Desert Island Discs

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 children at his wife Janet's suggestion - she wanted someone to write the words so that she could provide the illustrations. They went on to produce more than three dozen picture books together including The Jolly Postman, Each Peach Pear Plum and Peepo! and their books sold in their millions. In this moving programme, Allan describes the impact of Janet's diagnosis, how she faced up to the knowledge that she was dying and how, after her death, he worked through his grief by compiling another book - a very personal collection about her life and work.[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs]Favourite track: Closing Time by Leonard Cohen Book: Selected Stories by Alice Munro Luxury: A wall to kick a football against.

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 spotlight and has been voted 'one of our most inspiring political figures'. She joined Liberty the day before the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001 and, as the events unfolded on the television screens, it was, she says, impossible to predict just how much they would shape the civil rights debate in the years that followed. For her, it was not just a matter of philosophical or political principle - her son was born soon after the attacks and his birth, she says, influenced her own feelings: "I understood more what it is to be afraid, what it is to really worry about whether your family are going to be blown up on the underground."[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs]Favourite track: I Wish I Knew How It Would Feel To Be Free by Nina Simone Book: To Kill A Mocking Bird by Harper Lee Luxury: A private screening room with movies.

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 audiences in opera houses and concert halls the world over. But for him, music wasn't a straightforward career choice. He started out as a historian, and for years led two parallel lives, spending term times at Oxford, writing about witchcraft and magic, while in the holidays he'd throw himself into an operatic production. Eventually, his book on witchcraft was finished just before his debut with the English National Opera. Magic appeals to people in a way that is both mysterious and irrational and so it is, he says, not so different to music.[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs]Favourite track: Last movement of the Piano Sonata No.31 in A flat by Ludwig van Beethoven Book: War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy Luxury: A solar computer loaded with pictures of my family and friends.

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is the American composer, singer and song-writer Randy Newman. Colleagues say he stands shoulder-to-shoulder with musical legends Cole Porter and George Gershwin. He first made his name by writing mordant and often satirical pop songs - including A Few Words in Defence of Our Country, Political Science and Short People. For the past 25 years he has been better known for his Hollywood film music - including writing the scores for the first four Disney/Pixar films. He held the unique distinction for being Oscar-nominated 15 times without winning until 2002, when he picked up the award for Best Original Song for If I Didn't Have You from Monsters Inc. His songs are often written from the point of view of unlikeable characters - from slave masters to stalkers - it was a style, he acknowledges, that wasn't universally liked, but he adds: "I wouldn't have it any differently".[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs]Favourite track: The 3rd movement of String Quartet No.16 in F Major by Ludwig van Beethoven Book: The Divine Comedy (with translation) by Dante Alighieri Luxury: A piano.

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is Sanjeev Bhaskar. A writer, comic and actor, Sanjeev has brought the British Asian experience into mainstream comedy with his television programmes Goodness Gracious Me and The Kumars at No 42. Despite initial worries from the broadcasters, both attracted a loyal following and great critical acclaim.This represented a turn-around in Sanjeev's fortunes: aged 30, he had been unemployed, single, depressed and living at home. Now he is enjoying great success professionally and is one half of a golden couple of entertainment - he is married to fellow writer and performer Meera Syal. "At times," he says, "it's felt like living someone else's life. But I'm not going to give it back to whoever owns it legitimately."[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs]Favourite track: The Waters of March by Susannah McCorkle Book: The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams Luxury: A grand piano.

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 demand that he's booked up for the next five years. Opera appealed to him when he was still a boy, offering him a means of escape from his lonely and unhappy childhood in Glasgow. He immersed himself in it so much that now, he says, it's pretty well impossible for him to come to an opera fresh, somewhere it will already be in his memory. He says: "I didn't choose to work in opera - opera chose me. But I think opera made the right choice."[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs]Favourite track: Von Ewiger Liebe by Johannes Brahms Book: Vanity Fair by William Makepeace Thackeray Alternative to Bible: Bhagavad Gita Luxury: Well stocked bar & fridge.

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 Scorsese and Baz Luhrmann and she's won awards and acclaim for her film work, her theatre performances and her book readings. She made the leap from the Cambridge Footlights to become one of our most successful and popular character actresses. Yet, despite having one of the most sought after voices in the business, she says she hasn't had the career that she aspired to. She yearned to be taken more seriously and given meatier roles but, she jokes, Joan Plowright always stood in her way. On stage she seems to have the confidence and chutzpah of someone who is beyond embarrassment - but in reality, she says, for most of her life she has simply been a 'frightened little muffin'.[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs]Favourite track: The opening of the Fourth movement of the Trout Quintet by Franz Schubert Book: Little Dorrit by Charles Dickens Luxury: A flush toilet.

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 productions of the past twenty years, including Miss Saigon, Les Miserables and Chicago. On stage she has left audiences and reviewers breathless at the dazzling brilliance of her performances. But, off-stage, her life has often been defined more by shade than light.In this moving interview she talks openly about the abuse she endured as a child and the depression she suffered as an adult. She speaks too of her grief after the death of her "warm and brilliant" sister Noel last year and of the lasting impact Noel has had on her life. Now, Ruthie's happily married with two young daughters but, of the dark days behind her, she says, "I'd spent so many years entertaining and pretending everything was alright, but no matter where you get to it's never enough: you're always looking for the next thing."[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs]Favourite track: Over the Rainbow by Eva Cassidy Book: The Selfish Giant by Oscar Wilde Luxury: A jar of Hellman's mayonnaise.

A C Grayling is a renowned philosopher, passionate about unraveling the complexities of human existence. He shares how childhood experiences in colonial Zambia sparked his love for philosophy. Grayling emphasizes philosophy's practicality, encouraging lives filled with purpose and meaningful pursuits. He reflects on his artistic ventures, from music to playwriting, and explores the profound connections between art and knowledge. Listeners are treated to his insights on life's brevity, the emotional ties to music, and the importance of continuous learning.

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 of the godfathers of contemporary British satire. Pseud's Corner, Dear Bill, and Colemanballs all originated with him at the helm. Now editor of The Oldie, he's still taking part in regular ideas meetings at Private Eye and says he wouldn't know what to do if he stopped working.From a privileged and well-connected background he seemed an unlikely outsider, yet he's spent a lifetime pulling the rug from under the feet of the great and the good. It's often proved a risky route, bringing him into conflict with army recruiting sergeants, cabinet ministers and billionaire industrialists alike. One of four boys, his favourite childhood memories are of accompanying his mother on the piano while she played the violin. He met Willie Rushton at school when they worked on the school magazine and at Oxford he met Paul Foot and other Private Eye regulars contributing to more magazines - Parson's Pleasure and Mesopotamia.[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs]Favourite track: The Gloria from Mass in B Minor by Johann Sebastian Bach Book: Teach yourself piano tuning Luxury: Grand piano.