TV. Millions used to watch on ...

Greg Dyke

20 May 2007

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is Greg Dyke. A top flight TV executive known for being instinctual and populist, his appointment as BBC Director-Ge...

Joanna Lumley

13 May 2007

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is the actress Joanna Lumley. She first found fame as the high-kicking glamour-puss Purdey in the 1970s show The New...

Ben Helfgott

01 Apr 2007

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway on Desert Island Discs this week is the Holocaust survivor Ben Helfgott. His inspirational journey has taken him from the horr...

Professor Raymond Tallis

25 Mar 2007

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is the physician, philosopher, novelist and poet Professor Raymond Tallis. His specialism is the care of elderly pat...

Jo Brand

18 Mar 2007

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is the stand-up comedian Jo Brand. From the word go she always anticipated she would be heckled about her weight and...

Andy Kershaw

11 Mar 2007

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is the broadcaster and journalist Andy Kershaw. His career to date is as distinctive as his delivery - he combines a...

JP Donleavy

04 Mar 2007

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is the writer J P Donleavy. The author of a dozen novels as well as numerous plays and short stories, he remains bes...

Andrew Neil

25 Feb 2007

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is the journalist Andrew Neil. For 11 years he was editor of The Sunday Times. Under him, the paper broke the story ...

Grayson Perry

18 Feb 2007

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is the artist Grayson Perry. For more than 20 years his work was broadly unknown outside the narrow confines of the ...

Paul Abbott

11 Feb 2007

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is the screen writer Paul Abbott. He has written some of the most controversial and successful television programmes...

Neil Tennant

04 Feb 2007

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is the singer and songwriter Neil Tennant. He is best known as one half of The Pet Shop Boys which, over the past 20...

Brian Aldiss

28 Jan 2007

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is the author Brian Aldiss. He is best known for pioneering, alongside JG Ballard, a new wave of British science fic...

Ann Daniels

21 Jan 2007

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is the Polar explorer Ann Daniels. Before she was 30, she hadn't so much as walked with a rucksack and had no experi...

Edna O'Brien

14 Jan 2007

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is the writer Edna O'Brien. Described as a 'poet of heartbreak' her lyrical storytelling captures the fragility and ...

Lady Natasha Spender

07 Jan 2007

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is the musician Lady Natasha Spender. She was born at the end of the First World War and has spent her life immersed...

Anthony Horowitz

31 Dec 2006

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's first castaway of 2007 is the writer Anthony Horowitz. He's a prolific author. His first novel was published when he was 23 and, as wel...

Gloria Hunniford

24 Dec 2006

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is the broadcaster Gloria Hunniford. She's one of our most popular interviewers and presenters and for 40 years has ...

Arnold Wesker

17 Dec 2006

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is the playwright Sir Arnold Wesker. He's a prolific writer and has penned more than 40 plays as well as books of po...

Karl Jenkins

10 Dec 2006

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is Britain's most successful contemporary composer, Karl Jenkins. He is most famous for developing a style that fuse...

Raymond Gubbay

03 Dec 2006

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is the music impresario Raymond Gubbay. For 40 years he has brought popular classics and opera to the masses. His na...

Matt Lucas

26 Nov 2006

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway on Desert Island Discs this week is the comedy performer and writer Matt Lucas. As one half of the team that created the hit T...

Stephen King

19 Nov 2006

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is the author Stephen King. He's written more than 40 novels, won 23 major awards and sold hundreds of millions of b...

Lord Stevens

17 Nov 2006

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is the former head of the Metropolitan Police, Lord Stevens. Although he was to become known as 'the policeman's pol...

Humphrey Lyttelton

05 Nov 2006

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is the veteran jazz musician and radio presenter Humphrey Lyttelton. To Radio 4 listeners, he's best known as Chairm...

Heston Blumenthal

29 Oct 2006

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is the chef Heston Blumenthal. He is one of only three chefs working in Britain today to be awarded three Michelin s...

Camila Batmanghelidjh

22 Oct 2006

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is the children's campaigner Camila Batmanghelidjh. Camila Batmanghelidjh has devoted her life to the kind of childr...

Robert Fisk

15 Oct 2006

Contributed by Lukas

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is the journalist Robert Fisk. He is one of our most distinguished foreign correspondents and has spent his life cov...