Great Lives

"John Clare, I cried last night for you" wrote Wendy Cope in a poem dedicated to the earlier poet, who overcame monumental setbacks such as a poverty-stricken upbringing and a long struggle with mental illness. However, Clare managed to write some of the most sensitive poetry in the English language. At one point he was known as "the English Robert Burns" but then his fame dropped away and many people now remember him solely for his cri de coeur, "I Am." Expert witness is John Clare's biographer, Sir Jonathan Bate. Producer Christine HallFirst broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in May 2015

Matthew Parris's guest is Dame Helen Ghosh, Director General of the National Trust, who chooses as her Great Life James Lees-Milne who worked for the Trust between 1936 and 1966. He was responsible for acquiring many of the Trust's most iconic properties and his particular talent was his ability to persuade the aristocratic owners of the houses into handing them over to the Trust for protection. His other talent was in writing, and it is his deliciously indiscreet diaries for which many people know him.Merlin Waterson, who was a friend of Lees-Milne's, is the expert witness.Producer Christine Hall. First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in 2015.

Comedian and actor Kulvinder Ghir nominates the life of the artist Zoran Music. Matthew Parris finds out about Music who sketched corpses during and after he survived the horrors of being held at Dachau- a concentration camp in 1944.They are also joined by art critic, curator Michael Peppiatt who was a friend and an admirer of Zoran Music in this week's Great Life.Producer: Perminder Khatkar. First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in 2015.

Rachel Johnson author and journalist champions the life of Ottoline Morrell. The Bloomsbury hostess, a mistress, a dominant figure in the arts without being an artist herself was often mocked and ridiculed. Rachel tells Matthew Parris why her extraordinary life was a great life. They are also joined by author and one of Lady Ottoline's biographers Miranda Seymour. Producer : Perminder Khatkar.First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in 2015.

The veteran broadcaster Sir Trevor McDonald chooses the life of Learie Constantine, the Trinidadian cricketer, politician and broadcaster who championed the rights of West Indians in Britain during the war years and afterwards. Producer: Maggie AyreFirst broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in 2015.

Mervyn King, former Governor of the Bank of England tells Matthew Parris why the life of the Prime Minister of Finland Risto Ryti was so remarkable. They are also joined by expert and biographer Martti Turtola. Producer: Perminder Khatkar.First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in 2015.

Former newspaper editor and writer Eve Pollard tells Matthew Parris why Nora Ephron, the screenwriter of hit films such as 'When Harry Met Sally', 'Heartburn', and 'Sleepless in Seattle', is a Great Life.They are joined by Dr Jennifer Smyth, an historian whose teaching includes women in Hollywood at the University of Warwick. Producer: Perminder Khatkar

Michael Dobbs champions the life of Guy Burgess - journalist, diplomat and spy. Between 1935 and 1951, Guy Burgess worked for a Conservative MP, the BBC, MI6 and the Foreign Office. Brilliant, flamboyant and apparently shambolic, he also shot like an arrow to the heart of the Establishment and secretly and systematically betrayed its secrets to the KGB. Matthew Parris chairs as Michael explains why he believes that Guy Burgess was a Great Life. Burgess’s biographer Stewart Purvis, who uncovered the only known audio recording of Guy Burgess, is the expert witness. Producer: Julia JohnsonFirst broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in 2015.

When Philippa Langley and other members of the Richard III Society helped to discover the body of the king in a Leicester car park, Richard's life once again became a hotly contested debating point. Philippa joins Matthew Parris to defend Richard III as a Great Life, with expert witness and Richard biographer Annette Carson. Can the man who may have been responsible for the disappearance of the Princes in the Tower really be described as "great"? Or was he the victim of Tudor propaganda and Shakespearian slander? Producer Christine HallFirst broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in 2015.

Writer Roald Dahl is well known as the author of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Fantastic Mr Fox and The BFG, but he was also fascinated by medical science. Professor Tom Solomon, who looked after him during his last illness, spent hours discussing medicine with Dahl.Tom talks to Matthew Parris about Dahl's life and work, through the prism of his forensic interest in the workings of the human body. With them is Donald Sturrock, Dahl's biographer.Producer Christine Hall. First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in 2014.