Last Word
Episodes
King Bhumibol Adulyadej, Dario Fo, Jean Bloxam, Andrew Vicari, Don Buchla
14 Oct 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Matthew Bannister onThe world's longest reigning monarch - King Bhumibol Adulyadej of Thailand.The Nobel prize winning playwright and satirist Dario F...
Sir Neville Marriner, Father Gabriele Amorth, Beryl Crockford, Professor Louis Herman, Rod Temperton
07 Oct 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Matthew Bannister onSir Neville Marriner the conductor who founded the Academy of St Martin in the Fields and led them to become the world's most reco...
Shimon Peres, Nathalie Evans, Arnold Palmer, Bill Mollison, Jean Shepard
30 Sep 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Matthew Bannister onShimon Peres, the Israeli elder statesman who was twice Prime Minister of his country and won the Nobel Peace Prize for his part i...
Edward Albee, James Cronin, Caroline Thomson OBE, Sir Frederick Holliday, Charmian Carr
23 Sep 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Matthew Bannister on American playwright Edward Albee, who won three Pullitzer prizes but not for his best known work "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?...
Barry Myers, Eileen Younghusband, Robin Spark, Keith McDougall, Prince Buster
16 Sep 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Matthew Bannister onBarry Myers who directed some of the best known commercials of the 1970s and 80s, including ads for Hovis, Olympus Cameras and Cad...
The Right Rev David Jenkins, Dame Margaret Anstee, Islam Karimov, Richard Neville
09 Sep 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Matthew Bannister onThe Bishop of Durham the Right Reverend David Jenkins. A respected theologian, he was noted for his controversial views.The diplom...
Joao Havelange, Sonia Rykiel, Gene Wilder, Toots Thielemans
02 Sep 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Matthew Bannister on João Havelange, the President of the international football federation, FIFA, who stepped down amid allegations of corruption.Th...
Sir Antony Jay, Donald Henderson, Tom Cholmondeley, Patsy Wright-Warren CBE, Lord Rix
26 Aug 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Julian Worricker on....The co-writer of 'Yes Minister' and 'Yes Prime Minister' - Sir Antony Jay....Donald Henderson, American epidemiologist, who led...
Bishop Edward Daly, Ahmed Zewail, Suzanne Wright, Duke of Westminster, Ivo Pitanguy
12 Aug 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Matthew Bannister onthe Bishop of Derry Edward Daly. He was famously photographed waving a bloodstained white handkerchief as he tended to a young man...
Luc Hoffmann, Sylvia Peters, Joe Powell, William Smethurst, Sandy Pearlman
05 Aug 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Matthew Bannister onLuc Hoffmann, the Swiss conservationist who co-founded the World Wildlife Fund and fought to save endangered species and wetlands....
Gary S Paxton, Sally Beauman, Thomas Sutherland, Frank Dickens, Marni Nixon
29 Jul 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Matthew Bannister on Thomas Sutherland the Scottish-born American professor who was held hostage for more than six years in Lebanon. We hear from his ...
Sydney Schanberg, Beatrice de Cardi, Lord Evans of Temple Guiting, Alvin Toffler, Jimmy Gilbert
22 Jul 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Matthew Bannister onThe American journalist Sydney Schanberg who won the Pulitzer prize for his reporting on Cambodia. His story was turned into the f...
Abdul Sattar Edhi, Professor Suzanne Corkin, Bernardo Provenzano, Garry Marshall
22 Jul 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Matthew Bannister on Abdul Sattar Edhi. Known as Pakistan's "Angel of Mercy", he built up a foundation which brought healthcare, orphanages and women'...
Caroline Aherne, Elie Wiesel, Sir Geoffrey Hill, Lord Mayhew, Michael Cimino
08 Jul 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Matthew Bannister onThe comedian Caroline Aherne who created Mrs Merton and the Royle family and struggled with the pressures of fame.Holocaust surviv...
Amjad Sabri, Lorna Kelly, Jerome Bruner, Bob Holman, Scotty Moore
01 Jul 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Matthew Bannister onThe Pakistani qawwali singer Amjad Sabri. A huge star in his homeland, he was shot dead in his car in Karachi. The auctioneer Lorn...
Dr Sylvia Meek, Sam King MBE, Chips Moman, Ethel Bush GM, Harry Rabinowitz
24 Jun 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Matthew Bannister onThe parasitologist Sylvia Meek who led the fight to reduce deaths from malaria. Harry Rabinowitz who conducted the music for many ...
Sir Peter Shaffer, Sir Denys Wilkinson, Peggy Spencer and Muhammad Ali
17 Jun 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Julian Worricker on:The playwright Sir Peter Shaffer, most famous for 'The Royal Hunt of the Sun, 'Equus' and 'Amadeus'...The physicist, Sir Denys Wil...
Jo Cox MP, Dave Swarbrick, Viktor Korchnoi, Wendy Leigh
17 Jun 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Reeta Chakrabarti on:The MP Jo Cox , who was brutally killed in the street, after meeting local people in the West Yorkshire constituency she represen...
Carla Lane, Sir Denys Henderson, Jane Fawcett, Alan Devereux and Buster Cooper
03 Jun 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Matthew Bannister onCarla Lane who wrote hit TV comedies including The Liver Birds, Bread and Butterflies. Wendy Craig pays tribute. The ICI Chairman ...
Professor Robert McNeill Alexander, Reg Grundy, Sally Brampton, Tony Cozier, Madeleine LeBeau
20 May 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Matthew Bannister onProfessor Robert McNeill Alexander - the father of animal biomechanics, who revealed how fast dinosaurs could run.The Australian T...
Gareth Gwenlan, Sir Harry Kroto, Michael 'Dandy Kim' Caborn-Waterfield, Lilly Dubowitz, Papa Wemba
13 May 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Matthew Bannister onGareth Gwenlan the TV producer and Head of BBC Comedy behind a string of hits including Only Fools and Horses. Sir David Jason pay...
Reverend Daniel Berrigan, Lord Walton of Detchant, Jenny Diski, Guy Woolfenden
06 May 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Matthew Bannister onThe Reverend Daniel Berrigan, the American Catholic priest who devoted his life to campaigning for peace. He was arrested many tim...
Lord Peston, Ruth Prideaux, Patricio Aylwin, Professor Sir David Mackay, Gareth Thomas
29 Apr 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Matthew Bannister onThe economist Lord Peston who advised the Labour governments of the 60s and 70s. His son Robert Peston and Lord Hattersley pay tri...
Prince, Ray Fitzwalter, Victoria Wood, June Jolly, Phil Sayer
22 Apr 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Matthew Bannister onRock superstar Prince - we recall his intimate gig for a handful of people here in Broadcasting House.Ray Fitzwalter the Editor of...
Arnold Wesker, Howard Marks, Peggy Fortnum, Merle Haggard and Rachel Johnson
15 Apr 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Matthew Bannister onThe playwright Sir Arnold Wesker whose work celebrated working class life,Howard Marks, the convicted cannabis smuggler and racont...
Mother Angelica, Hans-Dietrich Genscher, DJ Derek, Doreen Massey and Joe Medicine Crow
08 Apr 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Matthew Bannister onThe American broadcasting nun Mother Angelica who founded the Eternal Word Television Network and dispensed traditional Catholic a...
Dame Zaha Hadid, Ronnie Corbett, General Meir Dagan, Joan Loraine, Gary Shandling
01 Apr 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Matthew Bannister onThe internationally acclaimed architect Dame Zaha Hadid, known to some as "the queen of the curve".Ronnie Corbett, whose partnersh...
Paul Daniels, Anita Brookner, Sylvia Anderson, Sir Peter Maxwell Davies, Cliff Michelmore
18 Mar 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Matthew Bannister onCliff Michelmore who brought a relaxed informality to presenting TV programmes like Tonight and 24 Hours, without losing intellige...
George Martin, Nancy Reagan, Ray Tomlinson, Gillian Avery
11 Mar 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Reeta Chakrabarti onSir George Martin, the legendary music producer who oversaw the Beatles' phenomenal success. Nancy Reagan, the US First Lady, who ...
Tony Warren, Louise Rennison, Lord Chorley, George Kennedy, John Chilton
04 Mar 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Reeta Chakrabarti on Tony Warren, who created the long-running TV soap Coronation Street, embedding a working-class north of England cast of characte...
Boutros Boutros-Ghali, Edmonde Charles-Roux, Norman Hudis, Antonin Scalia, Harper Lee
19 Feb 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Matthew Bannister onBoutros Boutros-Ghali, the United Nations Secretary General who had to deal with genocide in Rwanda and the war in the Balkans.Edm...
Marvin Minsky, Margaret Forster, Peter Powell, Sir Brian Tovey, Joe Alaskey
12 Feb 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Matthew Bannister onProfessor Marvin Minsky - the computer scientist who carried out pioneering work on artificial intelligence.Margaret Forster who w...
Terry Wogan, Lord Lucan, Frank Finlay, Denise St Aubyn Hubbard, Maurice White
05 Feb 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Matthew Bannister onSir Terry Wogan - we have a tale of two cities: memories from his home town of Limerick and accolades from his fantasy town of Lei...
Lord Parkinson, Bill Mitchell, Paddy Doherty, Henry Worsley, Dr Gladys-Marie Fry
02 Feb 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Matthew Bannister onThe Conservative politician Lord Parkinson. He masterminded the 1983 election victory but was forced to resign when his affair wit...
Glenn Frey, Lord Weidenfeld, Jeanne Cordova, Haskell Wexler, Gilbert Kaplan.
22 Jan 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Matthew Bannister onGlenn Frey - singer, guitarist and songwriter with The Eagles - who sold millions of albums in the 1970s.Lord Weidenfeld, the infl...
David Bowie, Alan Rickman, Olwyn Hughes and Ed Stewart
15 Jan 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Matthew Bannister on David Bowie, art expert, fashion icon and media manipulator. Alan Rickman, the actor most famous for playing villains from the Sh...
Robert Stigwood, Patricia Torrens, Pierre Boulez, Lord Ezra, Natalie Cole
08 Jan 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Matthew Bannister onRobert Stigwood, the impresario who managed Eric Clapton and The Bee Gees, produced Jesus Christ Superstar and Evita and the movie...
Eric Tomlinson, Elsie Tu, Peter Dickinson, Lillian Vernon and Lemmy
01 Jan 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Recording engineer, Eric Tomlinson, who worked on the score for Star Wars and added music to Charlie Chaplin's silent films.Elsie Tu, social campaigne...
Some of the most memorable lives of the past twelve months
29 Dec 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Matthew Bannister and Economist Obituary Editor Ann Wroe recall some of the most memorable lives of 2015, including a diver, a scientist and a singer....
Mick Murphy, Ahmed Chalabi, Mattiwilda Dobbs, Brajraj Mahapatra and Holly Woodlawn
18 Dec 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Matthew Bannister on The Irish cyclist, strong man and farm labourer Mick Murphy who won a famous victory in the 1958 round Ireland race. The Iraqi po...
Marcus Klingberg, William McIlvanney, Setsuko Hara, Joel Elkes and John Peel
11 Dec 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Matthew Bannister on The Israeli chemical weapons expert Marcus Klingberg, who was revealed to have been spying for the Soviet Union. The Scottish wri...
General Sir Robert Ford, Hazel Adair, Jane Wardle, Gerry Byrne and P.F Sloan
04 Dec 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Matthew Bannister on General Sir Robert Ford who was Commander Land Forces Northern Ireland at the time of the Bloody Sunday shootings. Hazel Adair, t...
Peter Dimmock, Alix d'Unienville, Yolanda Sonnabend, Maggie Eales and George Barris
27 Nov 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Matthew Bannister on TV pioneer Peter Dimmock. An accomplished presenter and also a BBC executive, he directed the coverage of the Queen's coronation ...
Roy Dommett, Warren Mitchell, Allen Toussaint, Cynthia Payne and Jonah Lomu
20 Nov 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Matthew Bannister on Roy Dommett, one of the UK's leading rocket scientists who was also a well known morris dancer. Warren Mitchell, the actor best k...
Helmut Schmidt, Pat Eddery, Julia Jones, Lord Noon and Nat Peck
13 Nov 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Matthew Bannister onHelmut Schmidt, the German Chancellor who helped to design the European Monetary System and agreed that US nuclear weapons could b...
Norman Moore, Diane Charlemagne, Professor David Cesarani, Colin Welland and Peter Donaldson
06 Nov 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Matthew Bannister on Norman Moore, the conservationist who discovered that organochorine pesticides were decimating the UK's bird of prey population. ...
Professor Lisa Jardine, Philip French, Ronnie Massarella, Maureen O'Hara
30 Oct 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Matthew Bannister on Professor Lisa Jardine, the historian whose intellectual curiosity stretched across the arts and sciences. She was chair of the H...
General John Galvin, Joan Leslie, Michael Meacher, Howard Kendall, Jerry Parr and Coleridge Goode
23 Oct 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Matthew Bannister onGeneral Jack Galvin who was NATO's Supreme Allied Commander in Europe as the Cold War ended. Generals Colin Powell and David Petra...
Geoffrey Howe, Sue Lloyd-Roberts, Joe Henson, Hugh Scully and Alexander Faris
20 Oct 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Julian Worricker on: The former Chancellor and Foreign Secretary, Geoffrey Howe, whose resignation speech in the Commons was generally regarded as the...
Lord Denis Healey, Carmen Balcells, Henning Mankell, Revd Kenneth Leech and Captain Bob Arnott
09 Oct 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Lucy Ash on the former Labour politician Denis Healey who was Chancellor of the Exchequer during the Winter of Discontent in 70s; Catalan literary age...
Brian Friel, General Mario Menendez, Tessa Ransford, John Guillermin, Ben Cauley
02 Oct 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Matthew Bannister onThe award winning Irish playwright Brian Friel, best known for Dancing At Lughnasa and Translations.Argentine General Mario Menén...
Brian Sewell, Jackie Collins, Ted Smith CBE, PJ Kavanagh, Yogi Berra
25 Sep 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Matthew Bannister onBrian Sewell, the art critic with the distinctive voice, outspoken opinions and love of dogs.Jackie Collins who sold millions of c...
Sir David Willcocks, Merv Adelson, Mariem Hassan, Brian Close, Beryl Renwick
18 Sep 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Matthew Bannister onSir David Willcocks - one of the most influential choir masters of his generation. Known for his descants to Christmas carols, he ...
Sir Adrian Cadbury, Rico Rodriguez, Ieng Thirith, Margaret Harrison, Judy Carne
11 Sep 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Matthew Bannister onSir Adrian Cadbury - who was chairman of the family confectionery firm, led its merger with Schweppes and wrote an influential rep...
Lord Montagu of Beaulieu, Joy Beverley, Oliver Sacks, Annette Worsley-Taylor
04 Sep 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Matthew Bannister onLord Montagu of Beaulieu who founded the National Motor Museum, opened his estate to the public and served a prison sentence for h...
Bernie Passingham, Christopher Marshall, Wayne Carson, Michael Turk, Marie Dobbs, Yvonne Craig
28 Aug 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Matthew Bannister onThe trade union official Bernie Passingham who helped women workers at the Ford Motor Company in their fight for equal pay.Medical...
Khaled al-Asaad, Jazz Summers, Jack Gold, Manual Contreras, Dawn Wofford
24 Aug 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Presenter Lucy Ash remembers:Khaled Al-Asaad, the Syrian archaeologist beheaded by Islamic State who was famous for his in depth knowledge and love of...
David Nobbs, Frances Kelsey, Kyril Zinovieff, Elio Fiorucci, Harry Pitch
14 Aug 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Last Word is presented by Reeta Chakrabarti this week. She will be remembering:The comic writer and novelist David Nobbs - we speak to his friend and ...
Cilla Black, Michael Kidson, APJ Abdul Kalam, Evelyn Gillan, George Cole
07 Aug 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Matthew Bannister onThe singer and TV presenter Cilla Black - we go behind the scenes to discover the secret of her success on Saturday night TV.Micha...
Nova Pilbeam, Reverend Owen Chadwick, Jon Vickers, Yoichiro Nambu, Nick Ryman
31 Jul 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Matthew Bannister onThe Reverend Owen Chadwick, the distinguished ecclesiastical historian who was vice Chancellor of Cambridge University during stud...
Rev Joyce Bennett, Prince Saud al-Faisal, Burt Shavitz, Michael Oliver, Ian Allan
17 Jul 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Matthew Bannister onJoyce Bennett who was the first English woman to be ordained as an Anglican priest. It happened in Hong Kong in 1971.Prince Saud a...
Omar Sharif, Stanley 'Steve' Moore, Jules Wright, Yevgeny Primakov, Ernest Tomlinson
10 Jul 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Matthew Bannister onActor Omar Sharif Flying squad detective Stanley Moore - always known as Steve, he helped to catch some of the Great Train Robbers...
Sir Nicholas Winton, Val Doonican, Nek Chand, James Salter, Lady Rozelle Raynes
03 Jul 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Matthew Bannister onSir Nicholas Winton who saved 669 children from the advancing Nazis in Czechoslovakia. Also the Irish singer Val Doonican - known ...
Sir Chris Woodhead, Patrick Macnee, Dame Anne Warburton, Vic Mayhew, James Horner
26 Jun 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Matthew Bannister on:The controversial Chief Inspector of Schools Sir Chris Woodhead who said he was paid to challenge "mediocrity, failure and compla...
Morris Beckman, Ornette Coleman, Tanith Lee, Süleyman Demirel and Doris Hart
19 Jun 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Matthew Bannister onMorris Beckman - the East End Jewish activist who co-founded the 43 Group to fight against post-war British fascists.Ornette Colem...
Christopher Lee, Marguerite Patten, James Last, Major Roy Homard, Ron Moody
12 Jun 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Andrea Catherwood on film star Christopher Lee, internationally famous for his villainous, on screen roles. Cookery writer and broadcasting pioneer Ma...
Tariq Aziz, Charles Kennedy, Julie Harris, Alan Bond, Peter Cropper
05 Jun 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Andrea Catherwood on Iraqi politician Tariq Aziz, former Leader of the Liberal Democrats Charles Kennedy; Oscar winning costume designer Julie Harris;...