Desert Island Discs

The castaway in Desert Island Discs this week is the actress Wendy Richard, one of the best-known faces on British television. She'll be talking to Sue Lawley about a career which started with the Arthur Haines show in the 60s, and took her through a whole series of long-running television programmes - The Newcomers, Are You Being Served? and its sequel Grace and Favour. However, it was 10 years ago that she took the part which was to bring her her greatest popularity - Pauline Fowler in EastEnders.[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs] Favourite track: Land Of Hope And Glory by Edward Elgar/Benson Book: Wilt by Tom Sharpe Luxury: Tapestry to make

The castaway in Desert Island Discs this week is Gerald Cavendish Grosvenor, the sixth Duke of Westminster. He'll be talking to Sue Lawley about the responsibilities and pleasures of being one of the country's richest men. Having enjoyed an idyllic childhood on the banks of Loch Ern in County Fermanagh, it was a rude shock to be transplanted to an English prep school at the age of seven. The comparatively early death of his father then meant that by the time he was just 19 he was managing one of Britain's greatest estates, and by 27 he owned it. He'll be discussing the pleasures and the perils of his position, why he is no longer a member of the Conservative Party and his hopes and dreams for his four-year-old son and heir, Hugh.[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs] Favourite track: Albatross by Fleetwood Mac Book: Through Russian Snows by G A Henty Luxury: Telescope

The castaway in Desert Island Discs this week is clothes designer Jasper Conran. Son of Sir Terence Conran and Shirley Conran, he has art, design and business in his blood and was always determined to make his own way in the world of fashion without parental influence. He has said, "in a family like mine, if you're not successful, you drown".He'll be telling Sue Lawley about his difficult childhood of nannies and his public school where he was bullied for being overweight, all of which he overcame to win a scholarship to the prestigious Parsons School of Art in New York. After that, his career took off and, at the age of 27, he was named Designer of the Year. By the late 1980s he was almost bankrupt and had to re-invent his business to a 1990s-type smaller and more manageable outfit.[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs] Favourite track: Tosca Vissi D' Arte by Giacomo Puccini Book: Tales by Hoffman Luxury: Vintage Krug Champagne (endless supply)

The castaway in Desert Island Discs this week is one of the great pioneers of heart transplant surgery - Professor Sir Magdi Yacoub.He'll be talking to Sue Lawley about his dedication to his patients, whether heart transplants are now routinely successful and about some of the earlier controversies which his experimental surgery has attracted. He will also be describing his early ambitions to be a doctor, which were discouraged by his father, and how important music is to him. He often has it playing in the operating theatre.[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs] Favourite track: Fantasia For Piano In D Minor by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Book: Pluto's Republic by Sir Peter Meddower Luxury: Hammock

The castaway in Desert Island Discs this week is one of the oldest and deepest voices in rock music - the legendary bluesman John Lee Hooker. The son of a preacher man, he was brought up in Clarksdale, Mississippi, and his first guitar was made from an old inner tube tied to the barn door. By the age of 14, he had his own guitar and ran away to Memphis with two dollars in his pocket for a life touring small blues clubs.With hits like Boom Boom, Dimples and Boogie Chillun, he has been one of the major influences on rock stars like Eric Clapton and the Rolling Stones.[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs] Favourite track: Goin Down Slow by B.B. King & Bobby Bland Book: A book with pictures (of pretty women) Luxury: His guitar

The castaway in Desert Island Discs this week is the actor Brian Blessed.He'll be talking to Sue Lawley about Z Cars - the series which first brought him to public prominence in the 1960s, about his friendship with the actress Katherine Hepburn and his obsession with climbing mountains - mountains like Everest and Kilimanjaro - when he isn't acting.[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs] Favourite track: Rite of Spring The Adoration Of Earth by Igor Stravinsky Book: In Search of the Miraculous by Peter Ouspensky Luxury: Scarf given to him by the Dalai Lama

The castaway in Desert Island Discs this week is Marianne Faithfull. Singer and actress, she was the original 1960s wild child.At the age of 17, when she was still a convent schoolgirl in Reading, she shot to fame with the hit single As Tears Go By; written for her by Mick Jagger and Keith Richards. She was Mick Jagger's mistress, she hung out with Bob Dylan and Jimi Hendrix, she was young, beautiful and rich and she seemed to have it all. But the glamorous life of the pop star turned into a nightmare of drugs, homelessness, suicide attempts and broken marriages.The daughter of an Austrian baroness, her life has been full of myths and legends. She'll be telling Sue Lawley about the years of recovery, how she's found happiness in Ireland and her hopes for a Man Friday on her desert island. [Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs] Favourite track: Small Axe by Bob Marley & The Wailers Book: Robinson Crusoe by Daniel Defoe Luxury: Pen from Aspreys with attached magnifying glass

Sue Lawley's castaway in Desert Island Discs this week is Sir Bernard Ingham. For 11 years, one month and five days, almost from when she came to power to the day she left office, he stood shoulder-to-shoulder with Mrs Thatcher. A former card-carrying member of the Labour Party, he became her Chief Press Secretary, adviser and supporter.He was accused by the media of crossing the line between civil service impartiality and political support on that fateful day in Paris in November 1990, just 36 hours before she lost the leadership election. He'll be telling Sue Lawley about his childhood in Yorkshire, his training as a journalist on the Hebden Bridge Times, his transition to Press Secretary for Tony Benn, Maurice MacMillan and Barbara Castle. In 1979, no-one was more astonished than he when he was headhunted to become one of Mrs Thatcher's closest advisers, and finally one of the most influential members of her team.[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs] Favourite track: Violin Concerto in B Minor - Andante by Edward Elgar Book: Times Atlas of the World Luxury: Colin Cowdrey's bowling machine

The castaway in Desert Island Discs this week is one of America's most successful playwrights. Since he opened Come Blow Your Horn on Broadway in 1961, Neil Simon has written at least a play a year, and they include Barefoot in the Park, The Odd Couple, Plaza Suite, Lost in Yonkers, as well as the hit musicals Sweet Charity and They're Playing Our Song.He'll be telling Sue Lawley about his childhood in the Bronx, his days in the army, and how as one of New York's most famous literary sons, he now spends most of his time in Los Angeles.[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs] Favourite track: A Foggy Day by Fred Astaire Book: How To Swim Luxury: Large harmonica

The castaway in Desert Island Discs this week is the Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr George Carey. The son of a hospital porter, he'll be talking to Sue Lawley about his childhood in London during the war, his interrupted schooling which meant he left school at 15 with no qualifications and how when he decided he wanted to enter the church, he went on to acquire a clutch of 'O' and 'A' Levels in the space of a year.Never one to shirk a challenge, he'll also be describing his feelings when he was invited to become Archbishop of Canterbury and discussing some of the issues which face the church today.[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs] Favourite track: O Praise Ye The Lord (Laudate Dominum) by Hubert Parry Book: Four Quartets by T S Eliot Luxury: Computer and an empty bottle