Lauren Laverne - Apple Podcasts

Desert Island Discs

Desert Island Discs

BBC Radio 4
Parenting Hell with Rob Beckett and Josh Widdicombe

Parenting Hell with Rob Beckett and Josh Widdicombe

Keep It Light Media / Spotify Studios
Angela Scanlon's Thanks A Million

Angela Scanlon's Thanks A Million

Angela Scanlon

hace 3 días

Emma Grede, businesswoman

Emma Grede is the businesswoman behind major fashion brands including Skims and Good American, which she co-founded with Kim Kardashian and Khloé Kardashian, respectively. Last year Forbes included her on their list of America's Richest Self-Made Women, with an estimated net worth of $405 million. She grew up in Plaistow, East London, the eldest of four daughters. Her parents separated when she was five and she was raised by her mum, who worked long hours as a trader at an investment bank. Emma took on a lot of the responsibility at home caring for her sisters. Dyslexia meant she struggled at school, but she found satisfaction in a string of part-time jobs, from delivering newspapers to making sandwiches in a deli. She later dropped out of the London College of Fashion to pursue a career in the industry, and by her mid-twenties she had founded her first company. She made her name brokering deals between celebrities and brands that included signing Natalie Portman as the face of Dior. In 2016 she founded an inclusive denim brand called Good American with Khloé Kardashian, and in 2019 she launched the shapewear brand Skims with Kim Kardashian. Lately her success has led her out of the boardroom and into the spotlight with guest appearances on Dragon’s Den, and the US equivalent Shark Tank, as well as launching a podcast and writing a memoir. Emma lives in Los Angeles with her husband and business partner Jens, and they have four children. Presenter: Lauren Laverne Producer: Hannah Hufford and Christine Pawlowsky Desert Island Discs has cast away many fashion leaders to the island over the years including Stella McCartney, Vivienne Westwood and Paul Smith. You can hear their programmes if you search through BBC Sounds or our own Desert Island Discs website.
23 ago

Sir Roger Deakins, cinematographer

Sir Roger Deakins is an acclaimed cinematographer who is known for his visual artistry on films including The Shawshank Redemption, 1917, Fargo, Skyfall and Blade Runner 2049. His talents have been acknowledged with a knighthood, five BAFTAs and two Oscars. Roger was born in Torquay, Devon in 1949. In 1968 he attended the Bath Academy of Art where he was inspired by one of his tutors, the street photographer Roger Mayne, to go out with his camera and capture what he saw. Roger Deakins followed this advice and spent his weekends shooting people and places in British seaside towns. In 1975 Roger graduated from the National Film School in Beaconsfield and started work as a cameraman – making documentaries and music videos. His first feature film was Cruel Passion which came out in 1977. In 1984 he worked on Michael Radford’s film adaptation of George Orwell’s novel 1984, starring Richard Burton and John Hurt. The first of Roger’s collaborations with filmmakers Joel and Ethan Coen started in 1991 with the film Barton Fink. The three of them went on to make 12 films together including O Brother, Where Art Thou? Fargo and The Big Lebowski. In 2018 Roger won his first Academy Award for Blade Runner 2049, directed by Denis Villeneuve. He was knighted for services to film in 2021. Roger lives in California with his wife James. They also have a home in Devon. DISC ONE: One of Us Cannot Be Wrong - Leonard Cohen DISC TWO: Aqaba - June Tabor DISC THREE: 21st Century Schizoid Man - King Crimson DISC FOUR: Soldier’s Song - Lucinda Williams DISC FIVE: Bat Out of Hell - Meat Loaf DISC SIX: The Island - Paul Brady DISC SEVEN: Sun Comes Up, It's Tuesday Morning - Cowboy Junkies DISC EIGHT: Isn’t it a Pity - Nina Simone BOOK CHOICE: Moby Dick by Herman Melville LUXURY ITEM: Fishing tackle CASTAWAY'S FAVOURITE: Aqaba - June Tabor Presenter: Lauren Laverne Producer: Paula McGinley
16 ago

Shania Twain, musician

Shania Twain is a singer and songwriter and one of only two artists in history to have three consecutive diamond albums. By the time she was eight years old, she had a repertoire of one hundred songs which she would sing in bars. She began to write her own songs at the age of ten. Her mother was convinced that she was going to be a star and took her to perform in smoky clubs. Off stage, all was not well in the family home and Shania grew up in a turbulent household where there was much fighting. When she was thirteen years old, she persuaded her mother to drive Shania and her sisters to Toronto to a women’s shelter. Her parents eventually reunited and then were both killed in a car accident when Shania was twenty-two years old. She then became the guardian of her younger siblings and put her music dreams on hold to look after them. Eventually she got a job in a golf resort singing and came to the attention of a Nashville music executive and was offered a recording contract when she was thirty. She was enjoying a record-breaking global musical career when disaster struck. She was bitten by a tick and contracted Lyme disease which prevented her from singing for the best part of a decade. She announced her return in 2011 and returned to the stage in 2012. Shania lives in Switzerland with her second husband. DISC ONE: We’ve Only Just Begun - Carpenters DISC TWO: Goodbye Yellow Brick Road - Elton John DISC THREE: Dust in the Wind - Kansas DISC FOUR: El Paso - Marty Robbins DISC FIVE: Gabriel’s Oboe - Ennio Morricone DISC SIX: Gentle on my Mind - Glen Campbell DISC SEVEN: Sir Duke - Stevie Wonder DISC EIGHT: Ode to Billie Joe - Bobbie Gentry BOOK CHOICE: Life is Fair by Brian Hines LUXURY ITEM: Insect Repellent CASTAWAY'S FAVOURITE: Dust in the Wind - Kansas Presenter Lauren Laverne Producer Sarah Taylor Desert Island Discs has cast other musicians away over the years including Adele, Cher, Kylie Minogue and Cyndi Lauper. You can hear their programmes if you search through BBC Sounds or our own Desert Island Discs website.
25 jul

Norman Cook, DJ and musician

Norman Cook is a musician and DJ also widely known as Fatboy Slim. As a DJ, he has played everywhere from Bondi Beach and the Great Wall of China to the House of Commons and a fish and chip shop. His many accolades include a world record for the most number one singles by one musician in different acts. He has had a number of musical aliases including Pizzaman, Cheeky Boy and Beats International. He was also a member of the Housemartins. He was christened Quentin by his parents and changed his name to Norman when he embarked on his musical career. His passion for music and collecting records led him down the path of becoming a DJ and his outdoor gigs, particularly in Brighton, saw him play to crowds of over a quarter of a million people. He has been married twice, his second wife was the DJ and radio presenter, Zoe Ball. Norman lives in Brighton DISC ONE: The Adventures of Grandmaster Flash on the Wheels of Steel - Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five DISC TWO: Golden Slumbers / Carry That Weight - The Beatles DISC THREE: Rainbow Connection - The Muppets DISC FOUR: (White Man) in Hammersmith Palais - The Clash DISC FIVE: I Feel Love - Donna Summer DISC SIX: Satisfied ‘N’ Tickled Too - Taj Mahal DISC SEVEN: I Must Be In a Good Place Now - Bobby Charles DISC EIGHT: Born Slippy (Nuxx) - Underworld BOOK CHOICE: The Ragged Trousered Philanthropists by Robert Tressell LUXURY ITEM: A label maker CASTAWAY'S FAVOURITE: I Feel Love - Donna Summer Presenter Lauren Laverne Producer Sarah Taylor Desert Island Discs has cast other musicians away over the years including Norman’s former neighbour Sir Paul McCartney and David Bryne. His former wife, Zoe Ball is in the Desert Island archive along with his former classmate, Prime Minister, Sir Keir Starmer. You can hear their programmes if you search through BBC Sounds or our own Desert Island Discs website.
8 ago

Paul Farmer, charity leader

Paul Farmer is a charity leader who has spent his life campaigning, fundraising and changing the national conversation around some of the most challenging issues in our society. Currently at the helm of Age UK, he previously spent 16 years as the CEO of Mind, the UK’s largest mental health charity. Paul was born in Oxford, the son of a former Benedictine monk and a former nun. He read history at St Peter’s College, Oxford, where he met his future wife, Claire. After graduating, he found a role working for a heritage centre and fell in love with the charity sector, moving to the Samaritans. His experiences taking calls from those struggling with their mental health awakened a passion for working in the mental health sector. In 2006 he moved Mind, where he became CEO. He led a fifteen-year campaign that helped to change legislation, and the national conversation around mental health. For the past few years, he has campaigned for older people as Chief Executive at Age UK, and encouraged the public to prepare and plan for a happier, healthier later life. Paul lost his wife, Claire, to cancer in 2019. He lives in West London. DISC ONE: Think - Aretha Franklin DISC TWO: Part of the Agnus Dei from the Mass for Five Voices, performed by The Sixteen with Harry Christophers conducting - William Byrd DISC THREE: Don’t Leave Me This Way - The Communards DISC FOUR: Rotterdam (Or Anywhere) - The Beautiful South DISC FIVE: Feeling Good - Nina Simone DISC SIX: Into My Arms - Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds DISC SEVEN: Drunk Surfer - Westside Cowboy DISC EIGHT: Sunshine on Leith - The Proclaimers BOOK: A collection of Simon Armitage’s poetry LUXURY: A bowling machine with a combination of cricket and tennis balls CASTAWAY’S FAVOURITE: Sunshine on Leith - The Proclaimers Presenter: Lauren Laverne Producer: Sarah Taylor and Hannah Hufford Desert Island Discs has cast away many campaigners to the island over the years including Marjorie Wallace, Julia Cleverdon, and Sue Ryder, Baroness Ryder of Warsaw. You can hear their programmes if you search through BBC Sounds or our own Desert Island Discs website.
12 jul

Anna Maxwell Martin, actor

Anna Maxwell Martin is an award-winning actor whose versatility is evident from the breadth of parts she has played in popular television programmes including Motherland, Ludwig and Line of Duty. Anna was born and brought up in Yorkshire and loved acting and performing from a young age putting on shows with her friends in the cul-de-sac where they all lived. She read history at Liverpool University and then won a place at LAMDA. She made her professional debut in the Little Foxes at the Donmar Warehouse directed by Marianne Elliott. Her breakthrough came in 2003 playing Lyra Belacqua in the National Theatre’s landmark production of His Dark Materials. In recent years she has become an advocate for vulnerable children and their families – especially those navigating the SEND – special educational needs and/or disabilities – system in schools. She was motivated to take on this role after struggling to get help for her daughters who were struggling with profound grief following the death of their father. Anna lives in London with her daughters. DISC ONE: I Love To Boogie – T. Rex DISC TWO: The Greatest Love of All - Whitney Houston DISC THREE: Together In Electric Dreams - Philip Oakey & Giorgio Moroder DISC FOUR: Gianni Schicchi: "O mio babbino caro" (Lauretta) Composed by Giacomo Puccini and performed by Maria Callas (soprano) and Philharmonia Orchestra, conducted by Tullio Serafin DISC FIVE: When A Knight Won His Spurs – The Choir of Salisbury Cathedral, directed by David Halls DISC SIX: Dry Your Eyes - The Streets DISC SEVEN: Ain't No Mountain High Enough - Marvin Gaye, Tammi Terrell DISC EIGHT: Tell Him - Lauryn Hill BOOK CHOICE: Jackson Brodie Series by Kate Atkinson LUXURY ITEM: Anna’s lucky conker CASTAWAY'S FAVOURITE: The Greatest Love of All - Whitney Houston Presenter: Lauren Laverne Producer: Paula McGinley Desert Island Discs has cast away many actors to the island over the years including Julie Walters, Jessie Buckley and Adeel Aktar. You can hear their programmes if you search through BBC Sounds or our own Desert Island Discs website.
18 jul

Jo Nesbø, writer

Jo Nesbø is a writer, known as the king of 'Nordic Noir'. His internationally bestselling crime thrillers following the exploits of detective Harry Hole have been translated into fifty languages, sold over sixty million copies and have been adapted for film and TV. Being a bestselling author was not his first job. As a teenager, he played football professionally before an injury put paid to his sporting career. He played guitar and wrote songs for a band which then became very successful in Norway and he combined his gigging nightlife with a day job on Norway’s stock market. His relentless schedule led to him taking time off from both the band and the stock market and whilst he was travelling on a plane to Australia, he wrote his first draft of his debut Harry Hole novel. He has since gone on to write thirteen Harry Hole novels along with children’s stories and other standalone books. Jo lives in Oslo. DISC ONE: Perfect Skin - Lloyd Cole and the Commotions DISC TWO: Ticket To Ride - The Beatles DISC THREE: Make Me Smile (Come Up And See Me) - Steve Harley & Cockney Rebel DISC FOUR: I Can’t Be Satisfied – Muddy Waters DISC FIVE: Bus to Baton Rouge - Lucinda Williams DISC SIX: Hand of God - Nick Cave, Warren Ellis DISC SEVEN: Swamp - Talking Heads DISC EIGHT: Independence Day - Bruce Springsteen BOOK CHOICE: Ham on Rye by Charles Bukowski LUXURY ITEM: A shoehorn CASTAWAY'S FAVOURITE: Independence Day - Bruce Springsteen Presenter: Lauren Laverne Producer: Sarah Taylor Desert Island Discs has cast other writers away over the years including Lee Child, Steven King and Martina Cole. You can hear their programmes if you search through BBC Sounds or our own Desert Island Discs website.
2 ago

Professor Liz Morris, glaciologist

Professor Liz Morris is a glaciologist whose work in some of the earth’s most inhospitable environments has broadened humanity’s understanding of climate change and polar science. Her accolades include the prestigious Polar Medal and an OBE for services to Polar Science. Liz was born in London in 1946 and family legend has it that she fell in love with snow and ice the following year during what was known as the Big Freeze - one of the most severe and punishing winters in British history. She studied physics at Bristol University and applied for a role at the British Antarctic Survey in the early Seventies. At that time the institute did not have any female scientists working in the field and her application was rejected. Liz bided her time and eventually did get to work at the BAS, becoming head of the Ice and Climate Division in 1986. The following year she became the first British woman to undertake tent-based research in Antarctica, arriving just as the ozone hole discovery was breaking. Liz completed her last field trip in 2014. In 2020 the Antarctic Place-Names Committee named a glacier in her honour. Liz divides her time between the Cotswolds and Scotland. Presenter: Lauren Laverne Producer: Paula McGinley
20 jun

Emily Watson, actor

Emily Watson is an award-winning actor, widely regarded as one of the finest character actors of her generation. She began her career on stage with the Royal Shakespeare Company before rising to prominence in 1996, when she was cast as Bess McNeill in Lars von Trier’s Breaking the Waves. The role earned her an Academy Award nomination. She received a second Oscar nomination for Hilary and Jackie, for which she learned to play the cello to portray Jacqueline du Pré. Watson has built a reputation for a level of commitment that is as intense as it is acclaimed. She describes her craft not merely as a profession but as a profound internal necessity, stating: "I love the sense of creating and inhabiting something. That feeling of making it feel magically real. That's the addiction". She grew up in London and was a passionate reader before leaving home to study English at Bristol University. Her parents were members of the School of Economic Science which proscribed that followers eschew TV and popular culture. Emily joined in with the university drama productions and followed her passion, with her parents’ blessing, to pursue a career in acting. Emily Watson lives in London with her husband, and they have two children. Presenter Lauren Laverne Producer Sarah Taylor Desert Island Discs has cast other actors away over the years including Emily’s fellow actor from Hamnet, Jessie Buckley. The writer, Maggie O’Farrell is in there too along with Emily’s friend from university, the writer David Nicholls. You can hear their programmes if you search through BBC Sounds or our own Desert Island Discs website.
6 jun

David Morrissey, actor

David Morrissey is an actor who grew up in Liverpool. His screen work ranges from playing a ruthless survivor of the zombie apocalypse in The Walking Dead to a troubled police officer in James Graham’s Sherwood. His television debut performance came playing a teenager in the Channel 4 series One Summer. Since then his career has seen him win awards including the Royal Television Society award for Best Male Actor for his role as Gordon Brown in The Deal. Morrissey’s interest in acting started in primary school, when he was cast as the Scarecrow in a production of The Wizard of Oz. As a teenager, he developed his passion further at the Everyman Youth Theatre in Liverpool, where he took guidance from professional actors. After his first TV role, he went on to train at RADA. He is best known for portraying complex and troubled characters, and in more recent years has also demonstrated a flair for comedy in series such as Daddy Issues. David lives in London. Presenter Lauren Laverne Producer Sarah Taylor Desert Island Discs has cast other actors away over the years including David’s fellow actors in Sherwood, Monica Dolan and Lesley Manville. The writer, James Graham is in there too. You can hear their programmes if you search through BBC Sounds or our own Desert Island Discs website.
14 jun

Gary O'Donoghue, journalist

Journalist Gary O’Donoghue is the Chief North America Correspondent for BBC News. Last year his coverage of the 2024 assassination attempt on Donald Trump won the Royal Television Society Breaking News Award. He made the news himself in 2025 when he secured a 20-minute exclusive phone interview with Trump who was by then the US President. Gary was born in London and brought up in Essex. When he was eight he lost his sight and attended specialist schools for blind and partially sighted children. He read philosophy and modern languages at the University of Oxford before embarking on his BBC career. He has reported on mass shootings, filed stories from the Macedonian border during the Kosovo conflict, covered the Iraq War and chronicled seven British general elections. He became the BBC’s Washington correspondent in 2014 and, as well as Donald Trump’s two terms, has covered the administrations of Presidents Obama and Biden. Gary is based in Washington DC and when in the UK lives in West Yorkshire with his partner Sarah. Presenter: Lauren Laverne Producer: Paula McGinley Desert Island Discs has cast other journalists away to the island over the years including Lyse Doucet, Clive Myrie and Lindsey Hilsum, You can hear their programmes if you search through BBC Sounds or our own Desert Island Discs website. This episode was recorded before the shooting at the White House Correspondent's Dinner on 25th April 2026.
28 jun

Guy Martin, presenter and former motorcycle racer

Guy Martin is a television presenter, mechanic and former motorcycle racer. During his career he achieved 17 podium finishes at the Isle of Man TT (Tourist Trophy) Races – one of the most prestigious and dangerous motorcycling events in the world. His television programmes often focus on his daredevil nature and combine two of his greatest loves - engineering and history. Guy was brought up in the village of Kirmington in North Lincolnshire. When he was five his father, who raced bikes himself, bought him his first motorcycle which he promptly crashed into the rose garden. His father is a mechanic and Guy used to sit and watch him at work in the shed from a young age and at 12 he began working for him at weekends and during school holidays. Guy’s first race meeting was at Cadwell Park in Lincolnshire when he was 19. Less than a minute into the race he crashed. He was not badly injured but the bike was destroyed in the process. In 2004 he made his debut at the biggest road race of them all – the Isle of Man TT, finishing seventh in the Senior race and winning the Newcomers Trophy. Guy retired from racing in 2015 after a very bad crash at the Ulster Grand Prix. After that he turned to his bicycle and has taken part in several endurance cycling events, including the Tour Divide, to test his resolve and stamina and fill the adrenaline gap. Guy lives in Lincolnshire with his wife Sharon, their daughter Dottie and three dogs. DISC ONE: Bam Ba Lam (Here Comes Daddy) - Alabama 3 DISC TWO: Testify - Rage Against the Machine DISC THREE: Blinded by the Light - The Streets DISC FOUR: Getaway - The Music DISC FIVE: Me and my Monkey - Robbie Williams DISC SIX: Hurt – Johnny Cash DISC SEVEN: The Day is My Enemy - The Prodigy DISC EIGHT: With or Without You - U2 BOOK CHOICE: Stealing Speed by Mat Oxley LUXURY ITEM: The back catalogue of Race Engine Technology magazine CASTAWAY'S FAVOURITE: With or Without You - U2 Presenter: Lauren Laverne Producer: Paula McGinley
5 jul

Peter Layton, artist

Peter Layton is a pioneering British glass artist and the founder of London Glassblowing, one of the most influential glass studios and galleries in the United Kingdom. He played a central role in the development of the studio glass movement, helping to establish glass as an artistic medium. Born in Prague to Jewish parents, he and his family escaped in 1939 and settled in Bradford, where Peter counted the artist David Hockney among his friends. A trip to the United States in the 1960s to teach ceramics led him to his first encounter with glassblowing, and when he returned to the UK he set up a studio called London Glassblowing. Its ethos of collaboration and openness remains the same 50 years after its founding, and members of the public are welcome to see Peter and his colleagues create spectacular pieces of art out of glass. Peter’s work is influenced by many things: early pieces tackled political issues, and he finds clouds, pebbles and other natural forms particularly inspiring. Peter lives in London with his wife Ann. He has three children and seven grandchildren. DISC ONE: When I’m Cleaning Windows - George Formby DISC TWO: Kol Nidrei, Op. 4, composed by Max Bruch, performed by Jacqueline du Pré (cello) and Israel Philharmonic Orchestra, conducted by Daniel Barenboim DISC THREE: Take Five - Dave Brubeck DISC FOUR: Blowin’ in the Wind - Bob Dylan DISC FIVE: White Rabbit - Jefferson Airplane DISC SIX: Lute Concerto in D Major, RV 93: II. Largo, composed by Antonio Vivaldi, performed by Paul O'Dette (lute) The Parley of Instruments conducted by Peter Holman DISC SEVEN: Suzanne - Nina Simone DISC EIGHT: Elegy for the Arctic - Ludovico Einaudi BOOK CHOICE: The Choice by Edith Eger LUXURY ITEM: A solar-powered digital picture frame CASTAWAY'S FAVOURITE: Suzanne - Nina Simone Presenter: Lauren Laverne Producer: Tim Bano Desert Island Discs has cast away many artists to the island over the years, including Peter’s friend David Hockney, as well as the sculptor Anthony Gormley and Cornelia Parker. You can hear their programmes if you search through BBC Sounds or our own Desert Island Discs website.
18 ene

Kate Winslet, actor

Kate Winslet is an actor who achieved global fame playing Rose DeWitt Bukater, opposite Leonard DiCaprio as Jack Dawson, in the 1997 James Cameron epic Titanic. During her career she has won five BAFTAs, two Emmys, five Golden Globes and an Academy Award for her role in the Reader. Kate was born in Reading in 1975 and attended Redroofs School for the Performing Arts in Maidenhead, Berkshire. Her film debut came in 1994 when she played a teenage killer in Peter Jackson’s film Heavenly Creatures. The following year she played Marianne Dashwood opposite Emma Thompson’s Elinor in Sense and Sensibility, directed by Ang Lee. Kate’s performance earned her a BAFTA for Best Actress in a Supporting Role. She went on to consolidate her reputation as one of the most versatile actors of her generation by starring in a list of popular and critically acclaimed films including Hideous Kinky, Iris, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind and The Holiday. Last year Kate directed her first film, Goodbye June, starring Helen Mirren, Timothy Spall and Andrea Riseborough. Kate has three children and lives in West Sussex with her husband Ned and her family. DISC ONE: Georgia on my Mind - Roger Winslet and Sophie Breakenridge DISC TWO: Matchstalk Men and Matchstalk Cats and Dogs - Brian and Michael DISC THREE: Kiss from a Rose - Seal DISC FOUR: Summertime - Ella Fitzgerald DISC FIVE: Nuvole Bianche - Ludovico Einaudi DISC SIX: Weird Fishes/ Arpeggi - Radiohead DISC SEVEN: Blue Ridge Mountains - Fleet Foxes DISC EIGHT: Pump up the Jam - Technotronic BOOK CHOICE: Outside: Recipes for a Wilder Way of Eating by Gill Meller LUXURY ITEM: Freshly ground coffee CASTAWAY'S FAVOURITE: Georgia on my Mind – Roger Winslet and Sophie Breakenridge Presenter: Lauren Laverne Producer: Paula McGinley Desert Island Discs has cast many actors away over the years including Dame Emma Thompson, Cate Blanchett and Dame Helen Mirren. You can hear their programmes if you search through BBC Sounds or our own Desert Island Discs website.
5 abr

Jessie Buckley, actor

Jessie Buckley is an actor and singer. She recently won a BAFTA and a Golden Globe Award for her critically acclaimed role playing Shakespeare’s wife Agnes in Chloé Zhao’s film Hamnet. Her performance has also garnered her an Academy Award nomination. Jessie won an Olivier Award for her portrayal of Sally Bowles in a 2021 West End revival of Cabaret. Her breakout film role came in 2018 when she played an aspiring country music singer in the musical Wild Rose. Jessie was born in Killarney in County Kerry to creative parents. Her mother trained as a singer and harpist and her father, who ran a guest house when she was growing up, writes poetry. As a child Jessie and her siblings put on Irish dancing performances for people who stayed in the guest house. In 2008 she appeared in the BBC talent show I’d Do Anything – the televised search to find a Nancy for a West End production of Oliver! Jessie came second in the competition and afterwards Sir Cameron Mackintosh, one of the judges, sent her on a Shakespeare workshop at RADA which she says changed her life. She made her professional stage debut as Anne Egerman in the 2008/2009 revival of Stephen Sondheim's A Little Night Music at London's Menier Chocolate Factory. In 2010 she stepped away from professional work and enrolled at RADA where she studied for three years. After graduating she performed on stage, screen and television. She received her first Oscar nomination playing opposite Olivia Colman in the 2021 film the Lost Daughter. Jessie lives in Norfolk with her husband and their baby daughter. DISC ONE: Samhradh Samhradh - The Gloaming DISC TWO: O Holy Night. Composed by Adolph Adam and performed by Marina Cassidy DISC THREE: Who Knows Where the Time Goes (Live at Philharmonic Hall, New York, NY - October 1969) - Nina Simone DISC FOUR: Troy - Sinéad O'Connor DISC FIVE: Send In the Clowns – Judi Dench DISC SIX: Shobis Galoba (Christmas Song) - Basiani Ensemble DISC SEVEN: The Red Shoes - Kate Bush DISC EIGHT: Old Note - Lisa O'Neill BOOK CHOICE: The Complete Poems of Tim Buckley LUXURY ITEM: Jessie’s own bathtub and bath salts CASTAWAY'S FAVOURITE: Samhradh Samhradh - The Gloaming Presenter: Lauren Laverne Producer: Paula McGinley
19 abr

Sara Pascoe, comedian and writer

Sara Pascoe is a comedian and writer who has appeared on programmes including QI, Taskmaster and the Great British Sewing Bee. She is also a screenwriter and the author of three books including her debut novel Weirdo which won the inaugural Jilly Cooper Prize for fiction last year. Sara was born in Dagenham and grew up in Romford. She joined a drama club when she was 14 and set her heart on an acting career but failed to get a place at drama school. She read English Literature at the University of Sussex and after graduating took on various jobs to make ends meet including a stint as a London tour bus guide. In 2007 she performed her first comedy gig to an audience of 12 people in a south London pub. Even though no-one laughed at her jokes, she was well and truly bitten by the stand-up bug and the following year was joint runner-up at the Funny Women Awards. In 2010 she performed her first show at the Edinburgh Festival and appeared on the BBC’s Live at the Apollo two years later. She is currently touring her latest stand-up tour, I Am A Strange Gloop. Sara lives in London with her husband Steen Raskopoulos and their two children. DISC ONE: Rhythm Of Life - Sammy Davis Jr. And Ensemble (from Sweet Charity) DISC TWO: Never Forget - Take That DISC THREE: Telemachus - Pascoe & Martin DISC FOUR: Scar Tissue - Red Hot Chilli Peppers DISC FIVE: Gett Off - Prince & The New Power Generation DISC SIX: Rock Star - N.E.R.D DISC SEVEN: Best Friend - 50 Cent DISC EIGHT: Wizardry - Self Esteem BOOK CHOICE: 1984 by George Orwell LUXURY ITEM: A typewriter CASTAWAY'S FAVOURITE: Telemachus - Pascoe & Martin Presenter: Lauren Laverne Producer: Paula McGinley
06/04/2025

Cyndi Lauper, singer-songwriter

Cyndi Lauper is a multi-award winning singer and songwriter. She has sold more than fifty million records, won an Emmy for acting and her musical Kinky Boots earned her a Tony and an Oliver award. Born in 1953, Cyndi grew up in a blue collar neighbourhood in New York. Her mother loved music and art and took her children to free exhibitions in New York which inspired Cyndi. As a very young girl, Cyndi listened to her mother’s extensive record collection and mimicked the voices she heard from musicals and operas. After a difficult family home life due to her mother’s turbulent marriages, Cyndi found solace in music and began writing songs when she was ten. She left home at seventeen determined to make it in the music industry. She started out as a singer in bands, whilst supporting herself doing a series of jobs. Early in her career, she lost her voice for almost a year after trying to make herself heard over amps which were too loud. Success eventually came when she released her debut solo album She’s So Unusual in 1983 – the first album by a female artist to spawn four consecutive US Top 5 singles. Cyndi lives in New York with her husband, David who is an actor. They met on a set of a film and rock legend Little Richard officiated their wedding. DISC ONE: Prelude to the Afternoon of a Faun. Composed by Claude Debussy and performed by The Orchestre National de Lyon DISC TWO: All That Meat and No Potatoes - Louis Armstrong And His All-Stars DISC THREE: Puccini, “Un bel di, vedremo” (“One fine day, we shall see”) from Act II of Madame Butterfly. Performed by Maria Callas with Orchestra del Teatro alla Scala di Milano, conducted by Herbert von Karajan DISC FOUR: Getting to Know You - Marni Nixon DISC FIVE: I Want Hold Your Hand - The Beatles DISC SIX: A Sailboat in the Moonlight - Billie Holiday And Her Orchestra DISC SEVEN: One Way or Another - Blondie DISC EIGHT: Hound Dog - Big Mama Thornton BOOK CHOICE: Me Talk Pretty One Day by David Sedaris LUXURY ITEM: A luxury hotel CASTAWAY'S FAVOURITE: Puccini, “Un bel di, vedremo” (“One fine day, we shall see”) from Act II of Madame Butterfly. Performed by Maria Callas with Orchestra del Teatro alla Scala di Milano, conducted by Herbert von Karajan Presenter: Lauren Laverne Producer: Sarah Taylor
25 abr

Si King, cook

Si King is a broadcaster and cook, best known as one half of the duo The Hairy Bikers. Together with his onscreen cooking partner and real-life best friend Dave Myers, the pair travelled over 650,000 miles around the world on motor bikes filming their cooking exploits and they also wrote a number of bestselling cookbooks. Si was born in a pit village near Gateshead, the youngest child of three. His father had served in the arctic convoys and had met his wife whilst on shore leave in Newcastle when she was singing with a big band. Si’s father died when he was eight years old and Si and his mum, Stella, bonded by cooking together which led to his lifelong appreciation of food. His love of motorcycles started early when his uncle introduced him to his garage full of broken motorbikes that he enjoyed tinkering around with. Si fell in love with motorbikes and as a teenager used to give him mum a lift back from the shops. After leaving school, Si played drums in a band to earn a living, during which time he met his former wife, Jane. He became a father at 23 and soon began his television career as a runner on the children’s series Byker Grove. This opened the door to work in TV and film as a location manager, where he met make up artist Dave Myers on the set of a Catherine Cookson drama. After discovering they shared a passion for food and motorbikes, the pair developed the idea for a TV show that would see these two rather hairy motorcyclists travel around the world cooking for people. After Dave’s death in 2024, Si was involved in two commemorative “Dave Days” in which many thousands of riders from the motorbike community showed their support for Dave and his family by travelling in convoy from London to Dave’s home town of Barrow in Furness. Si King lives in the North East. DISC ONE: Winter Song - Lindisfarne DISC TWO: Boil the Breakfast Early - The Chieftains DISC THREE: Anonymous: Liturgy of Saint Anthony - Ad Missam - Introitus: Os justi meditabitur - Coro Gregoriano De Lisboa DISC FOUR: Stay With Me Till Dawn - Judie Tzuke DISC FIVE: Set The Fire To The Third Bar - Snow Patrol feat. Martha Wainwright DISC SIX: Still in Love with You (Live) - Thin Lizzy DISC SEVEN: On The Wire - Troy Cassar-Daley DISC EIGHT: Ask the Lonely - Journey BOOK CHOICE: Combined works of William Dalrymple LUXURY ITEM: A solar-powered fridge and rum CASTAWAY'S FAVOURITE: Ask the Lonely - Journey Presenter Lauren Laverne Producer Sarah Taylor Desert Island Discs has cast other cooks away to the island over the years including Delia Smith, Nigella Lawson and Nigel Slater. You can hear their programmes if you search through BBC Sounds or our own Desert Island Discs website.
12/03/2023

David Sedaris, writer

David Sedaris is a writer whose humorous stories and wry takes on everyday encounters have led to 13 bestselling books and many radio programmes including Meet David Sedaris on BBC Radio 4. His work is based on his own life and, although very funny, does not shy away from the bleaker aspects of his experiences. David was born in New York State and grew up in Raleigh in North Carolina. He dropped out of university and became a performance artist for a while, but says he lacked artistic talent and chose not to pursue art as a career. In 1990 he moved to New York City where he supported himself by working as a Christmas elf called Crumpet at Macy’s department store. He wrote an essay about this experience called Santaland Diaries which he read on National Public Radio. His performance attracted an enthusiastic response from listeners and led to his first major break as a writer and broadcaster. David’s later collections of stories and essays have won non-fiction awards and in 2002 he gave a sold-out performance at Carnegie Hall in New York. The recording of this event was later nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Comedy Album. David’s most recent collection of essays addresses a range of subjects including the end of Donald Trump’s administration, the COVID-19 pandemic and the death of his father. David lives with his boyfriend Hugh and they divide their time between New York and West Sussex. David is a committed litter-picker which prompted his local Sussex council to name a refuse vehicle after him - Pig Pen Sedaris. DISC ONE: I Don’t Wanna Play House by Tammy Wynette DISC TWO: Where is Love, composed by Lionel Bart and performed by Keith Hamshere and Original London Cast of Oliver! DISC THREE: Dindi by Maria Bethânia DISC FOUR: Until You Come Back to Me (That's What I'm Gonna Do) by Aretha Franklin DISC FIVE: I Got A Right to Praise The Lord by The Georgia Mass Choir DISC SIX: Manhattan by Blossom Dearie DISC SEVEN: You and I by Abbey Lincoln DISC EIGHT: They Say It’s Wonderful by John Coltrane and Johnny Hartman BOOK CHOICE: A German dictionary LUXURY ITEM: Pencils and paper CASTAWAY'S FAVOURITE: You and I by Abbey Lincoln Presenter: Lauren Laverne Producer: Paula McGinley
8 feb

Jesse Armstrong, writer

Jesse Armstrong is a British author, screenwriter, and producer. He has written several award-winning TV comedies and satirical dramas and won many accolades for his work including two BAFTA TV Awards, three Golden Globe Awards, and three Writers Guild of America Awards. His hit HBO series Succession has won nineteen Emmys. Jesse was born and educated in Oswestry, Shropshire, and attended Manchester University where he studied American Studies as an undergraduate and American History for his Masters. After university, he worked as a researcher for a Labour Member of Parliament for a couple of years it was an experience that would later inform his time as a writer on The Thick of It. He met his writing partner, Sam Bain, at Manchester University and together they created and co-wrote 9 seasons of Channel 4’s BAFTA-winning comedy Peep Show and 4 seasons of the student comedy Fresh Meat. During this time, he also wrote for the political satire series The Thick of It and co-wrote the film In the Loop, the latter of which earned him Oscar and BAFTA nominations for Best Adapted Screenplay. He also co-wrote the films Four Lions and Downhill and wrote and directed the television film, Mountainhead. He was the creator and show-runner of the hit HBO TV show Succession, a drama about a fictional powerful media family with the plot centring around which child would succeed the father played by Brian Cox. Succession won a total of 19 Emmys including Outstanding Writing for a Drama Series for each of Succession’s four seasons. He lives in London with his wife and has two children in their twenties. DISC ONE: A Day in the Life - The Beatles DISC TWO: Love Will Tear Us Apart - Joy Division DISC THREE: Debaser - Pixies DISC FOUR: Georgia on my Mind - Billie Holiday DISC FIVE: The Magic Number - De La Soul DISC SIX: New York, I Love You but You’re Bringing Me Down - LCD Sound System DISC SEVEN: Dream Song 28: Snow Line. Written and read by John Berryman DISC EIGHT: Violin Concerto in D Major, RV 234 “L’inquietudine” 1: Allegro. Composed by Antonio Vivaldi and performed by Walter Gallozzi and I Musici BOOK CHOICE: The Norton Anthology of Poetry LUXURY ITEM: A football CASTAWAY'S FAVOURITE: Georgia on my Mind - Billie Holiday Presenter Lauren Laverne Producer Sarah Taylor Desert Island Discs has cast many TV writers away to the island over the years including Russell T Davies, Sally Wainwright and Abi Morgan. You’ll also find the stars of Peep Show, Robert Webb and David Mitchell in there too along with the actor Brian Cox who played the patriarch, Logan Roy, in Jesse’s hit TV series, Succession. You can hear their programmes if you search through BBC Sounds or our own Desert Island Discs website.

Lauren Laverne en Apple