Podcasts by Last Word

Shane MacGowan, Justice Sandra Day O’Connor, Lord Darling, Joan Jara from 2023-12-08T16:22

Matthew Bannister on

Shane MacGowan the lead singer of The Pogues who was famous for his song writing but also his abuse of drugs and alcohol. His sister joins us to discuss the roots of h...

Henry Kissinger, Terry Venables, Paul Watson, Rachel Heller from 2023-12-01T16:24

Matthew Bannister on

Henry Kissinger, a towering figure in international diplomacy, who won the Nobel Peace Prize but was condemned by some as a war criminal.

Also, Terry Venables, ...

Captain Don Walsh, Dame A.S. Byatt, Rosalynn Carter, Dr Finlay Macleod from 2023-11-24T16:20

Matthew Bannister on

Captain Don Walsh, the American submariner who made the first descent to the deepest place in the ocean – the Mariana Trench. His friend and fellow deep sea explorer V...

Peter Betts, Audrey Salkeld, Heather Rogers KC, Louise Meriwether from 2023-11-17T16:25

Matthew Bannister on Peter Betts, who was the UK’s lead negotiator at international climate change summits.

Audrey Salkeld, the mountaineering historian best known for her work on the ill-...

Ken Mattingly, Anne Wright, Mary Gallacher, David Kirke from 2023-11-10T16:20

Matthew Bannister on

Ken Mattingly, the astronaut who missed flying into space on the ill-fated Apollo 13 mission because he had been exposed to German measles. We have a tribute from Fred...

Matthew Perry, Benedict Birnberg, Field Marshall Muthoni Wa Kirima, Professor Jose Harris from 2023-11-03T16:25

Matthew Bannister on

Benedict Birnberg, the radical lawyer who fought the cases of the far-left Angry Brigade and the Mangrove Nine and got the murder conviction of Derek Bentley quashed.<...

Sir Bobby Charlton, Dr Evelyn Fox Keller, Julian Bahula, Haydn Gwynne from 2023-10-30T15:15

Matthew Bannister on

Sir Bobby Charlton, who is hailed as England’s greatest ever footballer.

Dr. Evelyn Fox Keller, who explored the effects of gender on the study of science.

Charles ‘Chuck’ Feeney, Phyllis ‘Pippa’ Latour, Florence Fisher, Dr Nicholas Arnold from 2023-10-20T15:15

Kirsty Lang on

Charles ‘Chuck’ Feeney, the secret billionaire who gave most of his money away to good causes. Phyllis ‘Pippa’ Latour, the fearless secret agent who was parachuted into N...

Kirsty Smitten, Kat Anderson, Beverly Willis, Tony Wade from 2023-10-13T15:25

Kirsty Lang on

The talented young scientist Kirsty Smitten who did pioneering work developing a new generation of antibiotics. Singer Kat Anderson who made pop history with Motown’s fir...

Michael Gambon, Pat Arrowsmith, Treleven Haysom, Dianne Feinstein from 2023-10-06T15:20

Matthew Bannister on the acclaimed actor Sir Michael Gambon. His son Fergus reveals his love of cars, antique firearms – and lying to journalists.

The peace campaigner Pat Arrowsmith, who...

Gita Mehta, Matteo Messina Denaro, Irma Brenman Pick, John Stevenson from 2023-09-29T15:20

Matthew Bannister on

Gita Mehta, the author who set out to reveal the truth about India to the West. Her friend the theatre director Sir Richard Eyre pays tribute.

Matteo Messina Den...

Sir Horace Ové, Su Gorman, Roger Whittaker, Jean Combes from 2023-09-22T15:20

Matthew Bannister on

Sir Horace Ové, the director whose films told stories of the experiences of black people in Britain.

Su Gorman, who campaigned for justice for the victims of the...

Mike Yarwood, Ada Deer, Sir Ian Wilmut, Dorothy Purdew from 2023-09-15T15:15

Matthew Bannister on Mike Yarwood, whose impressions of famous people made him one of TV’s biggest stars in the 1970s and 80s.

Ada Deer, the Native American campaigner who became head of t...

Mohamed Al-Fayed, Dorothy Goodman, Professor Anthony Bryceson, Denyse Plummer from 2023-09-08T15:25

Matthew Bannister on

Mohamed Al-Fayed, the controversial businessman who owned Harrods department store and Fulham Football Club. His son Dodi died in the car crash that killed Princess Di...

Julian Haviland, Johaar Mosaval, Tricia Tyler, Matyelok Gibbs from 2023-09-01T15:26

Matthew Bannister on:

Julian Haviland who was political editor at ITN and then the Times, covering key events at Westminster in the 1970s and 80s.

Johaar Mosaval, the South African d...

Michael Parkinson, Renata Scotto, John Brierly, Isobel Crook from 2023-08-25T15:30

John Wilson on:

The journalist and broadcaster who became synonymous with the British chat show, Sir Michael Parkinson.

Italian soprano Renata Scotto, one of the biggest stars of ope...

SPECIAL EDITION: Michael Parkinson from 2023-08-24T16:45

Sir Michael Parkinson was a journalist, broadcaster, and arguably Britain’s greatest television chat show host. During a TV career than spanned six decades, Parky interviewed hundreds of the wor...

Nick Kaiser, Angela Flowers, Robbie Shepherd, Doreen Mantle. from 2023-08-18T15:20

Kirsty Lang on:

Nick Kaiser, an internationally renowned British scientist who reached not just for the stars but the entire cosmos....

A gallerist who championed British contempora...

Sir Michael Boyd, Jess Search, Warren Ford, Leny Andrade from 2023-08-11T15:25

Kirsty Lang on:

Sir Michael Boyd, the former Artistic Director of the Royal Shakespeare Company.

Jess Search, the fearless documentary producer who backed award winning but controve...

Richard Barancik, Yvonne Littlewood MBE, Edward Sexton, Dr Christian Carritt from 2023-08-04T15:20

Kirsty Lang on:

Richard Barancik, the last known surviving member of a World War II allied unit - The Monuments, Fine Arts, and Archives section - known as the Monuments Men and Women. ...

George Alagiah, Sinead O'Connor, Ann Clwyd, Tony Bennett, and Trevor Francis from 2023-07-28T15:25

John Wilson on

George Alagiah, the BBC Journalist and Presenter is remembered by his colleagues Sophie Raworth and John Simpson.

Sinead O’Connor, the Irish singer who won worldwide...

Lady Williams of Elvel, Professor John Goodenough, Christine Baker, Lord Palmer from 2023-07-21T15:21

Matthew Bannister on

Lady Williams of Elvel, who, as Jane Portal, was personal secretary to Winston Churchill and the mother of the Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby.

Professor J...

Malcolm Mowbray, Victoria Amelina, Roger Lovegrove, Mavis Cheek from 2023-07-14T15:25

Matthew Bannister on

Malcolm Mowbray, the British film director best known for making “A Private Function” - the comedy about wartime rationing starring Michael Palin and Maggie Smith. The...

Lord Kerslake, Dame Ann Leslie, Diane Rowe, Tim Blackmore from 2023-07-07T15:25

Matthew Bannister on

Dame Ann Leslie, the journalist who reported on some of the most significant events of recent times.

Lord Kerslake, who was Head of the Civil Service under the c...

Baroness McDonagh, Craig Brown, Godfrey Merlen, Winnie Ewing from 2023-06-30T15:25

Matthew Bannister on

Baroness McDonagh

Margaret McDonagh was the youngest person and the first woman to become General Secretary of the Labour Party. She was a key player in the New...

Daniel Ellsberg, Glenda Jackson, Melanie Phillips, Sir Ben Helfgott from 2023-06-23T15:25

Matthew Bannister on

Daniel Ellsberg, the whistleblower who leaked the Pentagon Papers, revealing the US government’s secret approach to the Vietnam War.

Glenda Jackson, the Oscar wi...

Silvio Berlusconi, Cormac McCarthy, Kathryn Harries, Francoise Gilot from 2023-06-16T15:20

John Wilson on

Silvio Berlusconi, Italy's flamboyant and controversial media mogul and four-time Prime Minister.

Kathryn Harries, The soprano sang in more than 60 major operatic role...

Mel Parry, Professor Alice Coleman, Hugh Callaghan, Cynthia Weil from 2023-06-09T15:25

Matthew Bannister on

Mel Parry, the SAS veteran who was part of the team that stormed the Iranian embassy in London in 1980.

Professor Alice Coleman, the geographer whose modificatio...

Jeremy Clarke, Dr Moira Woods, Iain Johnstone, Rita Lee from 2023-06-02T15:20

Matthew Bannister on

Jeremy Clarke, who chronicled his experiences of living a “low life” in the Spectator magazine for more than 20 years. We have a tribute from Eric Idle.

The wome...

Tina Turner, Martin Amis, Leroy Cooper, Rolf Harris, Marlene Bauer Hagge from 2023-05-26T15:25

Matthew Bannister on Tina Turner, the singer who overcame an abusive relationship to become an international superstar Martin Amis, one of the literary giants of his generation Leroy Coope...

Newton Minow, Vicky Neale, Lois Keith, Gerald Rose from 2023-05-19T15:25

Matthew Bannister on

Newton Minow, who was just 35 when he was appointed chairman of the US Federal Communications Commission by President John F. Kennedy. He gave a famous speech describi...

Grace Bumbry, Don Short, Dame Rosemary Cramp, Wee Willie Harris from 2023-05-12T15:25

Matthew Bannister on

The opera singer Grace Bumbry who broke down barriers by becoming the first black performer at the Bayreuth Festival.

Don Short, the showbusiness journalist who ...

Harry Belafonte, Jerry Springer, Valerie Winn, Kate Saunders from 2023-05-05T15:25

Matthew Bannister on

Harry Belafonte, the singer and actor who was also a leading civil rights campaigner.

Jerry Springer, whose TV talk show was once voted the worst in history – b...

Barry Humphries, Len Goodman, Professor Elizabeth Murray, Jah Shaka from 2023-04-28T15:25

Matthew Bannister on

Barry Humphries, best known for his comic creations Dame Edna Everage and Sir Les Patterson. We have tributes from Rob Brydon and John Humphrys.

Len Goodman, who...

Anne Perry, Dame Mary Quant, Jean Argles, Ahmad Jamal from 2023-04-26T08:10

Matthew Bannister on

Anne Perry, the best-selling crime novelist who committed a murder when she was a teenager.

Dame Mary Quant, the influential fashion designer at the heart of the...

Ben Ferencz, Seymour Fortescue, Valerie Elliott, Rachel Pollack from 2023-04-25T10:02

Matthew Bannister on Ben Ferencz, the last surviving prosecutor at the Nuremberg War Crimes Trials. He devoted his life to campaigning for an international system of justice for the victims of s...

Nigel Lawson, Emahoy Tsegué-Maryam Guèbrou, Ken Buchanan, Mary Rayner from 2023-04-07T15:20

Matthew Bannister on

Nigel Lawson – Baron Lawson of Blaby, the reforming Chancellor of the Exchequer under Margaret Thatcher. He cut income tax, led the campaign of privatisation and paved...

Paul O'Grady, Gordon Moore, Vera Selby, Simon Emmerson from 2023-03-31T15:20

Matthew Bannister on

Paul O’Grady, who made his name as the drag queen Lily Savage, and went on to become a much-loved TV and radio star.

Gordon Moore, the tech entrepreneur who fou...

Jacqueline Gold CBE, Lance Reddick, Traute Lafrenz, Lynn Seymour from 2023-03-24T16:20

Matthew Bannister on

Jacqueline Gold CBE – the businesswoman who turned Ann Summers from a couple of seedy sex shops into a multi-million pound high street success.

Lance Reddick, t...

Chaim Topol, Zandra Flemister, Bill Tidy MBE, Avis Fawcitt from 2023-03-17T16:25

Matthew Bannister on

The actor and singer Chaim Topol (pictured), best known for his performances in the musical Fiddler on the Roof.

Zandra Flemister, the first African American wom...

Judith Heumann, Brian Tufano, Sir David Elliott KCMG, Elizabeth Foulkes from 2023-03-10T16:25

Matthew Bannister on

Judith Heumann (pictured), the American disability rights campaigner who led the longest non-violent occupation of a Federal building in US history.

Brian Tufano...

Lady Betty Boothroyd, Marianne Mantell, John Motson OBE, Sulamita Aronovsky from 2023-03-03T16:25

Kirsty Lang on

The extraordinary Lady Betty Boothroyd (pictured) who went from humble beginnings in a Yorkshire mill town to becoming Westminster’s first female Speaker.

John Motson...

Dorothy Pitman Hughes, Ralph Hooper OBE, Raquel Welch, Dickie Davies from 2023-02-24T16:25

Kirsty Lang on Dorothy Pitman Hughes who brought black women into the 70s Feminist movement and inspired Gloria Steinem.

Raquel Welch (pictured), the Hollywood actor who became a Sixties...

David Vaughan OBE, Burt Bacharach, Janet Anderson, Eileen Sheridan from 2023-02-17T16:25

Matthew Bannister on

Professor David Vaughan OBE, who was a leading expert on the effects of climate change on glaciers in the Antarctic.

Burt Bacharach (pictured), who wrote scores ...

Frene Ginwala, Lady Martha Bruce OBE, Pervez Musharraf, Paco Rabanne from 2023-02-10T16:25

Matthew Bannister on

Frene Ginwala (pictured), one of the leading figures in the anti-apartheid struggle in South Africa, who became Speaker of the country’s first democratically elected p...

Ralph Ehrmann, Sylvia Syms, Rabbi Dr Abraham Levy, Jo Sandilands from 2023-02-06T12:13

Matthew Bannister on Ralph Ehrmann, the German-born businessman behind the success of the Airfix model kits that delighted a generation of young boys in the 1960s and 70s. Sylvia Syms (pict...

Howard Baderman, David Crosby, Milly Thompson, Brenda Heywood from 2023-01-27T16:25

Matthew Bannister on

Howard Baderman, the hospital consultant who transformed the discipline of emergency medicine and treated casualties from high profile events like the Kings Cross Tube...

Jeff Beck, Alice Mahon, Tom Karen OBE, Gina Lollobrigida from 2023-01-20T16:25

Matthew Bannister on

Jeff Beck (pictured), who was acclaimed as one of the most influential and innovative rock guitarists of all time.

Alice Mahon, the left wing Labour MP who often...

Gianluca Vialli, Fay Weldon, Michael Dower, Anita Pointer from 2023-01-13T16:25

Matthew Bannister on

Gianluca Vialli (pictured), the Italian footballer who won many major trophies with Sampdoria and Juventus before moving to Chelsea as a player and then manager.

Pope Benedict XVI, Dame Vivienne Westwood, James Caan, Georgia Holt from 2023-01-06T16:25

Matthew Bannister on

Pope Benedict XVI, the religious conservative who was the first Pontiff to resign from the job in almost 600 years.

Dame Vivienne Westwood (pictured), punk pione...

Terry Hall, Dame Beryl Grey, Heather Iandolo, Eric Allison from 2022-12-30T16:25

Matthew Bannister on

Terry Hall (pictured), the singer who captured the disillusionment of a generation with The Specials’ biggest hit “Ghost Town”.

Heather Iandolo, the daughter of...

Victor Lewis-Smith, Maureen Doherty, Pablo Milanés, Ailsa Irving from 2022-12-23T16:25

Matthew Bannister on

The columnist, broadcaster, producer, musician and outrageous hoaxer Victor Lewis-Smith (pictured).

Maureen Doherty, the designer who worked with Issey Miyake an...

Joyce Bryant, George 'Johnny' Johnson MBE, Dame Clare Marx, Joseph Kittinger from 2022-12-16T16:25

Matthew Bannister on

Joyce Bryant (pictured), the American singer who was named by Ebony magazine as one of the five most beautiful black women in the world.

Squadron Leader George '...

Christine McVie, Jiang Zemin, Derek Granger from 2022-12-09T16:02

Matthew Bannister on

Christine McVie who wrote some of Fleetwood Mac’s biggest hits and was a key player in the turbulent history of the band.

Jiang Zemin, who became Chinese Preside...

Doddie Weir, Hebe de Bonafini, Irene Cara, Cornelia Schroeder from 2022-12-02T16:23

Matthew Bannister on

Doddie Weir (pictured), the leading Scottish rugby player who spent the last few years of his life raising funds for research into the causes of Motor Neurone Disease....

Mehran Karimi Nasseri, Ann Savours, Sue Baker, Wilko Johnson from 2022-11-25T16:02

Matthew Bannister on

Mehran Karimi Nasseri – otherwise known as Sir Alfred (pictured). He was the Iranian migrant who lived for eighteen years in terminal one of the Charles de Gaulle Airp...

Peter de Savary, Bob Le Sueur MBE, Ela Bhatt, Hannah Pick-Goslar from 2022-11-18T16:25

Matthew Bannister on

Peter de Savary, the serial entrepreneur who ran private members’ clubs, once owned both Land’s End and John O’Groats and spent a fortune trying to win the America’s C...

Leslie Phillips CBE, Dame Valerie Beral, Avtar Singh Jouhl, Atarah Ben-Tovim MBE from 2022-11-11T16:25

Matthew Bannister on

Leslie Phillips CBE (pictured), the actor who made his name in the Navy Lark and the Carry On Films, then became a respected character actor.

Dame Valerie Beral,...

Baroness Blood, Jerry Lee Lewis, Ian Jack, Hilaree Nelson from 2022-11-04T16:25

Matthew Bannister on

Baroness Blood (pictured), the trade unionist, community worker and peace campaigner who became the first woman from Northern Ireland to be given a life peerage.

Dame Carmen Callil, Ivy Jo Hunter, Kathleen Booth, Dietrich Mateschitz from 2022-10-28T15:25

Matthew Bannister on

Dame Carmen Callil (pictured), the Australian-born publisher who founded the feminist Virago Books.

Ivy Jo Hunter, known as the 'forgotten man of Motown', he co-...

Ian Hamilton KC, Audrey Evans, Parvatiben Solanki, Robbie Coltrane OBE from 2022-10-21T16:59

Matthew Bannister on

Ian Hamilton KC, the Scottish lawyer who, as a student, took part in removing the Stone of Destiny from Westminster Abbey and returning it to Scotland.

Professo...

Dame Angela Lansbury, Lady Keswick, Sacheen Littlefeather, Franca Fendi from 2022-10-14T15:25

Matthew Bannister on

Dame Angela Lansbury (pictured), the stage and screen actor best known in recent years for her role in the TV series Murder She Wrote.

Lady Keswick who was Direc...

Yusuf al-Qaradawi, 'Ma' Smith MBE, Mike Burrows, Loretta Lynn from 2022-10-07T15:25

Matthew Bannister on

Yusuf al-Qaradawi, one of the most influential Muslim scholars of his generation. He reached a vast audience through his show on the TV channel Al Jazeera.

'Ma' ...

Dame Hilary Mantel, John McVicar, Joyce Reynolds, Paul Sartin from 2022-09-30T15:25

Matthew Bannister on

Dame Hilary Mantel (pictured), the Booker prize winning novelist best known for the Wolf Hall trilogy.

John McVicar, the former armed robber who studied sociolog...

Jean-Luc Godard, Barbara Ehrenreich, Dennis Wilson, Mavis Nicholson from 2022-09-23T15:25

Kirsty Lang on Jean-Luc Godard (pictured), the critic and filmmaker who revolutionised French cinema.

The writer and journalist Barbara Ehrenreich, whose bestseller 'Nickel and Dimed', is ...

Bill Turnbull, Anne Sutton, Norah Vincent, Drummie Zeb from 2022-09-16T15:25

Matthew Bannister on Bill Turnbull (pictured), the journalist and BBC Breakfast presenter who was also a beekeeper and committed fan of Wycombe Wanderers. Anne Sutton, whose detailed studies...

Mikhail Gorbachev, Stella 'Jaye' Edwards, Jerry Allison from 2022-09-02T15:25

Matthew Bannister on

The last President of the Soviet Union Mikhail Gorbachev (pictured), who was feted in the West but often derided in his own country. We follow his journey from a colle...

Margaret Keane, Keith Smith, Mario Fiorentini, Brenda Fisher from 2022-08-26T15:25

Matthew Bannister on

Margaret Keane (pictured), the American artist whose paintings of children with 'Big Eyes' became hugely popular in the 1960s. Her identity as the painter was kept sec...

Lamont Dozier, Joan Lingard, Issey Miyake, Edana Minghella from 2022-08-19T15:25

John Wilson on

Lamont Dozier (pictured), who wrote dozens of hits for Motown Records.

Joan Lingard, the author of the popular Kevin and Sadie books set during the Troubles in Norther...

James Lovelock, Ayman al-Zawahiri, Roy Hackett MBE, Dame Olivia Newton-John from 2022-08-12T16:24

Kirsty Lang on

James Lovelock (pictured), the scientist and inventor who came up with the Gaia theory.

Ayman al-Zawahiri, the leader of the terrorist group Al-Qaeda.

Roy Hacket...

Bernard Cribbins OBE (pictured), Diana Kennedy MBE, Sir Colin Blakemore, Nichelle Nichols from 2022-08-05T15:25

Matthew Bannister on

Bernard Cribbins OBE, the much-loved actor known for appearances in The Railway Children and Doctor Who as well as reading countless stories on Jackanory.

Diana ...

Lord David Trimble (pictured), Susie Steiner, Uwe Seeler from 2022-07-29T15:25

John Wilson on

Lord David Trimble, Northern Irish politician who was an architect of the Good Friday Agreement and won a Nobel Peace Prize.

Susie Steiner, a British crime author who ...

Tony Sirico (pictured), José Eduardo dos Santos, Ann Shulgin, Ivana Trump from 2022-07-22T15:25

John Wilson on

Tony Sirico, the former armed robber turned actor who found fame playing the role of mobster Paulie Walnuts in ground-breaking television series The Sopranos.

José Edu...

Shinzo Abe (pictured), Mona Hammond OBE, Lorna de Smidt, Monty Norman from 2022-07-15T15:25

Kirsty Lang on

Shinzo Abe - Japan’s longest-serving prime minister who sought to end a wartime legacy of defeat and occupation and to tackle the economy through ‘Abenomics’.

Actor Mo...

Baroness Greengross OBE (pictured), Sonny Barger, Technoblade, Qin Yi from 2022-07-08T15:25

Matthew Bannister on

Baroness Greengross, who championed the rights of older people as Director General of the charity Age Concern.

Sonny Barger, the leading American Hell’s Angel wh...

Dame Deborah James (pictured), Yves Coppens, Revel Guest OBE, Samuel Bhima from 2022-07-01T15:25

Matthew Bannister on

Dame Deborah James who raised millions of pounds for cancer research by talking openly about living with - and dying from - bowel cancer.

Yves Coppens, the char...

Dom Phillips (pictured), Stephen S. Thompson, Caroline Drummond, Maureen Hiron from 2022-06-24T15:25

Matthew Bannister on

Dom Phillips, the freelance journalist who was ambushed and shot dead on a trip into the Amazon rain forest.

Stephen S. Thompson, the novelist and screenwriter ...

Dame Paula Rego (pictured), Bruce Kent, Hilary Devey CBE from 2022-06-17T15:25

Matthew Bannister on

Dame Paula Rego, the acclaimed Portuguese-born artist who later made her home in the UK and was renowned for making vivid and disturbing work focussing on the subjugat...

Amanda Claridge, Sidhu Moose Wala (pictured), Mark Sykes, Paul Vance from 2022-06-10T15:25

Matthew Bannister on

Amanda Claridge, the archaeologist who was a leading expert on ancient Rome.

Sidhu Moose Wala, the acclaimed Indian rapper who was shot dead at the age of 28. Listen

Dervla Murphy, Lester Piggott (pictured), Anne Howells from 2022-06-03T15:25

Matthew Bannister on

Dervla Murphy, the intrepid travel writer who cycled from her native Ireland to India.

Lester Piggott, the jockey who rode thousands of winners and broke many re...

Baroness Haleh Afshar, Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Kay Mellor, Vangelis (Pictured) from 2022-05-27T15:25

Matthew Bannister on

Baroness Haleh Afshar, the Iranian-born academic and activist who made her home in the UK and campaigned for women’s rights.

Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, ...

Shireen Abu Akleh, Robert Gillmor, Leonid Kravchuk (pictured), Carrie White from 2022-05-20T15:25

Matthew Bannister on

Shireen Abu Akleh, the respected Al Jazeera reporter who was shot dead while covering an Israeli military raid in Jenin in the occupied West Bank.

Robert Gillmor...

Kathy Boudin, Dennis Waterman (pictured), Sidney Altman, Régine Zylberberg from 2022-05-13T15:25

Matthew Bannister on

Kathy Boudin, the American radical activist who was sent to prison for her part in the killing of a security guard and two police officers during a robbery. While serv...

Colonel Alan Jenkins, Mary Monson, Elspeth Barker, Art Rupe (pictured) from 2022-05-06T15:25

Matthew Bannister on

Colonel Alan Jenkins, the Gurhka officer who was the last living Westerner to have travelled to independent Tibet.

Mary Monson, the solicitor who devoted her car...

Yvonne Blenkinsop (pictured), Dr Margaret Carswell, Mikhail Vasenkov, Denise Coffey from 2022-04-29T15:28

Matthew Bannister on

Yvonne Blenkinsop, one of the four so-called 'Headscarf Revolutionaries' from Hull who campaigned for better safety regulations on fishing trawlers after three were lo...

Mimi Reinhard, Sir Harrison Birtwistle (pictured), Sylvia Lancaster OBE, Letizia Battaglia from 2022-04-22T15:28

John Wilson on

Mimi Reinhard, the Holocaust survivor who typed Oskar Schindler’s famous list and later turned down an offer from Steven Spielberg.

Sir Harrison Birtwistle, the uncom...

Jordan Mooney (pictured), Jack Higgins, Robert Ashe, David McKee from 2022-04-15T15:25

John Wilson remembers the lives of those who have recently died including Jordan Mooney the punk icon known as ‘the original Sex Pistol’ who ended up as a veterinary nurse.

Jack Higgins, ...

Derek Mack (pictured), June Brown, Doris Derby, Dave Sales from 2022-04-08T15:28

Matthew Bannister on

Derek Mack, the rocket engineer who helped Britain enter the space age

June Brown, the actor best known as Dot Cotton in Eastenders

Dr Doris A. Derby, the...

Madeleine Albright (pictured), Peter Padfield, Christina Smith, Sheila Paine from 2022-04-01T17:36

Matthew Bannister on

The first female US Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, who was a leading advocate of the NATO bombing campaign aimed at stopping ethnic cleansing in the Balkans. Listen

Bruce Page, Dottie Frazier, Josephine Veasey (pictured), Maynard Davies from 2022-03-25T16:28

Matthew Bannister on

Bruce Page, the investigative journalist best known for leading the Sunday Times Insight team’s expose of the Thalidomide scandal.

Dottie Frazier, the pioneering...

Mary Coombs, Paul Farmer, Leslie Lonsdale-Cooper, William Hurt (pictured) from 2022-03-18T16:28

John Wilson on Mary Coombs, the world's first female computer programmer in the commercial sector; Paul Farmer, a medical anthropologist who saved millions of lives in the world's poorest countr...

Shirley Hughes (pictured), Roger Graef, Shane Warne from 2022-03-11T16:25

Matthew Bannister on

Shirley Hughes, the children’s author and illustrator whose books created a welcoming and recognisable picture of family life.

Roger Graef, the documentary filmm...

Sonny Ramadhin (pictured), Sister Catherine Wybourne, Captain Raymond Savage, Anna Karen from 2022-03-04T16:28

Matthew Bannister on

Sonny Ramadhin, the West Indian bowler who was one of the heroes of the side that scored a famous victory over England in 1950.

Sister Catherine Wybourne, who wa...

Jamal Edwards MBE, P.J. O'Rourke (pictured), Romaine Hart OBE, Ronnie Campbell from 2022-02-25T16:02

Matthew Bannister on

Jamal Edwards, the young music entrepreneur whose YouTube channel supported the careers of grime and rap stars like Dave, Skepta and Stormzy.

P.J. O’Rourke, th...

Beryl Vertue CBE (pictured), Flavio Carboni, Phil Harvey, Lata Mangeshkar from 2022-02-18T16:30

Matthew Bannister on

Beryl Vertue, the TV and film producer who brought us 'Men Behaving Badly' and 'Sherlock'. The actors Martin Clunes and Martin Freeman pay tribute.

Flavio Carbon...

Bamber Gascoigne (pictured), Norma Waterson, Claire Tomlinson, Thich Nhat Hanh from 2022-02-11T16:30

Matthew Bannister on

Bamber Gascoigne, the broadcaster and author best known as the long serving host of the TV quiz show 'University Challenge'.

Norma Waterson, the revered singer w...

Sir Crispin Tickell, Barry Cryer (pictured), Darlene Hard, Elza Soares from 2022-02-04T16:30

Julian Worricker on:

The diplomat Sir Crispin Tickell, who advised four prime ministers, and influenced international policy on climate change...

The writer and performer, Barry Crye...

Meat Loaf (pictured), André Leon Talley, Jana Bennett, Kristin Baybars from 2022-01-28T16:30

Matthew Bannister on

Meat Loaf, the rock opera singer best known for his album Bat Out Of Hell.

André Leon Talley, the fashion editor who played a leading role at US Vogue magazine a...

Lord Sainsbury, David Stuart, Elizabeth Selby, Ronnie Spector (pictured) from 2022-01-21T16:30

Matthew Bannister on

Lord Sainsbury of Preston Candover who led the expansion of the family grocery business during the 1970s and 80s.

David Stuart, the former gay escort and drug de...

Sidney Poitier (pictured), EO Wilson, Sarah Weddington, Assunta 'Pupetta' Maresca from 2022-01-14T16:30

Matthew Bannister on

Sidney Poitier, the first black man to win a 'Best Actor' Oscar, known for his powerful performances in ‘In The Heat of The Night’, ‘Lilies of the Field’ and ‘To Sir, ...

Lord Rogers (pictured), April Ashley MBE, Joan Didion, Ray Illingworth from 2022-01-07T16:30

Matthew Bannister on

Lord Rogers of Riverside, the influential architect who designed the Pompidou Centre in Paris and the Lloyds Building in London.

April Ashley, the transgender mo...

Janice Long (pictured), Marvin Hagler, Esther Bejarano, Leslie Bricusse from 2021-12-31T16:30

Julian Worricker on

Janice Long, the pioneering female DJ who was heard on Radios 1 and 2 and was a familiar face on Top of the Pops.

“Marvellous” Marvin Hagler, one of the greatest...

bell hooks (pictured), Shirley McGreal, Lionel Blair, Melvin Van Peebles from 2021-12-24T17:00

Julian Worricker on

The feminist writer bell hooks, credited with prompting new, radical thinking about race, gender and class.

Shirley McGreal, founder of the International Primate ...

Mary Maher, Robbie Shakespeare (pictured), Anwar Ditta, Anne Rice from 2021-12-17T16:30

Matthew Bannister on

The journalist and feminist Mary Maher. She edited the women’s page of the Irish Times and was a prime mover in campaigns for equal rights.

The bass player Robb...

Sir Antony Sher (pictured), Roger Phillips, Judy Totton from 2021-12-10T16:30

Matthew Bannister on

Sir Antony Sher, one of the finest actors of his generation, who was also a writer and a painter. We have a heartfelt personal tribute from his husband, the Artistic D...

Stephen Sondheim (pictured), Sir Frank Williams, Jo-Carroll Dennison from 2021-12-03T16:30

Matthew Bannister on

Stephen Sondheim, the acclaimed composer and lyricist who revolutionised the stage musical. We have a tribute from Imelda Staunton who gave award-winning performances...

Ian Wallace, Rossana Banti, Ivy Nicholson (pictured), Cedric Robinson MBE from 2021-11-29T16:59

Matthew Bannister on

Ian Wallace, one of the most influential figures in British ornithology. At one time he had seen a wider variety of species of birds than anyone else in Britain.

Aaron Beck, Joan Carlyle (pictured), Etel Adnan, Anne Bradford from 2021-11-19T16:30

Kirsty Lang on Aaron Beck the Eminent psychiatrist who developed cognitive behavioural therapy into the world’s most popular treatment for depression and anxiety.

Joan Carlyle the princip...

Sir Archie Lamb (pictured), John Boyden, Ida Nudel, Abolhassan Banisadr from 2021-11-12T16:30

Matthew Bannister on

Sir Archie Lamb who rose from Foreign Office filing clerk to become one of the UK’s most distinguished ambassadors.

John Boyden, the record producer who founded ...

Sir Michael Rutter (pictured), Christopher Wenner, Sister Megan Rice, Jeanette Altwegg from 2021-11-09T12:20

Matthew Bannister on

Sir Michael Rutter who was known as the 'father of child psychiatry'. He pioneered research into many aspects of child development.

Christopher Wenner - also kno...

Bernard Haitink (pictured), Victor Gregg, Ruthie Tompson, Paddy Moloney from 2021-10-29T15:30

Matthew Bannister on

Bernard Haitink, one of the greatest orchestral conductors of his generation, known for his interpretations of Mahler, Bruckner and Wagner.

Victor Gregg, the Bri...

Colin Powell (pictured), Brendan Kennelly, Myriam Sarachik, John Clunies-Ross from 2021-10-22T15:30

Kirsty Lang on

Colin Powell, who rose from an impoverished childhood in Harlem to become US Secretary of State

A much loved Irish poet: Brendan Kennelly who learnt his storytelling s...

Abdul Qadeer Khan (pictured), R. Allen Gardner, Joyce Jackson, Beresford King-Smith from 2021-10-15T15:30

Matthew Bannister on

Dr. Abdul Qadeer Khan, once described as the world’s most dangerous man - but hailed as a hero in his native Pakistan for leading the country’s development of nuclear ...

Antony Hewish (pictured), Roger Michell, Abdelaziz Bouteflika, Jane Powell from 2021-10-08T15:30

Matthew Bannister on

Antony Hewish, the radio astronomer who won the Nobel Prize for his work on discovering pulsars.

Roger Michell, the film, theatre and TV director who brought us ...

Lord Gowrie, Kamla Bhasin (pictured), Shirley Metherell MBE, Roger Hunt MBE from 2021-10-01T15:30

Matthew Bannister on

Lord Gowrie, the Tory peer who served as Northern Ireland minister and Arts minister under Margaret Thatcher. He was also a poet and went on to chair Sotheby’s and the...

Jimmy Greaves (pictured), Sir Clive Sinclair, Olivia Jordan, Carolyn Shoemaker from 2021-09-24T15:00

Julian Worricker on:

One of the greatest attacking footballers of all time, Jimmy Greaves, who later became a successful and often very funny TV presenter...

The inventor Sir Clive S...

Otelo Saraiva de Carvalho, Jean-Paul Belmondo (pictured), Angela Milner, Inge Ginsberg from 2021-09-17T15:30

Datshiane Navanayagam on Otelo Saraiva de Carvalho, the army officer who led the Carnation Revolution in Portugal.

Jean-Paul Belmondo, the unconventional film star who made his name in t...

Sergei Kovalev (pictured), Lee 'Scratch' Perry, Abebech Gobena, Ed Asner from 2021-09-10T15:30

Matthew Bannister on

Sergei Kovalev, the scientist and leading dissident, who spoke out against human rights abuses under the Soviet Union and the Yeltsin and Putin regimes. He was sent ...

Jill Murphy (pictured), Len Gibson, Dame Elizabeth Blackadder, Nanci Griffith from 2021-09-03T15:30

Matthew Bannister on:

The children’s author Jill Murphy who based her best-selling stories of the Worst Witch on her own schooldays.

Len Gibson, the former prisoner of war from Sunde...

Charlie Watts (pictured), Austin Mitchell, Hugh Wood, Sean Lock from 2021-08-27T15:30

Matthew Bannister on

The Rolling Stones drummer Charlie Watts. We have a tribute from the boogie woogie pianist who played with Charlie in his other band.

The maverick Labour MP and ...

Una Stubbs (pictured), Gino Strada, Mo Hayder from 2021-08-20T17:30

Matthew Bannister on

Una Stubbs, the actor who first came to fame in the 1960s TV sitcom 'Till Death Us Do Part', then attracted a new generation of fans as Aunt Sally in Worzel Gummidge. ...

Jean 'Binta' Breeze MBE (pictured), Sir Nicholas Goodison, Shaykh Abdalqadir as-Sufi, Joyce Shrubbs from 2021-08-13T15:30

Matthew Bannister on

The Jamaican-born poet Jean ‘Binta’ Breeze MBE, who was known for her compelling performances. We have a tribute from Linton Kwesi Johnson.

Sir Nicholas Goodiso...

Sir Graham Vick (pictured), Carmel Budiardjo, Piers Plowright, Dusty Hill from 2021-08-06T15:02

Julian Worricker on:

The opera director, Sir Graham Vick, who challenged people's perceptions by discovering new performers and new audiences.

Carmel Budiardjo, the human rights camp...

Jackie Mason (pictured), John Woodcock, Dinah Murray, Billy Lacey from 2021-07-30T15:30

Matthew Bannister on

Jackie Mason, the comedian and former rabbi whose observations of Jewish life took him from the Borscht Belt to Broadway.

John Woodcock, the veteran cricket wri...

Gillian Sheen (pictured), William 'Twink' Allen, Lawrence 'Benny' Goodman, Alan Lewis from 2021-07-23T15:30

Matthew Bannister on

Gillian Sheen, the first and only British person to win an Olympic Gold Medal for fencing.

Professor William 'Twink' Allen, the equine fertility expert whose req...

Jehan Sadat (pictured), Michael Horovitz, Richard Ernst, Dilip Kumar from 2021-07-16T15:30

Matthew Bannister on

Jehan Sadat, the wife of president Anwar Sadat of Egypt, who campaigned for women’s rights, supported the disabled and disadvantaged people and forged an academic car...

Donald Rumsfeld (pictured), Menelik Shabazz, Elizabeth French from 2021-07-09T15:30

Matthew Bannister on

Donald Rumsfeld, the US Secretary of Defense who challenged the military bureaucracy, advocated the invasion of Iraq in 2003 and was blamed for many of the failings of...

John McAfee (pictured), Trần Thiện Khiêm, Karla Burns, Horace 'Lyle' Hutley from 2021-07-02T15:30

Matthew Bannister on

The controversial American businessman John McAfee who made his first fortune selling anti-virus software, retreated into a compound in Belize where he was suspected ...

Kenneth Kaunda, Janet Malcolm, Penny Kemp, Bob Swash from 2021-06-25T15:30

Pictured: President Kenneth Kaunda

Matthew Bannister on

The Zambian President Kenneth Kaunda who fought for independence then ruled his country for nearly thirty years, but was voted...

Edward de Bono, Paul Van Doren, Alastair Hanton OBE, Violetta Elvin from 2021-06-18T15:43

Pictured: Edward de Bono

Matthew Bannister on

Edward De Bono, the psychologist who advocated lateral thinking – and sold the concept to companies around the world.

Paul Van Dor...

Lee Evans (pictured), Yuan Longping, Bill McCall, Alix Dobkin from 2021-06-11T15:02

Matthew Bannister on

Lee Evans, the world-record-breaking American sprinter who took part in black power protests at the 1968 Mexico Olympics.

Yuan Longping, the plant scientist who...

Eric Carle (pictured), Helen Murray Free, Michael Parsons, Evelyn McNicol from 2021-06-04T15:02

Matthew Bannister on

The children’s author and illustrator Eric Carle, best known for creating The Very Hungry Caterpillar which has sold fifty-five million copies.

Helen Murray Free...

Sir Paul Cosford, Max Mosley (pictured), Dr Frances Rotblat, Norman Lloyd from 2021-05-28T15:02

Julian Worricker on:

Sir Paul Cosford, who - as medical director of Public Health England - took on a prominent role during the Ebola outbreak and the Salisbury poisonings.

The Formu...

Spencer Silver, Kevin Jackson, Patricia Brown, Asfaw Yemiru from 2021-05-21T15:02

Matthew Bannister on

Dr. Spencer Silver, the American chemist who invented the adhesive used in Post It Notes.

Kevin Jackson, the writer, broadcaster and critic described as a “21st ...

Olympia Dukakis (pictured), Eric McGraw MBE, Anthony Thwaite from 2021-05-14T15:02

Matthew Bannister on:

Olympia Dukakis, the Greek-American actor who won an Oscar for playing Cher’s mother in Moonstruck and became an LGBT icon after playing Anna Madrigal in Tales of the...

Baroness O'Cathain, Michael Collins, Sharon Matola, Jim Steinman (pictured, with Meat Loaf) from 2021-05-07T15:02

Matthew Bannister on

Baroness O’Cathain, the successful businesswoman who became Managing Director of the Barbican Arts Centre in London but left after losing the confidence of staff and a...

Geoff Crowther, Isamu Akasaki, June Newton, Les McKeown (pictured) from 2021-04-30T15:02

Matthew Bannister on:

Geoff Crowther, the global traveller, writer and map maker whose work helped to build the success of the Lonely Planet guide books.

Isamu Akasaki, the Nobel pri...

Helen McCrory (pictured), Hans Küng, Eric Gordon, George Reynolds from 2021-04-23T15:02

Matthew Bannister on

Helen McCrory, the actor best known for playing the matriarch Aunt Polly in Peaky Blinders, but equally acclaimed for her classical stage performances. David Hare pays...

Baroness Shirley Williams (pictured), Glynn Lunney, Lyn Macdonald from 2021-04-16T15:02

Matthew Bannister on:

The Liberal Democrat peer Baroness Williams of Crosby. As Shirley Williams she was a Labour cabinet minister who abolished the 11-plus exam in many parts of the UK, t...

Doreen Lofthouse OBE, Dr Chris Doake, Barbara Hosking CBE, Bernice Cohen from 2021-04-09T15:02

Matthew Bannister on

Doreen Lofthouse, the Lancashire businesswoman who took Fisherman’s Friends lozenges from a Fleetwood chemist’s shop to a multi-million pound international company. Listen

Bob Davey MBE; George Segal (pictured); Lady Violet Aitken; Tony Hendra from 2021-04-02T15:03

Matthew Bannister on

Bob Davey, the retired water board superintendent who made it his mission to restore an ancient church in Norfolk – and in the process made a remarkable archaeological...

Nawal El Saadawi (pictured), Brigadier Jack Thomas, President John Magufuli, Ion Mihai Pacepa from 2021-03-26T16:03

Matthew Bannister on:

The Egyptian feminist writer Nawal El Saadawi who faced persecution and imprisonment but never wavered from her commitment to campaigning for women’s rights.

Br...

Murray Walker (pictured), King Goodwill Zwelithini, Mary Asprey, Bunny Wailer from 2021-03-19T16:03

Julian Worricker on: One of the best known sports commentators of his generation, motor racing's Murray Walker The woman who co-founded what became the charity, Missling People, Mary Asprey<...

Nicola Pagett (pictured), Stan Shaw, Prof John Mallard, Rupert Neve from 2021-03-12T16:03

Matthew Bannister on

Nicola Pagett, the acclaimed actor who made her name on TV in Upstairs Downstairs and as Anna Karenina but also excelled in classical stage roles. Later in life she su...

Sheikh Ahmed Zaki Yamani (pictured), Sidney Alford, Alison Lurie, Chris Barber from 2021-03-05T16:03

Matthew Bannister on

Sheikh Ahmed Zaki Yamani, the Saudi oil minister who presided over the 1970s embargo that caused crises for Western economies.

Sidney Alford, the maverick explo...

Sir William Macpherson (pictured), Margaret Snyder, Eleanor Wadsworth, Iain Pattinson from 2021-02-26T16:03

Matthew Bannister on

Sir William Macpherson, the retired judge whose report on the investigation of the murder of Stephen Lawrence accused the Metropolitan Police of “institutional racism”...

Carlos Menem (pictured), Mary Wilson, Robin Pooley, Larry Flynt from 2021-02-19T16:03

Matthew Bannister on:

Carlos Menem, the flamboyant President of Argentina during the 1990s who transformed the country’s economy, but was dogged by allegations of corruption.

Mary Wi...

George Shultz, Yvonne Conolly, Maureen Colquhoun, Christopher Plummer (pictured) from 2021-02-12T16:02

Matthew Bannister on

George Shultz, the US Secretary of State during the Reagan years who came close to brokering a deal to abolish all US and Soviet nuclear weapons.

Yvonne Conolly,...

George Shultz, Yvonne Conolly, Maureen Colquhoun, Christopher Plummer (pictured) from 2021-02-12T16:02

Matthew Bannister on

George Shultz, the US Secretary of State during the Reagan years who came close to brokering a deal to abolish all US and Soviet nuclear weapons.

Yvonne Conol...

Lewis Wolpert, Cicely Tyson, Prince Khalid Abdullah and Captain Sir Tom Moore (pictured) from 2021-02-05T16:03

Matthew Bannister on

The biologist Lewis Wolpert who developed new theories about embryo development and was a passionate communicator of science.

The award winning actor Cicely Tyso...

Lewis Wolpert, Cicely Tyson, Prince Khalid Abdullah and Captain Sir Tom Moore (pictured) from 2021-02-05T16:03

Matthew Bannister on

The biologist Lewis Wolpert who developed new theories about embryo development and was a passionate communicator of science.

The award winning actor Cicely T...

Larry King (pictured), Catherine Ennis, Margaret Weston, Gerry Cottle from 2021-01-29T16:03

Matthew Bannister on

Larry King, the American TV interviewer whose long running show on CNN attracted guests ranging from Presidents to pop stars. Christiane Amanpour pays tribute.

C...

Larry King (pictured), Catherine Ennis, Margaret Weston, Gerry Cottle from 2021-01-29T16:03

Matthew Bannister on

Larry King, the American TV interviewer whose long running show on CNN attracted guests ranging from Presidents to pop stars. Christiane Amanpour pays tribute.
Listen

Phil Spector (pictured), Grace Robertson, Paul Nihill from 2021-01-22T16:03

Matthew Bannister on:

Phil Spector, the influential record producer who created the “Wall of Sound”. He died while serving a prison sentence for murdering actress Lana Clarkson.

Gra...

Phil Spector (pictured), Grace Robertson, Paul Nihill from 2021-01-22T16:03

Matthew Bannister on:

Phil Spector, the influential record producer who created the “Wall of Sound”. He died while serving a prison sentence for murdering actress Lana Clarkson.

...

Michael Apted (pictured), Kay Ullrich, Katharine Whitehorn, Reginald Foster from 2021-01-15T16:03

Julian Worricker on the film-maker Michael Apted, famous for his work on the 7UP documentary series, but who also directed nearly 30 feature films.

Kay Ullrich, an MSP after the first elec...

Michael Apted (pictured), Kay Ullrich, Katharine Whitehorn, Reginald Foster from 2021-01-15T16:03

Julian Worricker on the film-maker Michael Apted, famous for his work on the 7UP documentary series, but who also directed nearly 30 feature films.

Kay Ullrich, an MSP after the first elec...

Sir Brian Urquhart (pictured), Albert Roux, Dame Rachel Waterhouse, Gerry Marsden from 2021-01-08T16:03

Matthew Bannister on

Sir Brian Urquhart, the international civil servant and war veteran who played a key role in setting up United Nations peacekeeping forces.

Albert Roux, the Fren...

Sir Brian Urquhart (pictured), Albert Roux, Dame Rachel Waterhouse, Gerry Marsden from 2021-01-08T16:03

Matthew Bannister on

Sir Brian Urquhart, the international civil servant and war veteran who played a key role in setting up United Nations peacekeeping forces.

Albert Roux, the F...

Stella Tennant, George Bizos, Joan Feynman, Rishi Kapoor from 2021-01-01T16:20

Matthew Bannister on Stella Tennant, the iconic fashion model who rose to prominence in the 1990s, becoming the face of Chanel. George Bizos, the South African human rights lawyer who represent...

Millie Small, JJ Williams, Maurice Healy, Dame Fanny Waterman from 2020-12-27T20:30

Julian Worricker on

Millie Jones, the singer who brought ska rhythms and Jamaican culture to a global audience with her hit song My Boy Lollipop.

JJ Williams, the Llanelli, Wales and...

John le Carré (pictured), Patience Thomson, Doug Scott, Dame Barbara Windsor from 2020-12-18T16:02

Matthew Bannister on The author John le Carré , the pen name of David Cornwell, who drew on his own experiences as a spy to elevate the espionage novel to new heights. Patience Thomson, the ...

John le Carré (pictured), Patience Thomson, Doug Scott, Dame Barbara Windsor from 2020-12-18T16:02

Matthew Bannister on

The author John le Carré , the pen name of David Cornwell, who drew on his own experiences as a spy to elevate the espionage novel to new heights.

Patience ...

Mario Molina, Irina Antonova, Valéry Giscard d’Estaing, Peter Alliss (pictured) from 2020-12-11T16:02

Matthew Bannister on

Mario Molina, the chemist who won the Nobel prize for revealing the devastating impact of CFCs on the ozone layer.

Irina Antonova, the director of the Pushkin Mu...

Mario Molina, Irina Antonova, Valéry Giscard d’Estaing, Peter Alliss (pictured) from 2020-12-11T16:02

Matthew Bannister on

Mario Molina, the chemist who won the Nobel prize for revealing the devastating impact of CFCs on the ozone layer.

Irina Antonova, the director of the Pushkin...

Hamish MacInnes OBE, José Padilla, Anne Rasa from 2020-12-04T16:00

Matthew Bannister on:

Hamish MacInnes, the mountaineer known as “The Fox of Glencoe”. He climbed the Matterhorn aged 16, made four trips to Everest and was a stalwart of the Glencoe Mounta...

Diego Maradona, Rosalind Grimshaw, Jan Morris CBE from 2020-11-27T16:00

Pictured: Diego Maradona

Matthew Bannister on:

Diego Maradona, the flawed footballing genius who was worshipped by fans in Argentina and his adopted home city of Naples before drug a...

Des O’Connor CBE, Richard Trim OBE, Dr Ataullah Siddiqui, Edith Raymond Locke from 2020-11-20T16:00

Pictured: Des O'Connor

Matthew Bannister on

The comedian Des O’Connor, an all-round entertainer equally at home telling jokes, hosting a chat show or recording an album.

Richa...

Lord Sacks, John Sessions, Joanna Harcourt-Smith, Jim Radford from 2020-11-13T16:06

Pictured: Lord Sacks

Matthew Bannister on

The former Chief Rabbi Lord Sacks, a respected scholar and broadcaster who reached out to other faiths, but had trouble reconciling the diff...

Sir Sean Connery, Eavan Boland, Nobby Stiles MBE, Bobby Ball from 2020-11-06T16:00

Pictured: Sir Sean Connery

Matthew Bannister on

Sir Sean Connery, seen by many as the definitive James Bond, he won an Oscar for The Untouchables and was a supporter of the Scottish ...

David Toole OBE, Professor Valerie Curtis, Frank Bough, Jill Paton Walsh CBE from 2020-10-30T17:04

Pictured: David Toole

Matthew Bannister on

David Toole, the disabled dancer who starred in the opening ceremony of the 2012 Paralympics.

Professor Val Curtis, who was known as ...

Herbert Kretzmer, James Nash, Tom Maschler, Sister Chiara Hatton Hall from 2020-10-27T11:55

Pictured: Herbert Kretzmer

Matthew Bannister on

Herbert Kretzmer, the journalist turned lyricist, best known for writing the lyrics for the musical Les Misérables.

James Nash, ...

Derek Mahon, Professor Gerta Vrbová, Ang Rita Sherpa, Helena Shenel from 2020-10-16T15:00

Pictured: Derek Mahon

Matthew Bannister on

Derek Mahon, one of Ireland’s greatest poets of recent times, whose work 'Everything’s Going To Be Alright' was read on Irish TV and radio...

Kenzo Takada, Colonel John Waddy, Frank Windsor, Ann Getty from 2020-10-09T15:00

Pictured: Kenzo Takada

Matthew Bannister on:

Kenzo Takada, the Japanese-born fashion designer who made Paris his home and was known for his bold use of colour.

Colonel John Wad...

Sir Harold Evans, Ruth Bader-Ginsburg, Alan Minter, Helen Taylor-Thompson from 2020-10-06T15:48

Julian Worricker on:

The campaigning journalist and editor, Sir Harold Evans, voted the greatest of all time by his peers....

Ruth Bader-Ginsburg, US Supreme Court Justice, who serve...

Juliette Greco, Bob Gore, Dame Georgina Mace, Jiri Menzel from 2020-10-02T15:00

Pictured: Juliette Greco

Julian Worricker on the French singer and actor, Juliette Greco, who rose to fame on the famous Left Bank in Paris after the war....

Bob Gore who revolutioni...

Sir Terence Conran, Dame Diana Rigg CBE, Shere Hite, Toots Hibbert from 2020-09-18T15:00

Pictured: Sir Terence Conran

Matthew Bannister on:

Sir Terence Conran, the designer and businessman who transformed the UK’s approach to home décor and eating out.

Dame Diana ...

Stuart King, Comrade Duch, Deirdre Le Faye, David Bryant CBE from 2020-09-11T15:00

Pictured: Stuart King

Julian Worricker on: Stuart King, who co-founded a humanitarian charity which involved perilous flights to southern Africa in light aircraft straight after the war....

Chadwick Boseman, Sir Kenneth Robinson, Lord Renton of Mount Harry, Doreen Davies from 2020-09-04T15:00

Pictured: Chadwick Boseman

Matthew Bannister on

Chadwick Boseman, whose portrayal of the King of the fictional African kingdom of Wakanda in the movie Black Panther made him a global...

Dr James Partridge OBE, Sally Jacobs, Angela Buxton, Philip Horniblow OBE from 2020-08-28T15:22

Pictured: Dr James Partridge OBE (c) Paul Chambers Photography

Julian Worricker on: The theatre designer, Sally Jacobs, whose work included a groundbreaking production of A Midsummer Nig...

Julian Bream CBE, Elizabeth Ward OBE, Chris Graham-Bell, Stuart Christie from 2020-08-21T17:15

Pictured: Julian Bream

Matthew Bannister on

Julian Bream, said by many to be the greatest classical guitarist of all time.

Elizabeth Ward, who campaigned for the introduction...

Hawa Abdi, Clive Ponting, President Lee Teng-hui, Richard Brooke from 2020-08-14T15:00

Matthew Bannister on

Hawa Abdi, the Somali doctor who set up a clinic for pregnant women at her home that eventually became a sanctuary for thousands during violence in the country.

...

John Hume, Stan Mellor MBE, Paulette Wilson, Sir Alan Parker from 2020-08-07T15:00

Pictured: John Hume

Matthew Bannister on:

John Hume, the politician widely credited with driving through the Northern Ireland peace process.

Stan Mellor, who became the first j...

Stuart Wheeler, Josephine Cox, Miloš Jakeš, Peter Green from 2020-07-31T16:17

Pictured: Stuart Wheeler

Matthew Bannister on

Stuart Wheeler, the spread betting tycoon who used his millions to fund anti-EU political parties and campaigns.

Josephine Cox, th...

John Lewis, Tony Elliott CBE, Wendy Cooling, Dr Alan Howard from 2020-07-24T15:00

Matthew Bannister on John Lewis, the leading American civil rights campaigner who was beaten and imprisoned in the 1960s when he marched with Martin Luther King and later served as a Congressm...

Jack Charlton, Zindzi Mandela, Charles Webb, Ida Haendel from 2020-07-17T15:46

Pictured: Jack Charlton

Matthew Bannister on

The footballer Jack Charlton, who went from a pit village in Northumberland to become a Leeds United stalwart and member of England’s 196...

Ennio Morricone, Sir Everton Weekes, Baroness Maddock, Earl Cameron CBE from 2020-07-10T15:00

Pictured: Ennio Morricone

Matthew Bannister on:

Ennio Morricone, the Italian composer best known for his scores for films like The Good, The Bad and the Ugly and The Mission, but kee...

Milton Glaser, Terry Dicks, Professor Tom Arie, Else Blangsted from 2020-07-03T15:00

Pictured: Milton Glaser

Matthew Bannister on

The graphic designer Milton Glaser who came up with the iconic “I heart New York” logo – but didn’t make a penny from it.

Terry Dic...

Sir Ian Holm, Jean Kennedy Smith, Felicity Bryan MBE, Lily Lian from 2020-06-26T15:00

Pictured: Sir Ian Holm

Matthew Bannister on Sir Ian Holm, the respected actor best known for playing Bilbo Baggins in the Lord of the Rings films and for his interpretation of Shakespea...

Dame Vera Lynn, Professor Geoffrey Burnstock, Larry Kramer, Pierre Nkurunziza from 2020-06-19T15:00

Pictured: Dame Vera Lynn

Matthew Bannister on: Professor Geoffrey Burnstock, the eminent neurobiologist who identified the function of a neurotransmitter called ATP with important implic...

Christo Javacheff, Cathie Sabin OBE, Dorothy Wakely, Jonathan Whitehead from 2020-06-12T15:00

Pictured: Christo Javacheff

Matthew Bannister on:

The artist Christo Javacheff, best known for his extremely ambitious projects to wrap significant buildings and landscapes in fabric...

Dr Stanley Ho, Roger Fellows, Margaret Meek Spencer, Mory Kanté from 2020-06-05T15:00

Pictured: Stanley Ho

Julian Worricker on:

The man praised by both Tony Blair and Gordon Brown for being the architect of the national minimum wage, Roger Fellows….

One of Asia’...

Margaret Maughan, John Cumming OBE, Jerry Givens, John Langdon, Eric Weissberg from 2020-05-29T15:00

Pictured: Margaret Maughan

Julian Worricker on Britain’s first Paralympic gold medallist, Margaret Maughan; Tanni Grey-Thompson compares the games of 1960 and now….

The music promote...

Lord Robert May of Oxford, Dr Judith Darmady OBE, Mark Barkan, Saroj Lal from 2020-05-22T15:00

Pictured: Lord Robert May of Oxford

Matthew Bannister on

Lord May, a former Chief Scientific Advisor to the UK government and President of the Royal Society. He developed the concept...

Little Richard, Dr Janet Carr OBE, Professor John Horton Conway, Florian Schneider from 2020-05-15T15:00

Matthew Bannister on

The rock 'n' roll pioneer Little Richard, whose flamboyant performances and powerful vocal style influenced many who came after him.

Janet Carr, the psychologist...

Catherine Hamlin, Irrfan Khan, Denis Goldberg, Ann Sayer from 2020-05-08T15:00

Pictured: Catherine Hamlin

Matthew Bannister on

Catherine Hamlin the obstetrician who, with her husband, set about tackling the devastating effects of obstetric fistulae in the women...

Ronan O'Rahilly, Sir John Houghton CBE, Sue Davies OBE, Barbara Smoker from 2020-05-01T10:36

Pictured: Ronan O’Rahilly

Matthew Bannister on

Ronan O’Rahilly, the Irish businessman who ran the pirate radio station Radio Caroline on a ship off the coast of Essex.

Sir John...

Dame Jocelyn Barrow DBE, Keith Critchlow, Leonard ‘Nipper’ Read, John Prine from 2020-04-24T15:30

Pictured: Dame Jocelyn Barrow

Matthew Bannister on

The artist, professor of architecture and expert on sacred geometry Keith Critchlow. He was a key figure in the Prince’s School of ...

Sir Stirling Moss OBE, Professor Margaret Burbidge, Mahmoud Jibril, Tim Brooke-Taylor OBE from 2020-04-17T12:04

Pictured: Sir Stirling Moss OBE

Matthew Bannister on Sir Stirling Moss, the iconic British racing driver, noted for his courage and patriotism. Although he never won the world championsh...

Dr Bill Frankland MBE, John Tydeman OBE, The Marquess of Bath, Honor Blackman from 2020-04-10T15:10

Pictured: Dr Bill Frankland

Julian Worricker on:

Dr Bill Frankland, who survived three years in a Japanese prisoner of war camp, studied under Alexander Fleming, and brought the poll...

Albert Uderzo, Valerie Pettit OBE, Reverend Joseph Lowery, Julie Felix from 2020-04-06T14:47

Pictured: Albert Uderzo

Matthew Bannister on

Valerie Pettit OBE, the senior MI6 officer in charge of the daring operation to get Soviet double agent Oleg Gordievsky out of Russia aft...

Betty Williams, Dr Fuad Nahdi, Sol Kerzner, Kenny Rogers from 2020-03-27T16:12

Picture Betty Williams

Matthew Bannister on: Fuad Nahdi, the journalist, commentator and campaigner named as one of the world’s 500 most influential Muslims. Sol Kerzner, the South Afric...

Michel Roux, Sammy McCarthy, Lilian Mohin, Roy Hudd from 2020-03-20T16:57

Pictured: Michel Roux

Matthew Bannister on

Michel Roux, the French chef who, with his brother Albert, transformed the British restaurant scene in the 1970s

Sammy McCarthy, the ...

Javier Pérez de Cuéllar, Max von Sydow, Professor Hannah Steinberg, Charles Portis from 2020-03-13T16:49

Pictured: Javier Pérez de Cuéllar

Matthew Bannister on

The United Nations Secretary-General Javier Pérez de Cuéllar. The Peruvian diplomat faced major challenges including the Iran-...

Katherine Johnson, Nexhmije Hoxha, Sir Michael Berridge, Diana Serra Cary (Baby Peggy) from 2020-03-06T16:57

Pictured: Katherine Johnson

Matthew Bannister on

Nexhmije Hoxha, the wife of the Albanian dictator Enver Hoxha. The couple ran a repressive Stalinist regime and she was known in the ...

Hosni Mubarak, Andrew Weatherall, Mary Higgins Clark, John Bevan from 2020-02-28T16:51

Matthew Bannister on

Andrew Weatherall, a hugely influential figure in the dance music scene of the 1990s, who revolutionised what a DJ could be and produced many hit albums and remixes. R...

Heather Couper CBE, Leonard Woodley QC, Joseph Shabalala from 2020-02-21T16:54

Pictured: Heather Couper

Matthew Bannister on

Heather Couper, the astronomer who used her engaging media appearances to enthuse a generation about space. We talk to her co-author and...

Daniel arap Moi, Feng Huiyan, Professor Donald West, Colonel ‘Mad Mike’ Hoare from 2020-02-14T17:22

Pictured: Daniel arap Moi

Julian Worricker on:

Daniel arap Moi, who led Kenya for 24 years, but did so amidst corruption scandals and the repression of political opponents...

...

Kirk Douglas, Terry Hands CBE, Hazel Murphy, Seamus Mallon from 2020-02-07T16:55

Pictured: Kirk Douglas

Julian Worricker on:

Terry Hands, long serving artistic director of the RSC, who co-founded the Liverpool Everyman theatre and revived the Clwyd theatre Cymru....

Nicholas Parsons CBE, Mary Craig, Lord Maclennan of Rogart, Kobe Bryant from 2020-01-31T16:52

Pictured: Nicholas Parsons

Matthew Bannister on The Just A Minute host, TV presenter and actor Nicholas Parsons. Sheila Hancock and Tony Hawks pay tribute - in just a minute!

Mary Cr...

Tony Garnett, Joy Rainey, Professor Cuchlaine King, Terry Jones from 2020-01-24T16:50

Pictured: Terry Jones

Matthew Bannister on Tony Garnett, the TV and film producer whose tragic childhood inspired him to make influential films like Up The Junction, Cathy Come Home and Ke...

Sir Roger Scruton FBA, FRSL, Sultan Qaboos bin Said of Oman, Bobby Neame CBE, Elizabeth Sellars from 2020-01-17T16:52

Pictured: Sir Roger Scruton

Matthew Bannister on Sir Roger Scruton, the leading conservative philosopher of his generation, known for his work on aesthetics. His outspoken views made him a...

General Qasem Soleimani, M.C. Beaton, George Laurer, Dr Sidney Holt from 2020-01-10T16:49

Pictured: General Qasem Soleimani

Matthew Bannister on

Iranian General Qasem Soleimani, who was killed by an American drone strike. We try to uncover the motivation of the man who s...

Neil Innes, Steve Sawyer, Sheila Mercier, Alasdair Gray from 2020-01-03T16:54

Pictured: Neil Innes

Matthew Bannister on

Neil Innes, the talented musician who was a member of the Bonzo Dog Doo Dah Band, worked with Monty Python and satirised the Beatles. Roger ...

Andrew Graham-Yooll OBE, Andrea Newman, Peter Davis, Olly Croft OBE from 2019-12-27T16:44

Julian Worricker on:

The journalist, Andrew Graham-Yooll OBE, who risked his life to tell the story of the so-called 'disappeared' in Argentina in the 1970s.

The writer Andrea Newman...

Kenny Lynch OBE, Chris Moncrieff CBE, Kate Figes, Branko Lustig from 2019-12-20T16:50

Pictured: Kenny Lynch OBE

Matthew Bannister on

Chris Moncrieff, the journalist who covered parliament for the Press Association for more than 50 years. He even has a bar named after ...

David Bellamy, Nell Gifford, Yasuhiro Nakasone, Mariss Jansons from 2019-12-13T16:49

Pictured: David Bellamy

Matthew Bannister on

David Bellamy, the botanist who became a household name through his popular TV programmes, but fell from prominence after describing man-...

Bob Willis MBE, Gary Rhodes OBE, Dr Shuping Wang, Sir Stephen Cleobury CBE from 2019-12-06T16:45

Pictured: Bob Willis

Matthew Bannister on

Bob Willis, the former England cricket captain, who was seen as one of the finest fast bowlers of his generation.

Gary Rhodes, the sp...

Sir Jonathan Miller, Field Marshal Lord Bramall, Clive James AO, CBE from 2019-11-29T17:01

Pictured: Jonathan Miller

Matthew Bannister on

Sir Jonathan Miller, who hated the term polymath - but undoubtedly was one. He came to fame in the satirical revue Beyond the Fringe, w...

Vladimir Bukovsky, Alison Prince, Keith Schellenberg, Robert Ponsonby from 2019-11-22T16:44

Pictured: Vladimir Bukovsky

Matthew Bannister on

The Russian dissident Vladimir Bukovsky, a long term opponent of the Soviet regime who revealed the use of psychiatric hospitals as p...

Nik Powell OBE, James Le Mesurier OBE, Frank Dobson, Hazel Vincent Wallace OBE from 2019-11-15T16:44

Pictured: Nik Powell

Matthew Bannister on

James Le Mesurier, the former British Army Officer who set up the organisation that trained the White Helmet volunteers who rescue people fr...

Gay Byrne, Sadako Ogata, Robert Evans from 2019-11-08T16:52

Pictured: Gay Byrne

Matthew Bannister on

Gay Byrne, the Irish TV and radio presenter who occupied a unique place in the nation's culture and public life. He presented the Late Late S...

Charles Jencks, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, Irene Shubik, Raymond Leppard from 2019-11-01T16:44

Pictured: Charles Jencks

Matthew Bannister on

The architectural historian Charles Jencks, who was known as the godfather of postmodernism. He also involved leading architects in desi...

Alicia Alonso, Deborah Orr, Joyce Cansfield, Clora Bryant from 2019-10-25T15:52

Pictured: Alicia Alonso

Matthew Bannister on

Alicia Alonso, the Cuban ballerina who went on dancing when her sight began to fail. She also set up the National Ballet Company of Cuba....

Alexei Leonov, Sally Soames, Kary Mullis, Reg Watson from 2019-10-18T16:00

Pictured: Alexei Leonov

Matthew Bannister on

The Soviet cosmonaut Alexei Leonov who was the first person to walk in space.

Sally Soames, the photographer who made portraits of ...

Ginger Baker, Su Beng, John Haylett, Diahann Carroll from 2019-10-11T15:43

Pictured: Ginger Baker

Matthew Bannister on

Su Beng, the activist known as the father of Taiwan independence.

Ginger Baker, the legendary drummer with rock super group Cream wh...

Jessye Norman, Peter Sissons, Al Alvarez, Marita Lorenz from 2019-10-04T15:50

Pictured: Jessye Norman

Julian Worricker on:

The multiple award-winning American soprano, Jessye Norman, whose performances wowed audiences around the world....

Peter Sissons, ...

Jacques Chirac, Sir Michael Edwardes, Cokie Roberts, Pat Cavendish O’Neill from 2019-09-27T15:48

Pictured: Jacques Chirac

Julian Worricker on:

Jacques Chirac, mayor of Paris for eighteen years, who served twice as French Prime Minister and twice as French president....

The...

Chester Williams, Sheikh Yusuf Motala, Jan Ruff O’Herne, Ric Ocasek from 2019-09-20T15:48

Pictured: Chester Williams

Matthew Bannister on

Sheikh Yusuf Motala who founded the first traditional Islamic seminary in the UK, and trained hundreds of Imams.

Chester William...

Hans Rausing, Sir Dawda Jawara, Sue Crockford, Terrance Dicks from 2019-09-13T15:48

Matthew Bannister on

Hans Rausing, the Swedish-born industrialist who led the Tetra Pak company. In the 1990s he topped the Sunday Times Rich List ahead of the Queen. His daughter Sigrid p...

Robert Mugabe, Alla Verber, Ciaran McKeown, Bill Anderson MBE from 2019-09-06T15:45

Pictured: Robert Mugabe

Matthew Bannister on

The former President of Zimbabwe Robert Mugabe. He was once hailed as a hero of the liberation struggle but later seen by many as a tyran...

Lord Bell, Paule Marshall, David Koch, Richard Booth from 2019-08-30T16:00

Matthew Bannister on

Lord Bell, the advertising and public relations executive who helped Margaret Thatcher to win three elections.

Paule Marshall, the novelist who wrote about the e...

Peter Fonda, Princess Christina of the Netherlands, Geoffrey Paul OBE, Jim Bouton from 2019-08-23T16:14

Pictured: Peter Fonda

Matthew Bannister on

Peter Fonda, the actor who became a hero of the 1960s counterculture, by riding his Harley Davidson across America in the classic film Easy...

Julia Farron OBE, Nuon Chea, June Fraser, Marcel Berlins from 2019-08-16T15:47

Pictured: Julia Farron

Julian Worricker on:

The Cambodian political leader, Nuon Chea, who was found guilty of genocide and crimes against humanity during his time as a member of the...

Toni Morrison, Hal Prince, Dr Elizabeth Killick, Li Peng, Barrington Pheloung from 2019-08-09T15:56

Pictured: Toni Morrison

Matthew Bannister on

The Nobel Prize-winning author Toni Morrison, acclaimed for her novels which put the experience of black women centre stage.

Hal P...

Russi Taylor, Beji Caid Essebsi, Jane Hubert, Iván Erőd from 2019-08-02T15:54

Pictured: Russi Taylor

Matthew Bannister on

Beji Caid Essebsi who became the first democratically elected President of Tunisia in the aftermath of the Arab Spring.

Russi Tayl...

Andrea Camilleri, Johnny Clegg OBE, OIS, Christopher Kraft, Paul Krassner, Professor Rolf Gehlhaar from 2019-07-26T15:48

Pictured: Andrea Camilleri

Matthew Bannister on

Andrea Camilleri, the Sicilian writer who created the Inspector Montalbano novels. His literary success began in his late sixties. Listen

Audrey Eyton, Arthur Ryan, Jack Bond, Rip Torn from 2019-07-19T15:57

Pictured: Audrey Eyton

Matthew Bannister on

Arthur Ryan, the Irish retailer who created Primark - known for selling fast fashion at low prices.

Audrey Eyton, who devised the F-...

Eva Kor, Christopher Booker, João Gilberto, John McCririck from 2019-07-12T15:54

Pictured: Eva Kor

Matthew Bannister on

Eva Kor who, with her twin sister, was the subject of experiments by the Nazi doctor Josef Mengele in Auschwitz. She later publicly forgave her...

Brenda Maddox, Ivan Cooper, Min Hogg, John Gunther Dean, Dave Bartholomew from 2019-07-05T15:57

Pictured: Brenda Maddox

Matthew Bannister on

Ivan Cooper, the human rights campaigner and politician from Northern Ireland who played a key role in the protests on Bloody Sunday.

Dr Henry Lynch, Judith Krantz, Lord Patel of Blackburn, Anthony Hedges from 2019-06-28T15:52

Pictured: Judith Krantz

Matthew Bannister on

Dr. Henry Lynch whose painstaking medical research revealed the causes of hereditary cancers.

Judith Krantz, the American author wh...

Franco Zeffirelli, Gloria Vanderbilt, Mohamed Morsi, Philomena Lynott from 2019-06-21T15:48

Pictured: Franco Zeffirelli

Matthew Bannister on

Franco Zeffirelli, the stage and film director known for his opulent designs and flamboyant personality.

Gloria Vanderbilt, the...

John Tidmarsh OBE, Sylvia Denman, Paul Darrow, Sheila Turner, Leon Redbone from 2019-06-15T12:29

Pictured: John Tidmarsh

Matthew Bannister on

John Tidmarsh, who presented Outlook on the BBC World Service for thirty years and brought comfort to the Beirut hostages. John McCarthy ...

Edward Seaga, Binyavanga Wainaina, Mary Stopes-Roe, Gloria Schiff, Dr John from 2019-06-07T15:54

Pictured: Edward Seaga

Julian Worricker on:

The Jamaican politician, Edward Seaga, who led his country as prime minister throughout the 1980s

Binyavanga Wainaina, one of Kenya'...

Professor Murray Gell-Mann, Nan Winton, James McCord, Gregory Gray from 2019-05-31T15:51

Pictured: Nan Winton

Matthew Bannister on

Murray Gell-Mann, the American physicist who won the Nobel Prize for his work on the theory of elementary particles. He coined the name "qua...

Niki Lauda, Judith Kerr, IM Pei, Herman Wouk from 2019-05-24T15:51

Pictured: Judith Kerr

Matthew Bannister on

Niki Lauda, the fearless racing driver who survived a terrible crash to make a dramatic comeback on the track.

Judith Kerr, the aut...

Doris Day, Brian Walden, Dorothy Rowe, Lorraine Warren from 2019-05-17T15:50

Pictured: Doris Day

Julian Worricker on:

One of Hollywood's top box-office stars of the 50s and 60s, actress and singer Doris Day.

The Labour MP who became one of television's ...

Winnie Jordan, Richard Green, Karol Modzelewski, Liz Howe, John Singleton from 2019-05-10T15:53

Pictured: John Singleton

Andrea Catherwood on:

British Athlete Winnie Jordan who won a silver medal in the Empire Games in 1938 and became a celebrated British Champion after the war...

Grand Duke Jean of Luxembourg, Terry Rawlings, Neus Català, Heather Harper CBE, Peter Mayhew from 2019-05-03T15:52

Pictured: Peter Mayhew

Matthew Bannister on

Grand Duke Jean of Luxembourg, who served with the Irish Guards during the war, liberated his own country and then presided over its prosp...

Lyra McKee, Una-Mary Parker, Mira Markovic, Doreen Spooner, Edward Kelsey from 2019-04-26T15:47

Pictured: Lyra McKee

Matthew Bannister on

Lyra McKee, the 29 year old Northern Irish journalist who was shot dead by the New IRA.

Una-Mary Parker who was the social editor of ...

David Thouless, Nadja Poderegin, Ian Cognito, Dr Michael O’Donnell, Les Reed from 2019-04-19T15:41

Pictured: Nadja Poderegin

Julian Worricker on:

David Thouless, whose work in the world of quantum mechanics earned him a share of the Nobel Prize for Physics.

The Serbian actre...

Sydney Brenner, Dan Robbins, Edda Tasiemka, Ian McDonald from 2019-04-12T15:50

Pictured: Sydney Brenner

Matthew Bannister on

Sydney Brenner, the Nobel Prize-winning biologist who worked with Francis Crick to map DNA.

Dan Robbins, the artist who invented ...

Michel Bacos, Agnes Varda, Victor Hochhauser CBE, Barbara Low, Ranking Roger from 2019-04-05T15:56

Pictured: Agnès Varda

Matthew Bannister on

Michel Bacos, the pilot of the Air France jet that was hi-jacked to Entebbe in 1976. He was offered the chance to leave, but chose to stay ...

Baroness Warnock, William Hucklesby QPM, Rose Hilton, Professor Lord Bhattacharyya CBE FRS, Scott Walker from 2019-03-29T16:47

Pictured: Baroness Warnock

Matthew Bannister on

Baroness Warnock, the philosopher who set down the principles which govern human fertilisation treatment and embryo research.

W...

Gillian Freeman, Sir Peter Hutchison, Sister Dorothy Bell, Dick Dale from 2019-03-22T16:47

Pictured: Dick Dale

Matthew Bannister on

Gillian Freeman, the novelist and screenwriter whose books include The Leather Boys, a story of a gay love affair between two working class m...

Professor Mike Oliver, Jacques Loussier, Professor Richard Lacey, The Reverend Ruth Scott from 2019-03-15T16:56

Pictured: Jacques Loussier

Matthew Bannister on

Mike Oliver, who was paralysed from the neck down after diving into a swimming pool as a teenager. He became the UK's first Professor ...

France-Albert Rene, Simon Norton, Belle Tutaev, Dr Ian Adamson OBE, Keith Flint from 2019-03-08T17:00

Pictured: Simon Norton

Matthew Bannister on

France-Albert René, the Seychelles President who came to power in a coup and stayed in office for more than 25 years.

Simon Norton,...

André Previn KBE, John Haynes OBE, Tony Mendez, Lady Grantchester from 2019-03-01T16:58

Pictured: André Previn

Matthew Bannister on

André Previn, the conductor and pianist whose repertoire ranged from the classics to film and jazz music. He took part in a celebrated ske...

Lady Falkender, Karl Lagerfeld, John Stalker, Andrea Levy, Peter Tork from 2019-02-22T17:45

Matthew Bannister on

Lady Falkender who was the controversial political secretary to Harold Wilson for twenty seven years.

Karl Lagerfeld, the designer who re-vitalised Chanel, deve...

Gordon Banks OBE, Vikki Orvice, David Garman OBE, Mary Oliver, Albert Finney from 2019-02-15T16:51

Matthew Bannister on

Gordon Banks, the goalkeeper in England's 1966 World Cup winning team, who made one of the greatest saves of all time in 1970.

Vikki Orvice, the first woman to ...

Rosamunde Pilcher OBE, Hugh Lewin, Lamia Al-Gailani, Dr Stewart Adams OBE, Dr Adam Watson from 2019-02-08T16:52

Pictured: Rosamunde Pilcher

Andrea Catherwood on:

Activist Hugh Lewin who was jailed for his stand against apartheid in South Africa,

Iraqi archaeologist Lamia Al-Gailani who ...

Jeremy Hardy, Diana Athill OBE, Sir Conrad Swan, Michel Legrand from 2019-02-01T16:56

Pictured: Jeremy Hardy

Julian Worricker on:

Comedian Jeremy Hardy, a mainstay of The News Quiz and I'm Sorry I Haven't a Clue on Radio 4....

Editor and author, Diana Athill, w...

Hugh McIlvanney, Jennie Buckman, John Beavis, David Pritchard from 2019-01-25T16:48

Pictured: Hugh McIlvanney

Matthew Bannister on

Hugh McIlvanney, the respected sports writer known for his love of language and combative approach to life.

Jennie Buckman, the...

Joe Casely-Hayford, Judge Nicholas Crichton, Professor Sophie Oluwole, Professor Paul O’Brien CBE, Carol Channing from 2019-01-18T16:53

Pictured: Joe Casely-Hayford

Matthew Bannister on

Joe Casely-Hayford, the fashion designer whose creations ranged from punk to Savile Row tailoring. His children, who followed him in...

Nancy Roman, Ralph Koltai CBE, Julia Grant, Jin Yong, Norman Gimbel from 2019-01-11T16:49

Pictured: Nancy Roman

Matthew Bannister on

Nancy Roman, the American space agency NASA's first Chief Astronomer. She was known as the mother of the Hubble Telescope.

Ralph Kol...

Dame June Whitfield, Sir Jack Zunz, Thomas Baptiste, David Austin OBE, Karre Mastanamma from 2019-01-04T16:52

Pictured: June Whitfield

Matthew Bannister on

Dame June Whitfield, the comic actress whose long career spanned classic radio shows and Absolutely Fabulous.

Sir Jack Zunz, the ...

Sister Wendy Beckett, Nicolas Roeg, Inge Borkh, Professor Sir Aaron Klug, Geoff Emerick from 2018-12-28T17:01

Pictured: Sister Wendy Beckett

Julian Worricker on:

The nun, Sister Wendy Beckett, who became an unlikely television star when she brought her knowledge of the history of art to the...

Sir David Weatherall, Penny Marshall, Evelyn Berezin, Zhores Medvedev, Nancy Wilson from 2018-12-21T16:52

Pictured: Nancy Wilson

Matthew Bannister on

Sir David Weatherall, the world renowned haematologist and geneticist who pioneered molecular approaches to medicine.

Penny Marshall...

Peter Boizot, Judith Kazantzis, Sir Sze-Yuen Chung, Sister Cecylia Roszak, Scott English from 2018-12-14T16:58

Pictured: Peter Boizot

Matthew Bannister on

Peter Boizot who founded the Pizza Express chain of restaurants and invested heavily in his home town of Peterborough.

Judith Kazant...

Harry Leslie Smith, Pete Shelley, Monica Sims, Professor Wendy Atkin OBE, Ivan March from 2018-12-07T16:50

Pictured: Pete Shelley

Matthew Bannister on

Harry Leslie Smith who grew up in poverty in Yorkshire. He became an outspoken campaigner for the welfare state and a social media star in...

Baroness Trumpington, Roy Bailey, Chief Inspector Henry Stevens GC, Bernardo Bertolucci from 2018-11-30T16:55

Pictured: Baroness Trumpington

Matthew Bannister on

Baroness Trumpington, who worked for Lloyd George and at Bletchley Park during the war then became a government minister noted for...

John Large, William Goldman, Dr Sarah Ntiro, Richard Baker, Patsy Rodgers from 2018-11-23T16:53

Pictured: William Goldman

Matthew Bannister on

William Goldman, the Hollywood screenwriter behind a string of hits including Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, All The President's M...

Aubrey Manning, Max Levitas, Babs Beverley, Janet Paisley, Stan Lee from 2018-11-16T17:07

Pictured: Stan Lee

Matthew Bannister on

The naturalist and expert on animal evolution Aubrey Manning who presented the acclaimed BBC TV series Earth Story.

The Jewish Communist...

Lord Heywood, Pamela Lonsdale, Sangharakshita, Tom Jago, Francis Lai from 2018-11-09T16:56

Pictured: Lord Heywood

Matthew Bannister on

Lord Heywood, the senior civil servant who worked with four Prime Ministers: Tony Blair, Gordon Brown, David Cameron and Theresa May.

Wanda Ferragamo, Wim Kok, Ntozake Shange, Mohamed Sahnoun, Keith Killby from 2018-11-02T16:52

Pictured: Wanda Ferragamo

Matthew Bannister on

Wanda Ferragamo - who took over her husband's successful Italian shoe making business and turned it into a global fashion brand.

Anthea Bell OBE, Captain Michael Howard, Baroness Hollis of Heigham, Cicely Berry CBE, Tony Hiller from 2018-10-26T15:49

Pictured: Baroness Hollis

Matthew Bannister on

Anthea Bell who translated the works of Freud and Kafka into English - but was even better known for making Asterix the Gaul funny in h...

Paul Allen, Dr Mary Midgley, Leon Lederman, Roger Mainwood from 2018-10-19T15:50

Pictured: Paul Allen

Matthew Bannister on

Paul Allen who teamed up with his school friend Bill Gates to found the computer software company Microsoft. After he left, he used his bill...

Ray Galton, Professor Gerald Russell, Evelyn Anthony, Sir Roger Gibbs, Montserrat Caballé from 2018-10-12T15:54

Pictured: Montserrat Caballé

Matthew Bannister on

Ray Galton, who, with his writing partner Alan Simpson, created Hancock's Half Hour and Steptoe and Son. Paul Merton pays tribute. ...

Charles Aznavour, Dr Charles Kao, Elizabeth de Mauny Wainwright, John Cunliffe from 2018-10-05T15:50

Pictured: Charles Aznavour

Matthew Bannister on

Charles Aznavour, the French singer who "made despair popular". The lyricist Don Black, who worked with him, pays tribute.

Dr. ...

Chas Hodges, MJ Long, Arthur Mitchell, Rick Turner, Rachid Taha from 2018-09-28T15:48

Pictured: Chas Hodges

Matthew Bannister on

Chas Hodges, the session musician who became one half of the cockney duo Chas and Dave and had hits like Gertcha and Rabbit.

M.J. Lo...

Denis Norden, Diane Leather, Johnny Kingdom, Fenella Fielding from 2018-09-21T15:56

Pictured: Denis Norden

Andrea Catherwood on Denis Norden, the television presenter and comedy writer who made Britain laugh for half a century. Diane Leather, the first woman in the world...

Lady Coleridge, Jalaluddin Haqqani, Jacqueline Pearce, Lord Thomas of Macclesfield, Stan Brock from 2018-09-14T15:47

Pictured: Jacqueline Pearce

Matthew Bannister on

Lady Coleridge, the nurse and adventurer who explored the Congo river with Colonel John Blashford-Snell. He pays tribute.

Jalal...

Burt Reynolds, Lord Peter Melchett, Rita Borsellino, Ajit Wadekar from 2018-09-07T15:49

Pictured: Burt Reynolds

Matthew Bannister on

The prolific career of the movie star Burt Reynolds. The 'Deliverance' director John Boorman pays tribute.

The environmental campa...

Lindsay Kemp, John Calder, Hilary Lister, John Calcutt, Neil Simon from 2018-08-31T15:43

Pictured: Lindsay Kemp

Julian Worricker on:

The dancer and choreographer, Lindsay Kemp, who worked alongside David Bowie and Kate Bush.

John Calder, the influential publisher, ...

Kofi Annan, Janice Tchalenko, Hugh Synge, Helen MacLeod, Hettie Williams from 2018-08-24T15:49

Pictured: Kofi Annan

Julian Worricker on:

Diplomat Kofi Annan, who rose through the ranks of the United Nations, to serve as its secretary-general for nine years....

Janice Tch...

Aretha Franklin, VS Naipaul, Winston Ntshona, Nan Joyce from 2018-08-17T15:46

Pictured: Aretha Franklin

Matthew Bannister on

Sir VS Naipaul, the Nobel prize winning author of acclaimed books including "A House For Mr Biswas" and "A Bend in The River". He was a...

Tony Bullimore, Aiko Herzig-Yoshinaga, Barry Chuckle, June Jacobs, Tommy Peoples from 2018-08-10T15:53

Pictured: Barry Chuckle

Matthew Bannister on

Tony Bullimore, the self styled "Del Boy of yacht racing" who was trapped under the hull of his boat for 4 days during a solo round the w...

Mary Ellis, Shinobu Hashimoto, Dr William McBride AO, CBE, Dr Lincoln Brower, Mahendra Kaul from 2018-08-03T15:47

Pictured: Mary Ellis

Matthew Bannister on

Mary Ellis - a leading pilot for the Air Transport Auxiliary who risked her life to deliver fighters and bombers during the war.

Shi...

Charles Gimingham, Felicia Langer, Julian Tudor Hart, Anne Olivier Popham Bell, Adrian Cronauer from 2018-07-27T15:43

Pictured: Anne Olivier Popham Bell

Julian Worricker on:

Charles Gimingham, an environmentalist, described as the foremost expert on heather and moorland landscapes....

Human ri...

Oliver Knussen CBE, Barbara Harrell-Bond OBE, Sam Chisholm, Steve Ditko, Anna Sándor de Kénos from 2018-07-20T15:44

Pictured: Oliver Knussen

Julian Worricker on:

British composer and conductor, Oliver Knussen, described as a towering figure in contemporary music....

Barbara Harrell-Bond, who...

Lord Carrington, Karen Finch, Claude Lanzmann, Harlan Ellison from 2018-07-13T15:45

Photo: Lord Carrington

Matthew Bannister on

Lord Carrington, the Conservative Foreign Secretary who resigned after the Argentine invasion of the Falkland Islands.

Karen Finch, ...

Dame Gillian Lynne, Peter Firmin, Reinhard Hardegen, Alan Longmuir from 2018-07-06T15:42

Photo: Dame Gillian Lynne

Matthew Bannister on:

The choreographer Dame Gillian Lynne, best known for her work on Cats and the Phantom of the Opera.

Peter Firmin who, with his p...

Joe Jackson, Paul Lamplugh OBE, Myrtle Allen, Daisy Kadibil, Paddy Feeny from 2018-06-29T15:52

Photo: Joe Jackson

Matthew Bannister on

Joe Jackson who drilled his children into becoming the Jackson Five, but was accused of abusive and violent behaviour by his most successful s...

Gennady Rozhdestvensky CBE, Maria Bueno, Gena Turgel, Zhao Kangmin, Leo Sarkisian from 2018-06-22T15:40

Photo: Maria Bueno

Matthew Bannister on

The conductor Gennady Rozhdestvensky who brought Russian music to the UK - and British music to Russia.

Maria Bueno, the Brazilian tenni...

Peter Mayer, Professor Celia Brackenridge OBE, Anthony Bourdain, Leslie Grantham, Teddy Johnson from 2018-06-15T15:45

Photo: Leslie Grantham

Tina Daheley on Peter Mayer, the publisher who was given a fatwa for printing 'The Satanic Verses'. Professor Celia Brackenridge, the sports scientist who campaigne...

Peter Stringfellow, Graham Corbett, Kate Spade, Lord John Julius Norwich, Eli Avivi from 2018-06-08T15:53

Photo: Peter Stringfellow

Tina Daheley on the nightclub owner Peter Stringfellow, who introduced nude table dancing to Britain.

Graham Corbett, the first Chairman of Postcomm, and Eu...

John Ashdown-Hill, Anne Coates OBE, Dr Davida Coady, Samuel F 'Ted' Dabney, Brendan Ingle from 2018-06-01T15:57

Photo: Anne Coates OBE

Matthew Bannister on the prolific film editor Anne Coates, who worked on Laurence of Arabia, The Elephant Man and Fifty Shades of Grey.

John Ashdown-Hill, the ...

Beth Chatto, Philip Roth, Doreen Simmons, Khurshid Drabu, June Milne. from 2018-05-25T16:00

Photo: Philip Roth

Julian Worricker on:

Beth Chatto, the gardener and writer regarded as one of the most influential horticulturists of the past 50 years

The multiple award-win...

Baroness Jowell, Will Alsop, Tom Wolfe, Dennis Nilsen from 2018-05-18T16:34

Matthew Bannister on

Baroness Jowell - the former Labour Culture Secretary Tessa Jowell - who led the campaign to bring the Olympic Games to London and supported the survivors of the 7/7 b...

Bruce Tulloh, Emma Smith, Professor Peter Waddington, Dowager Countess of Harewood, Ronald Chesney from 2018-05-11T15:47

Matthew Bannister on

Bruce Tulloh, who ran across the United States in record time and became European 5,000 metres champion barefoot.

Emma Smith the author of an acclaimed novel ba...

Lord Martin of Springburn, Gustav Born, Valerie Riches, Caroline Brown, Michael Anderson from 2018-05-04T15:50

Matthew Bannister on

Lord Martin of Springburn: the former House of Commons speaker Michael Martin. He resigned after MPs lost confidence in his handling of the row over their expenses. Listen

Avicii (Tim Bergling), Ruth Nussenzweig, Anita Shreve, Guy Playfair, Bob Bura from 2018-04-27T16:15

Matthew Bannister on

Avicii, the Swedish DJ whose songs became anthems for millions of festival goers around the world. He was found dead aged 28 in Oman.

Dr. Ruth Nussenzweig the m...

Barbara Bush, Milos Forman, Dame Daphne Sheldrick, Livia Gollancz, Dale Winton from 2018-04-20T15:42

Matthew Bannister on

Barbara Bush, the first woman in history to see both her husband and son sworn in as President of the USA.

Milos Forman, the film director who made Amadeus and ...

Gillian Ayres, Efraín Ríos Montt, David Cobham, Nikki Sievwright, Fergus Anckorn from 2018-04-13T15:54

Photo: Gillian Ayres

Matthew Bannister on

The artist Gillian Ayres, known for her large, exuberant abstract paintings, which reflected her exuberant character.

General Efraín R...

Winnie Madikizela-Mandela, Drue Heinz DBE, Ray Wilkins MBE, Eric Bristow, Steven Bochco from 2018-04-06T15:42

Photo: Winnie Madikizela-Mandela

Matthew Bannister on

Winnie Madikizela-Mandela who was one of the leading anti apartheid campaigners in South Africa, but also faced allegations of b...

Charles P Lazarus, Marielle Franco, John Brookes, Zena Skinner, Oskar Groning from 2018-03-30T15:41

Photo: Zena Skinner

Julian Worricker on:

Charles P Lazarus, the founder of Toys 'R' Us - a store chain which, for decades, captured the hearts of consumers around the world

Bra...

Brenda Dean, William McAlpine, Keith O'Brien, Katie Boyle, Garech Browne from 2018-03-23T16:51

Photo: Lady Dean of Thornton-le-Fylde

Matthew Bannister on

Lady Dean of Thornton-le-Fylde who, as Brenda Dean, was the leader of the print union Sogat during the bitter Wapping dispu...

Professor Stephen Hawking, Hubert de Givenchy, Michele Hanson, Sir John Sulston, Sir Ken Dodd from 2018-03-16T17:35

Photo: Professor Stephen Hawking

Matthew Bannister on

Professor Stephen Hawking, one of the world's best known scientists who carried out pioneering research into black holes. The As...

Trevor Baylis, Lerone Bennett Jr, Penny Vincenzi, Ian Aitken, Sir Roger Bannister from 2018-03-09T16:49

Photo: Sir Roger Bannister

Matthew Bannister on

Trevor Baylis, the eccentric inventor who came up with the wind up radio.

Lerone Bennett, the American academic who wrote many i...

Sir Lawrence Byford, Sridevi Kapoor, Dame Beulah Bewley, Ernest Hecht, Lewis Gilbert from 2018-03-02T16:57

Photo: Sridevi Kapoor

Matthew Bannister on

Ernest Hecht, who founded the Souvenir Press, which published books from Nobel prize winners like Pablo Neruda, academics like Noam Chomsky...

Billy Graham, Laura Lee, John Morris, John Bosco McAtasney, John Pitman from 2018-02-23T17:04

Photo: Billy Graham Matthew Bannister onThe evangelist Billy Graham who preached to millions around the world and offered spiritual advice to 12 American Presidents. Laura Lee, the sex worker who...

Morgan Tsvangirai, Douglas Botting, Professor Patricia Lindop, Asma Jahangir, Vic Damone from 2018-02-16T16:57

Photo: Morgan Tsvangirai Matthew Bannister onMorgan Tsvangirai, leader of Zimbabwe's opposition Movement for Democratic Change and Prime Minister from 2008 to 2013. Douglas Botting, film maker, a...

John Mahoney, Hannah Hauxwell, Professor Kenneth Richard Seddon OBE, Sir John Cotterell, Naomi Parker Fraley from 2018-02-12T09:53

Photo: John Mahoney Julian Worricker on:The actor John Mahoney who played Marty Crane in one of America's best-loved sitcoms, Frasier. Hannah Hauxwell, whose solitary life as a farmer in the York...

Ingvar Kamprad, Elizabeth Hawley, Robert Mann, Jon Castle, Dorothy Malone from 2018-02-02T16:47

Photo: Dorothy Malone Julian Worricker on:Ingvar Kamprad, the Swedish entrepreneur who founded Ikea and changed the way we furnish our homes Elizabeth Hawley, journalist turned chronicler, who do...

Hugh Masekela, Ursula K Le Guin, Mary Lee Berners-Lee, John Barton, Mark E Smith from 2018-01-26T16:54

Photo: Hugh Masekela Matthew Bannister onHugh Masekela the South African jazz trumpeter and anti apartheid activist. Ursula K. Le Guin whose science fiction and fantasy books sold millions of cop...

Rick Jolly, Dolores O'Riordan, Cyrille Regis, Jenny Joseph, Peter Wyngarde from 2018-01-19T17:08

Matthew Bannister on Surgeon Captain Rick Jolly, the navy doctor who set up a makeshift field hospital during the Falklands War to treat both British and Argentine casualties.Dolores O'Riordan, le...

John W Young, Peter Preston, Raymond Thomas, Sir Brian Neill QC, Heather Stewart from 2018-01-12T16:46

Photo: John W. Young Matthew Bannister onJohn W. Young the American astronaut who went into in space six times, including landing on the moon and commanding the first space shuttle flight. Peter...

Maureen Baker, Richard Cousins, Bronwen Lady Astor Chatelaine of Cliveden, Meic Povey, Rick Hall from 2018-01-05T16:50

Photo: Maureen Baker Matthew Bannister onMaureen Baker who designed clothes for Princess Anne, including her Tudor inspired wedding dress. Richard Cousins - the Chief Executive who transformed th...

Sir Peter Burt, Jill Lever, John Mattock, Peter Duffell and Tom Paley from 2017-12-29T16:57

Photo: Tom Paley Julian Worricker on:The businessman Sir Peter Burt, who was in charge of Bank of Scotland when it merged with the Halifax, and was later chairman of ITV The woman credited with g...

Professor Heinz Wolff, Aline Countess of Romanones, Tony Whitten, Fritz Lustig, Keely Smith from 2017-12-22T16:53

Photo: Professor Heinz Wolff Matthew Bannister onProfessor Heinz Wolff, the bioengineer who was known to millions of TV viewers as the presenter of "The Great Egg Race". Aline, Countess of Romano...

Max Clifford, Norman Baker, Tony Garrett, Virginia Surtees, Keith Chegwin from 2017-12-15T16:47

(Photo: Keith Chegwin) Matthew Bannister onThe disgraced publicist Max Clifford who was known as the king of the kiss and tell story, made up many tabloid headlines and was convicted of eight char...

King Michael of Romania, Shashi Kapoor, Christine Keeler, Jenny MacGregor, Johnny Hallyday from 2017-12-08T16:49

(Photo: Christine Keeler) Matthew Bannister onKing Michael of Romania who ruled his country during the second world war and was forced to abdicate by the Soviet Union. . Bollywood actor Shashi K...

Dmitri Hvorostovsky, Unity Spencer, Lewis Golden OBE, John Butler, Joy Lofthouse from 2017-12-01T16:58

(Photo: Russian baritone Dmitri Hvorostovsky) Matthew Bannister onThe Russian baritone Dmitri Hvorostovsky, known for playing leading operatic roles - and for his silver hair and matinee idol loo...

24/11/2017 from 2017-11-24T17:07

Matthew Bannister on Lord Imbert, the Commissioner who tried to change the culture of the Metropolitan Police. He invited TV cameras to observe his officers at work, leading to a controversial fil...

Lord Hutchinson of Lullington QC, Linda Nochlin, Dennis Banks, Geoff Tootill, Tim Gudgin from 2017-11-17T17:04

Matthew Bannister on Lord Hutchinson of Lullington, the barrister who appeared in many celebrated cases, including defending the publication of Lady Chatterley's Lover and the director of the play...

Antonio Carluccio, Sima Wali, Richard Wilbur, Mary Reveley, Dudley Simpson from 2017-11-10T16:57

Matthew Bannister on The chef Antonio Carluccio who transformed Italian cooking in the UK.Sima Wali who devoted her life to campaigning for the rights of Afghan women. The Pulitzer Prize winning...

Harold Pendleton, Glenn Barr, Iona Opie, Gary Flather QC OBE, Sir John Manduell from 2017-11-03T16:45

Matthew Bannister on Howard Pendleton who made the Marquee Club a launch pad for scores of rock stars including the Rolling Stones, the Who and David Bowie and started the Reading Festival.Glenn B...

Daphne Caruana Galizia, Fats Domino, Rodney Bickerstaffe, Geoffrey Schild, Rosemary Leach from 2017-10-27T15:55

Matthew Bannister on The campaigning Maltese journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia who was killed by a car bomb after exposing corruption in politics and business.Fats Domino - the rock and roll pione...

Sean Hughes, Sir Brian Barder, David Marks, Major Khush Ahmad-ul-Mulk, Marge Calhoun from 2017-10-20T15:53

Matthew Bannister on Sean Hughes, the comedian who pioneered stand up with a narrative and was a team captain on "Never Mind the Buzzcocks".Architect David Marks who mortgaged his house as he batt...

Lillian Ross, Jalal Talabani, Terry Downes, Sybil Flory, Hedley Jones from 2017-10-13T15:46

Julian Worricker on: Lillian Ross, who wrote for the New Yorker, and created a new form of journalism....The Iraqi president after the fall of Saddam Hussein, Jalal Talabani - a prominent Kurdish ...

Tony Booth, Liliane Bettencourt, William G Stewart, Tom Petty from 2017-10-06T15:56

Matthew Bannister on The actor Tony Booth, best known for playing Alf Garnett's left wing son-in-law in the TV comedy Till Death Us Do Part - and notorious for his womanising and heavy drinking. H...

Hugh Hefner, Stanislav Petrov, Teddy Taylor, Liz Dawn from 2017-09-29T15:43

Matthew Bannister on Hugh Hefner who built the Playboy empire on a best selling magazine. Was he a libertarian who changed attitudes to sex or a sleazy pornographer?Soviet officer Stanislav Petro...

David Shepherd, Nancy Hatch Dupree, Gordon Williams, Pat Albeck, Harry Dean Stanton from 2017-09-22T16:14

Matthew Bannister on David Shepherd, the artist who painted trains, aeroplanes and elephants and worked tirelessly to conserve wild animals.Nancy Hatch Dupree, the American born adventurer and wri...

Sir Peter Hall, Kate Millett, Sir Edward du Cann, JP Donleavy from 2017-09-15T15:50

Matthew Bannister on Sir Peter Hall, the director who founded the Royal Shakespeare Company, ran the National Theatre and created many acclaimed theatrical and operatic productions.Kate Millett, t...

Sir David Tang, Professor Dame Margaret Turner-Warwick, Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O'Connor, Walter Becker from 2017-09-08T15:59

Matthew Bannister on: The flamboyant businessman Sir David Tang who founded the fashion label Shanghai Tang and collected celebrity friends. Tracey Emin pays tribute.Professor Dame Margaret Turner...

Dick Gregory, Jeannie Rousseau, Wayne Lotter, Sean O'Callaghan, John Abercrombie from 2017-09-01T15:52

Matthew Bannister on Dick Gregory, the African American comedian and civil rights activist who was also a dietician to stars like John Lennon and Mohammed Ali.Jeannie Rousseau who spied on the Naz...

Abu Kifah, Sir Bruce Forsyth, Brian Aldiss, Blanche Blackwell, Jerry Lewis from 2017-08-25T15:48

Brian Aldiss - the gifted science fiction author who inspired the Hollywood movie AI artificial intelligence. Jerry Lewis the American comic who - with Dean Martin found fame as one of the most suc...

Barbara Cook, Sister Ruth Pfau, Richard Gordon, Prof UR Rao from 2017-08-18T15:54

Kate Silverton on the "Broadway Diva" Barbara Cook, the American singer and actress who first came to prominence in the 1950s as the lead in the original Broadway musicals Plain and Fancy and Candi...

Glen Campbell, Dame Helen Alexander, Prunella Briance, Clancy Sigal from 2017-08-11T15:53

Matthew Bannister on Glen Campbell - the singer and guitarist best known for hits like Galveston and Witchita Lineman. We talk to the man who wrote them - Jimmy Webb.Dame Helen Alexander, former C...

Robert Hardy, David Jones, Jeanne Moreau, Mark Wilkinson, Sam Shepard from 2017-08-04T15:46

Matthew Bannister on The actor Robert Hardy, best known for his roles in All Creatures Great and Small and the Harry Potter films and for playing Winston Churchill.David Jones who wrote the Daeda...

Mary Turner, Chester Bennington, Scharlette Holdman, Orri Vigfusson and George A Romero from 2017-07-28T15:50

Matthew Bannister on Mary Turner the President of the GMB Union who started her campaigning life by organising her fellow dinner ladies at a North London school.Chester Bennington, lead singer of ...

Chuck Blazer, Maryam Mirzakhani, Bryan Avery, Peter McHugh, Martin Landau from 2017-07-21T15:56

Matthew Bannister on Chuck Blazer who embezzled millions of dollars from the international football organisation FIFA, then turned whistle blower to incriminate his former colleagues.Maryam Mirza...

Simone Veil, Graham Rose, Tom Isaacs, Liu Xiaobo, Ken Hirst from 2017-07-14T15:54

Matthew Bannister on Simone Veil, the Holocaust survivor who became a leading French politician and President of the European Parliament.Graham Rose who directed some of the best loved TV commerci...

Barry Norman, Gordon Wilson, Geri Allen, John Thompson, Jack O'Neill from 2017-07-07T15:45

Matthew Bannister on Barry Norman - best known for presenting the BBC television's Film programme,on radio he also fronted the Today Programme and the News Quiz.Gordon Wilson, the leader who re-bu...

Lord Joffe, Michael Bond, Ann Louise Gilligan, Carla Fendi, John Avildsen from 2017-06-30T15:56

Matthew Bannister on Lord Joffe, the lawyer who defended Nelson Mandela at the infamous Rivonia trial. He went on to co-found the Allied Dunbar insurance company and sat as a Labour peer in the Ho...

Helmut Kohl, Anita Pallenberg, Professor Brian Bellhouse, Naseem Khan, Brian Cant from 2017-06-23T16:07

Julian Worricker on: Helmut Kohl, Chancellor of Germany at the time of the country's re-unification.Anita Pallenberg, artiste and muse to three of the Rolling Stones. Scientist, Brian Bellhouse, ...

Adnan Khashoggi, Countess Mountbatten, Adam West, Kailash Puri, Vin Garbutt, Helen Dunmore from 2017-06-16T15:55

Matthew Bannister on Arms dealer Adnan Khashoggi, known for his lavish life style, he acted as a middle man between governments and arms suppliers.Countess Mountbatten, godmother to Prince Charles...

Miriam Rodriguez Martinez, Lord Soulsby of Swaffham Prior, Peter Sallis, Lady Anne Piper, Jiri Belohlavek from 2017-06-09T16:55

Matthew Bannister on Miriam Rodríguez Martínez- the Mexican woman whose daughter was killed by drug cartels - and who led a campaign for justice for thousands of missing people.Lord Soulsby - the ...

John Noakes, Manuel Noriega, Pat Stewart, Rex Sanders, Gregg Allman from 2017-06-02T15:57

Julian Worricker on: The broadcaster, John Noakes, who was famous for his daredevil exploits on Blue Peter for thirteen years....Manuel Noriega, who flirted with the Americans as leader of Panam...

Brendan Duddy, Nina Lowry, Roger Ailes, Osmund Reynolds, Roger Moore from 2017-05-26T15:51

Andrea Catherwood on Brendan Duddy, the businessman from Derry who played a key but unsung role in the Northern Ireland peace process hosting secret talks between MI6 and the IRA.Nina Lowry, the f...

Rhodri Morgan, Michael Wearing, Dr Helen Szamuely, Ian Brady, Robert Miles from 2017-05-19T15:59

Matthew Bannister on Rhodri Morgan the former Welsh First Minister, known as the Labour Party's "Father of Welsh devolution".Michael Wearing the TV producer behind award winning series like "Boys ...

Ueli Steck, Lord Williams of Baglan, Sylvia Moy, Captain James Dickson MBE, Jon Prinz from 2017-05-12T15:53

Matthew Bannister on The Swiss climber Ueli Steck, famous for his daring high speed ascents of the world's most challenging mountains without the use of oxygen.Lord Williams the human rights exper...

Robert Pirsig, Shobha Nehru, Michael Ballhaus, Leo Baxendale, Bruce Langhorne from 2017-05-05T15:45

Matthew Bannister on Robert Pirsig, author of the best selling book Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance.Shobha Nehru, the Hungarian woman who married into India's most powerful political dyn...

Jonathan Demme, Robert Taylor, Cathy Hopkins, Peter Farrer, Dorothy Torry from 2017-04-28T15:40

Matthew Bannister on The film director Jonathan Demme - best known for the multi Oscar winning films Silence of the Lambs and Philadelphia.Robert Taylor who helped to develop the first networked c...

Michael Bogdanov, Louis Sarno, Sheila Abdus Salaam, Dick Potts, Don Rickles from 2017-04-21T16:23

Matthew Bannister on The theatre director Michael Bogdanov, who co-founded the English Shakespeare Company. His National Theatre production of the Romans In Britain led to an obscenity trial.The e...

Masha Leon, Tim Pigott-Smith, Christopher Morahan, Parv Bancil, Marthe Gosteli, Brian Matthew from 2017-04-14T15:45

Julian Worricker on: The society columnist and Holocaust survivor, Masha Leon....Actor Tim Pigott-Smith and director Christopher Morahan, who worked together on ITV's The Jewel in the Crown.... P...

Darcus Howe, Andy Coogan, Dr Sylvia Moody, Yevgeny Yevtushenko, Peter Shotton from 2017-04-07T15:46

Matthew Bannister on the Black Power activist and journalist Darcus Howe. He was a leading campaigner for equal rights in the 1970s and 80s.Athletics coach Andy Coogan who spent three and a half ...

David Storey, Ahmed Kathrada, Barbara Buss, Aloysius 'Lucky' Gordon from 2017-03-31T15:52

Matthew Bannister on Playwright and novelist David Storey who drew on his experiences as a professional rugby league player in some of his work.The South African anti apartheid activist Ahmed Kath...

Martin McGuinness, Chuck Berry, Sir Derek Walcott, Salome Karwah, Colin Dexter from 2017-03-24T16:42

Matthew Bannister on Martin McGuinness, who went from being a violent IRA commander to a peace making politician.Chuck Berry, hailed as the father of rock n roll by musicians from Keith Richards t...

John Surtees, Gordon Thomas, Sir Howard Hodgkin, H. Boyd Woodruff, Joni Sledge from 2017-03-17T17:10

Matthew Bannister on The racing driver John Surtees who won world championships on two wheels and four.Gordon Thomas who wrote best selling books about espionage and religion. Sir Howard Hodgkin ...

Sir Nigel Rodley, Sir Cosmo Haskard, Louise Hulton, Pete Overend Watts from 2017-03-10T16:51

Matthew Bannister on The human rights lawyer Sir Nigel Rodley. He helped to draft the United Nations Convention Against Torture and became its special rapporteur on the issue.Pete Overend Watts, ...

Gerald Kaufman, Dick Bruna, Desmond Connell, Rita Barberá, Frank Delaney from 2017-03-03T16:51

Julian Worricker on: The long-serving Labour MP and former minister, Gerald KaufmanThe prolific Dutch illustrator and author Dick Bruna Cardinal Desmond Connell, who as Archbishop of Dublin presi...

Stanley Bard, Norma McCorvey, Michael Ember, Peter Skellern from 2017-02-24T17:19

Kate Silverton on Stanley Bard, the enigmatic proprietor of New York's Chelsea Hotel who created a haven for artists, writers and rock stars and presided over one of the greatest experiments in b...

Al Jarreau, Betty Tebbs, Sir Peter Mansfield, Dame Jennifer Jenkins, Hans Rosling from 2017-02-17T16:58

Matthew Bannister on Betty Tebbs who devoted her life to fighting for women's rights and nuclear disarmament.Sir Peter Mansfield, the Nobel Prize winning physicist who led the development of MRI s...

Alan Simpson, Brunhilde Pomsel, Sir Ken Morrison, Buchi Emecheta from 2017-02-10T16:53

Matthew Bannister on The comedy writer Alan Simpson. With his partner Ray Galton, he created classic sitcoms including Hancock's Half Hour and Steptoe and Son.Brunhilde Pomsel who was the secretar...

Sir John Hurt, Margaret Pereira CBE, Sir Christopher Bland, Emma Tennant, Mary Tyler Moore from 2017-02-03T17:07

Matthew Bannister on Sir John Hurt, the actor whose outstanding roles included Quentin Crisp, the Elephant Man and Caligula. Margaret Pereira, the pioneering forensic scientist who was known as "M...

Tam Dalyell MP, Victor Lownes, Babette Cole, Zhou Youguang, Gorden Kaye from 2017-01-27T16:43

Matthew Bannister on The Labour MP Tam Dalyell who asked the West Lothian Question and pursued Margaret Thatcher over the sinking of the Belgrano.Victor Lownes who ran Playboy's clubs in the UK - ...

Baroness Heyhoe Flint, Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, Una Kroll, William Peter Blatty, Sir James Mancham from 2017-01-20T15:59

Matthew Bannister on Baroness Rachael Heyhoe Flint who captained the England women's cricket team to victory in the World Cup.Iranian President Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, one of the key players in ...

Lord Snowdon, Graham Taylor, Jill Saward, Peter Sarstedt, Clare Hollingworth from 2017-01-13T17:05

Matthew Bannister on Lord Snowdon - renowned photographer and Princess Margaret's former husband.Graham Taylor - the football manager who had success with Watford and Aston Villa, but was lampoone...

John Berger, Debbie Reynolds and Carrie Fisher, Henry Heimlich, Patsy Crampton, Brian Widlake and George Michael from 2017-01-06T16:47

Julian Worricker on: The writer and art critic John BergerMother and daughter actresses, Debbie Reynolds and Carrie Fisher The surgeon who came up with the life-saving heimlich manoeuvre, Henry H...

Michael Nicholson, Zsa Zsa Gabor, Lord Prior, Rabbi Lionel Blue, Pauline Oliveros from 2016-12-23T16:51

Julian Worricker on: The journalist and TV correspondent, Michael Nicholson, who covered numerous conflicts for ITNThe actress and socialite Zsa Zsa Gabor, famous for her one-liners and nine husba...

Peter Gibson, AA Gill, Coral Atkins, William Chaloner, Ian McCaskill from 2016-12-16T16:51

Matthew Bannister on Peter Gibson the master glazier who devoted his life to the care of the stained glass windows in York Minster.AA Gill, who overcame alcoholism and dyslexia to become one of th...

John Glenn, Peter Vaughan, Jayalalithaa Jayaram, Greg Lake from 2016-12-09T16:45

Matthew Bannister on John Glenn, the astronaut who was the first American to orbit the earth and later the oldest man ever to be sent into space.The actor Peter Vaughan, best known for his roles ...

Andrew Sachs, Fidel Castro, Mose Allison, The Honourable Margaret Rhodes from 2016-12-02T16:51

Matthew Bannister on Andrew Sachs, the actor who was so much more than Manuel in Fawlty Towers. We hear about his acclaimed radio career.Also the Cuban leader Fidel Castro - brutal dictator or ben...

Martin Aitchison, Sir Mota Singh QC, William Trevor, Ruth Gruber, David Mancuso from 2016-11-25T16:54

Kate Silverton on: Martin Aitchison who worked with Barnes Wallis on the bouncing bomb but made his name illustrating the Peter and Jane ladybird books.Sir Mota Singh, the Kenyan born Barrister wh...

Robert Vaughn, Sir Sigmund Sternberg, Carolyn Hardy OBE, Ewen Whitaker, Claude 'Curly' Putman from 2016-11-18T16:42

Matthew Bannister on Robert Vaughn - the actor who made his name as Napoleon Solo in "The Man From Uncle" TV series and also appeared in films like "The Magnificent Seven", "Bullitt" and "The Towe...

Leonard Cohen, Lt Col Robert Montgomery MC, Janet Reno, Sir Jimmy Young from 2016-11-11T16:42

Matthew Bannister on The singer, songwriter and poet Leonard Cohen. He was accused of depressing a generation, but many found his songs inspiring.Lieutenant Colonel Bob Montgomery - the explosives...

Tom Hayden, Valerie Hunter Gordon, Carole Blake, Anne Pashley from 2016-11-04T16:56

Matthew Bannister on American political activist Tom Hayden. He once said that people only knew four words about him: "Sixties, Radical, Jane and Fonda". He led anti Vietnam war protests and was m...

Raine, Countess Spencer, James "Jimmy" Perry, Stylianos Pattakos, Howard Davies, Bobby Vee from 2016-10-28T16:25

Matthew Bannister on Raine Countess Spencer. The daughter of Barbara Cartland and step mother of Princess Diana who nicknamed her "Acid Raine".Jimmy Perry who drew on his own life to co-write cla...

Jean Alexander, Trinh Thi Ngo, Ian Mercer, Joseph Harmatz, Joan Marie Johnson from 2016-10-21T15:50

Matthew Bannister on Jean Alexander - the actress best known for playing Hilda Ogden in Coronation Street.Trinh Thi Ngo. Nicknamed Hanoi Hannah, she broadcast propaganda to American GIs during the...

King Bhumibol Adulyadej, Dario Fo, Jean Bloxam, Andrew Vicari, Don Buchla from 2016-10-14T15:58

Matthew Bannister on The world's longest reigning monarch - King Bhumibol Adulyadej of Thailand.The Nobel prize winning playwright and satirist Dario Fo. Griff Rhys Jones pays tribute. The pionee...

Sir Neville Marriner, Father Gabriele Amorth, Beryl Crockford, Professor Louis Herman, Rod Temperton from 2016-10-07T15:49

Matthew Bannister on Sir Neville Marriner the conductor who founded the Academy of St Martin in the Fields and led them to become the world's most recorded orchestra.Father Gabriele Amorth, the Ca...

Shimon Peres, Nathalie Evans, Arnold Palmer, Bill Mollison, Jean Shepard from 2016-09-30T15:58

Matthew Bannister on Shimon Peres, the Israeli elder statesman who was twice Prime Minister of his country and won the Nobel Peace Prize for his part in negotiating the Oslo Accord with the Palest...

Edward Albee, James Cronin, Caroline Thomson OBE, Sir Frederick Holliday, Charmian Carr from 2016-09-23T15:46

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?".Physicist James Cronin who won the Nobel Pr...

Barry Myers, Eileen Younghusband, Robin Spark, Keith McDougall, Prince Buster from 2016-09-16T15:49

Matthew Bannister on Barry Myers who directed some of the best known commercials of the 1970s and 80s, including ads for Hovis, Olympus Cameras and Cadbury's Flake.Eileen Younghusband, who worked ...

The Right Rev David Jenkins, Dame Margaret Anstee, Islam Karimov, Richard Neville from 2016-09-09T15:58

Matthew Bannister on The Bishop of Durham the Right Reverend David Jenkins. A respected theologian, he was noted for his controversial views.The diplomat Dame Margaret Anstee who overcame sex disc...

Joao Havelange, Sonia Rykiel, Gene Wilder, Toots Thielemans from 2016-09-02T15:57

Matthew Bannister on João Havelange, the President of the international football federation, FIFA, who stepped down amid allegations of corruption.The French fashion designer Sonia Rykiel who bro...

Sir Antony Jay, Donald Henderson, Tom Cholmondeley, Patsy Wright-Warren CBE, Lord Rix from 2016-08-26T15:48

Julian Worricker on.... The co-writer of 'Yes Minister' and 'Yes Prime Minister' - Sir Antony Jay....Donald Henderson, American epidemiologist, who led the WHO's campaign to eradicate smallpox.......

Bishop Edward Daly, Ahmed Zewail, Suzanne Wright, Duke of Westminster, Ivo Pitanguy from 2016-08-12T15:58

Matthew Bannister on the Bishop of Derry Edward Daly. He was famously photographed waving a bloodstained white handkerchief as he tended to a young man shot by the army on Bloody Sunday.The Egypti...

Luc Hoffmann, Sylvia Peters, Joe Powell, William Smethurst, Sandy Pearlman from 2016-08-05T15:49

Matthew Bannister on Luc Hoffmann, the Swiss conservationist who co-founded the World Wildlife Fund and fought to save endangered species and wetlands.Sylvia Peters, one of the best known faces on...

Gary S Paxton, Sally Beauman, Thomas Sutherland, Frank Dickens, Marni Nixon from 2016-07-29T15:50

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 fellow hostage Terry Anderson.The singer, son...

Sydney Schanberg, Beatrice de Cardi, Lord Evans of Temple Guiting, Alvin Toffler, Jimmy Gilbert from 2016-07-22T15:50

Matthew Bannister on The American journalist Sydney Schanberg who won the Pulitzer prize for his reporting on Cambodia. His story was turned into the film "The Killing Fields".The archaeologist Be...

Abdul Sattar Edhi, Professor Suzanne Corkin, Bernardo Provenzano, Garry Marshall from 2016-07-22T15:48

Matthew Bannister on Abdul Sattar Edhi. Known as Pakistan's "Angel of Mercy", he built up a foundation which brought healthcare, orphanages and women's shelters to the poorest people in his count...

Caroline Aherne, Elie Wiesel, Sir Geoffrey Hill, Lord Mayhew, Michael Cimino from 2016-07-08T15:46

Matthew Bannister on The comedian Caroline Aherne who created Mrs Merton and the Royle family and struggled with the pressures of fame.Holocaust survivor and author Elie Wiesel. Described by Presi...

Amjad Sabri, Lorna Kelly, Jerome Bruner, Bob Holman, Scotty Moore from 2016-07-01T15:57

Matthew Bannister on The Pakistani qawwali singer Amjad Sabri. A huge star in his homeland, he was shot dead in his car in Karachi.The auctioneer Lorna Kelly who turned her back on a glittering Ne...

Dr Sylvia Meek, Sam King MBE, Chips Moman, Ethel Bush GM, Harry Rabinowitz from 2016-06-24T15:53

Matthew Bannister on The parasitologist Sylvia Meek who led the fight to reduce deaths from malaria.Harry Rabinowitz who conducted the music for many films and TV series, including the English Pat...

Sir Peter Shaffer, Sir Denys Wilkinson, Peggy Spencer and Muhammad Ali from 2016-06-17T15:55

Julian Worricker on: The playwright Sir Peter Shaffer, most famous for 'The Royal Hunt of the Sun, 'Equus' and 'Amadeus'...The physicist, Sir Denys Wilkinson, considered an expert on the electroma...

Jo Cox MP, Dave Swarbrick, Viktor Korchnoi, Wendy Leigh from 2016-06-17T15:54

Reeta Chakrabarti on: The MP Jo Cox , who was brutally killed in the street, after meeting local people in the West Yorkshire constituency she representedThe musician Dave Swarbrick, who found f...

Carla Lane, Sir Denys Henderson, Jane Fawcett, Alan Devereux and Buster Cooper from 2016-06-03T15:54

Matthew Bannister on Carla Lane who wrote hit TV comedies including The Liver Birds, Bread and Butterflies. Wendy Craig pays tribute.The ICI Chairman Sir Denys Henderson, who fought off a takeover...

Professor Robert McNeill Alexander, Reg Grundy, Sally Brampton, Tony Cozier, Madeleine LeBeau from 2016-05-20T15:53

Matthew Bannister on Professor Robert McNeill Alexander - the father of animal biomechanics, who revealed how fast dinosaurs could run.The Australian TV producer Reg Grundy who was behind a string...

Gareth Gwenlan, Sir Harry Kroto, Michael 'Dandy Kim' Caborn-Waterfield, Lilly Dubowitz, Papa Wemba from 2016-05-13T15:55

Matthew Bannister on Gareth Gwenlan the TV producer and Head of BBC Comedy behind a string of hits including Only Fools and Horses. Sir David Jason pays tribute.Sir Harry Kroto, the Nobel prize ...

Reverend Daniel Berrigan, Lord Walton of Detchant, Jenny Diski, Guy Woolfenden from 2016-05-06T15:40

Matthew Bannister on

The Reverend Daniel Berrigan, the American Catholic priest who devoted his life to campaigning for peace. He was arrested many times for protests against the Vietnam W...

Lord Peston, Ruth Prideaux, Patricio Aylwin, Professor Sir David Mackay, Gareth Thomas from 2016-04-29T15:57

Matthew Bannister on



The economist Lord Peston who advised the Labour governments of the 60s and 70s. His son Robert Peston and Lord Hattersley pay tribute.



T...

Prince, Ray Fitzwalter, Victoria Wood, June Jolly, Phil Sayer from 2016-04-22T15:51

Matthew Bannister on

Rock superstar Prince - we recall his intimate gig for a handful of people here in Broadcasting House.

Ray Fitzwalter the Editor of ITV's World In Action who ...

Arnold Wesker, Howard Marks, Peggy Fortnum, Merle Haggard and Rachel Johnson from 2016-04-15T15:53

Matthew Bannister on

The playwright Sir Arnold Wesker whose work celebrated working class life,

Howard Marks, the convicted cannabis smuggler and raconteur who became a folk hero ...

Mother Angelica, Hans-Dietrich Genscher, DJ Derek, Doreen Massey and Joe Medicine Crow from 2016-04-08T16:05

Matthew Bannister on

The American broadcasting nun Mother Angelica who founded the Eternal Word Television Network and dispensed traditional Catholic advice to viewers.

The Germa...

Dame Zaha Hadid, Ronnie Corbett, General Meir Dagan, Joan Loraine, Gary Shandling from 2016-04-01T16:00

Matthew Bannister on



The internationally acclaimed architect Dame Zaha Hadid, known to some as "the queen of the curve".



Ronnie Corbett, whose partnership with...

Paul Daniels, Anita Brookner, Sylvia Anderson, Sir Peter Maxwell Davies, Cliff Michelmore from 2016-03-18T17:04

Matthew Bannister on



Cliff Michelmore who brought a relaxed informality to presenting TV programmes like Tonight and 24 Hours, without losing intelligence or authority.

...

George Martin, Nancy Reagan, Ray Tomlinson, Gillian Avery from 2016-03-11T17:27

Reeta Chakrabarti on

Sir George Martin, the legendary music producer who oversaw the Beatles' phenomenal success.
Nancy Reagan, the US First Lady, who went from actor to political wife...

Tony Warren, Louise Rennison, Lord Chorley, George Kennedy, John Chilton from 2016-03-04T17:17

Reeta Chakrabarti on

Tony Warren, who created the long-running TV soap Coronation Street, embedding a working-class north of England cast of characters in the national consciousness.
...

Boutros Boutros-Ghali, Edmonde Charles-Roux, Norman Hudis, Antonin Scalia, Harper Lee from 2016-02-19T16:53

Matthew Bannister on



Boutros Boutros-Ghali, the United Nations Secretary General who had to deal with genocide in Rwanda and the war in the Balkans.



Edmonde Ch...

Marvin Minsky, Margaret Forster, Peter Powell, Sir Brian Tovey, Joe Alaskey from 2016-02-12T16:53

Matthew Bannister on



Professor Marvin Minsky - the computer scientist who carried out pioneering work on artificial intelligence.



Margaret Forster who wrote no...

Terry Wogan, Lord Lucan, Frank Finlay, Denise St Aubyn Hubbard, Maurice White from 2016-02-05T16:54

Matthew Bannister on



Sir Terry Wogan - we have a tale of two cities: memories from his home town of Limerick and accolades from his fantasy town of Leicester.



...

Lord Parkinson, Bill Mitchell, Paddy Doherty, Henry Worsley, Dr Gladys-Marie Fry from 2016-02-02T12:11

Matthew Bannister on



The Conservative politician Lord Parkinson. He masterminded the 1983 election victory but was forced to resign when his affair with his secretary was reveale...

Glenn Frey, Lord Weidenfeld, Jeanne Cordova, Haskell Wexler, Gilbert Kaplan. from 2016-01-22T17:37

Matthew Bannister on



Glenn Frey - singer, guitarist and songwriter with The Eagles - who sold millions of albums in the 1970s.



Lord Weidenfeld, the influential...

David Bowie, Alan Rickman, Olwyn Hughes and Ed Stewart from 2016-01-15T17:07

Matthew Bannister on



David Bowie, art expert, fashion icon and media manipulator.



Alan Rickman, the actor most famous for playing villains from the Sheriff o...

Robert Stigwood, Patricia Torrens, Pierre Boulez, Lord Ezra, Natalie Cole from 2016-01-08T17:25

Matthew Bannister on



Robert Stigwood, the impresario who managed Eric Clapton and The Bee Gees, produced Jesus Christ Superstar and Evita and the movies Saturday Night Fever and ...

Eric Tomlinson, Elsie Tu, Peter Dickinson, Lillian Vernon and Lemmy from 2016-01-01T16:47

Recording engineer, Eric Tomlinson, who worked on the score for Star Wars and added music to Charlie Chaplin's silent films.



Elsie Tu, social campaigner, legislator and education...

Some of the most memorable lives of the past twelve months from 2015-12-29T17:03

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.

Producer: Edwina Pitman.

Mick Murphy, Ahmed Chalabi, Mattiwilda Dobbs, Brajraj Mahapatra and Holly Woodlawn from 2015-12-18T16:48

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 politicia...

Marcus Klingberg, William McIlvanney, Setsuko Hara, Joel Elkes and John Peel from 2015-12-11T16:43

Matthew Bannister on



The Israeli chemical weapons expert Marcus Klingberg, who was revealed to have been spying for the Soviet Union.



The Scottish writer Wil...

General Sir Robert Ford, Hazel Adair, Jane Wardle, Gerry Byrne and P.F Sloan from 2015-12-04T16:51

Matthew Bannister on



General Sir Robert Ford who was Commander Land Forces Northern Ireland at the time of the Bloody Sunday shootings.



Hazel Adair, the TV s...

Peter Dimmock, Alix d'Unienville, Yolanda Sonnabend, Maggie Eales and George Barris from 2015-11-27T16:54

Matthew Bannister on



TV pioneer Peter Dimmock. An accomplished presenter and also a BBC executive, he directed the coverage of the Queen's coronation in 1953.


Listen

Roy Dommett, Warren Mitchell, Allen Toussaint, Cynthia Payne and Jonah Lomu from 2015-11-20T16:48

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 known fo...

Helmut Schmidt, Pat Eddery, Julia Jones, Lord Noon and Nat Peck from 2015-11-13T16:44

Matthew Bannister on



Helmut Schmidt, the German Chancellor who helped to design the European Monetary System and agreed that US nuclear weapons could be sited in his country. His...

Norman Moore, Diane Charlemagne, Professor David Cesarani, Colin Welland and Peter Donaldson from 2015-11-06T16:53

Matthew Bannister on



Norman Moore, the conservationist who discovered that organochorine pesticides were decimating the UK's bird of prey population. He fought a twenty year cam...

Professor Lisa Jardine, Philip French, Ronnie Massarella, Maureen O'Hara from 2015-10-30T17:46

Matthew Bannister on



Professor Lisa Jardine, the historian whose intellectual curiosity stretched across the arts and sciences. She was chair of the Human Fertilisation and Embr...

General John Galvin, Joan Leslie, Michael Meacher, Howard Kendall, Jerry Parr and Coleridge Goode from 2015-10-23T16:11

Matthew Bannister on



General Jack Galvin who was NATO's Supreme Allied Commander in Europe as the Cold War ended. Generals Colin Powell and David Petraeus pay tribute.

<...

Geoffrey Howe, Sue Lloyd-Roberts, Joe Henson, Hugh Scully and Alexander Faris from 2015-10-20T09:05

Julian Worricker on:

The former Chancellor and Foreign Secretary, Geoffrey Howe, whose resignation speech in the Commons was generally regarded as the beginning of the end for Margaret Tha...

Lord Denis Healey, Carmen Balcells, Henning Mankell, Revd Kenneth Leech and Captain Bob Arnott from 2015-10-09T16:27

Lucy Ash on the former Labour politician Denis Healey who was Chancellor of the Exchequer during the Winter of Discontent in 70s; Catalan literary agent Carmen Ballcells known as Big Mamma to her N...

Brian Friel, General Mario Menendez, Tessa Ransford, John Guillermin, Ben Cauley from 2015-10-02T15:59

Matthew Bannister on

The award winning Irish playwright Brian Friel, best known for Dancing At Lughnasa and Translations.

Argentine General Mario Menéndez who was appointed Govern...

Brian Sewell, Jackie Collins, Ted Smith CBE, PJ Kavanagh, Yogi Berra from 2015-09-25T15:47

Matthew Bannister on

Brian Sewell, the art critic with the distinctive voice, outspoken opinions and love of dogs.

Jackie Collins who sold millions of copies of her sex and showbu...

Sir David Willcocks, Merv Adelson, Mariem Hassan, Brian Close, Beryl Renwick from 2015-09-18T15:51

Matthew Bannister on

Sir David Willcocks - one of the most influential choir masters of his generation. Known for his descants to Christmas carols, he was director of music at King's Colle...

Sir Adrian Cadbury, Rico Rodriguez, Ieng Thirith, Margaret Harrison, Judy Carne from 2015-09-11T15:58

Matthew Bannister on

Sir Adrian Cadbury - who was chairman of the family confectionery firm, led its merger with Schweppes and wrote an influential report on corporate governance. He was a...

Lord Montagu of Beaulieu, Joy Beverley, Oliver Sacks, Annette Worsley-Taylor from 2015-09-04T15:58

Matthew Bannister on

Lord Montagu of Beaulieu who founded the National Motor Museum, opened his estate to the public and served a prison sentence for homosexuality. His son, who has succee...

Bernie Passingham, Christopher Marshall, Wayne Carson, Michael Turk, Marie Dobbs, Yvonne Craig from 2015-08-28T16:17

Matthew Bannister on

The trade union official Bernie Passingham who helped women workers at the Ford Motor Company in their fight for equal pay.

Medical researcher Chris Marshall ...

Khaled al-Asaad, Jazz Summers, Jack Gold, Manual Contreras, Dawn Wofford from 2015-08-24T15:10

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 the ancient city of Palmyra;
Listen

David Nobbs, Frances Kelsey, Kyril Zinovieff, Elio Fiorucci, Harry Pitch from 2015-08-14T16:43

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 fellow writer Jonathan Coe about the ...

Cilla Black, Michael Kidson, APJ Abdul Kalam, Evelyn Gillan, George Cole from 2015-08-07T15:51

Matthew Bannister on

The singer and TV presenter Cilla Black - we go behind the scenes to discover the secret of her success on Saturday night TV.

Michael Kidson who taught histor...

Nova Pilbeam, Reverend Owen Chadwick, Jon Vickers, Yoichiro Nambu, Nick Ryman from 2015-07-31T16:12

Matthew Bannister on



The Reverend Owen Chadwick, the distinguished ecclesiastical historian who was vice Chancellor of Cambridge University during student protests in the 1970s a...

Rev Joyce Bennett, Prince Saud al-Faisal, Burt Shavitz, Michael Oliver, Ian Allan from 2015-07-17T15:52

Matthew Bannister on

Joyce Bennett who was the first English woman to be ordained as an Anglican priest. It happened in Hong Kong in 1971.

Prince Saud al-Faisal, who was the world...

Omar Sharif, Stanley 'Steve' Moore, Jules Wright, Yevgeny Primakov, Ernest Tomlinson from 2015-07-10T15:53

Matthew Bannister on

Actor Omar Sharif

Flying squad detective Stanley Moore - always known as Steve, he helped to catch some of the Great Train Robbers.

Theatre Directo...

Sir Nicholas Winton, Val Doonican, Nek Chand, James Salter, Lady Rozelle Raynes from 2015-07-03T15:50

Matthew Bannister on

Sir Nicholas Winton who saved 669 children from the advancing Nazis in Czechoslovakia.

Also the Irish singer Val Doonican - known for his cardigans and rocki...

Sir Chris Woodhead, Patrick Macnee, Dame Anne Warburton, Vic Mayhew, James Horner from 2015-06-26T17:56

Matthew Bannister on:

The controversial Chief Inspector of Schools Sir Chris Woodhead who said he was paid to challenge "mediocrity, failure and complacency".

The actor Patrick Ma...

Morris Beckman, Ornette Coleman, Tanith Lee, Süleyman Demirel and Doris Hart from 2015-06-19T17:54

Matthew Bannister on

Morris Beckman - the East End Jewish activist who co-founded the 43 Group to fight against post-war British fascists.

Ornette Coleman - the pioneering saxopho...

Christopher Lee, Marguerite Patten, James Last, Major Roy Homard, Ron Moody from 2015-06-12T17:59

Andrea Catherwood on
film star Christopher Lee, internationally famous for his villainous, on screen roles. Cookery writer and broadcasting pioneer Marguerite Patten, explorer Major 'Roy' Homar...

Tariq Aziz, Charles Kennedy, Julie Harris, Alan Bond, Peter Cropper from 2015-06-05T17:58

Andrea Catherwood on Iraqi politician Tariq Aziz, former Leader of the Liberal Democrats Charles Kennedy; Oscar winning costume designer Julie Harris; flamboyant Australian property developer and e...