Desert Island Discs

Sue Lawley's castaway this week is the explorer and environmentalist, Robert Swan. When he was a boy Robert Swan became fascinated by Scott's attempt to conquer Antarctica and after university he decided not only to follow in his footsteps - but go one further and travel across the Arctic as well. In 1989 he achieved his dream - becoming the first man ever to walk unsupported to both the North and South Poles.[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs]Favourite track: Better Off Alone by Alice Deejay Book: Huge copy of Times Atlas - largest available so I can see where I have been (168 countries so far) Luxury: An accountancy course

Sue Lawley's castaway this week is the actor and comedian Sir Norman Wisdom. His cloth cap and tight-fitting jacket became his screen trademark in the 1950s and 1960s and characters like Norman Pitkin won him fans all over the world. Sir Norman talks to Sue Lawley about a career that's spanned more than 60 years and chooses eight records to take with him the mythical island.[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs]Favourite track: Don't Laugh at Me 'Cos I'm a Fool by Norman Wisdom Book: Reach for the Skies by Sir Douglas Bader Luxury: Pot of stew with two dumplings

This week, Sue Lawley's castaway on Desert Island Discs is General Sir Charles Guthrie.Favourite track: The Chorus of the Hebrew Slaves by Giuseppe Verdi Book: Vol 1 of biography of the Duke of Wellington - Year of the Sword by Lady Longford Luxury: Surfboard

Sue Lawley's castaway this week is the mathematician Sir Roger Penrose. His prize-winning work with Stephen Hawking on the nature of black holes brought his name to public attention in the 1960s. Since then he has made a controversial contribution to the debate over human consciousness and whether or not computers will ever be able to mimic the workings of the human mind.[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs]Favourite track: Crucifixion from B Minor by Johann Sebastian Bach Book: The fattest book by Michael Frayne Luxury: 19-note piano

This week, Sue Lawley's castaway on Desert Island Discs is Michael Portillo.Favourite track: Viene la Sera by Giacomo Puccini Book: Proust: Time Regained by Alain de Botton Luxury: Solar-powered laptop

Sue Lawley's castaway this week is Alan Parker. When Alan Parker's Bugsy Malone came out in 1975, it marked the beginning of a very successful and sometimes controversial career. Films like Midnight Express, Fame and The Commitments underline his versatility and have won him countless awards all over the world.[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs]Favourite track: Nimrod by Edward Elgar Book: A giant photo album of his four children and grandchildren that goes back over twenty years. Luxury: Watercolour paint box (plus brush and pad)

Sue Lawley's castaway this week is the playwright Peter Nichols. His award winning work, including Privates on Parade and A Day in The Death of Joe Egg has left audiences in stitches and sometimes in tears. With the recent revival of Passion Play, his darkly comic tale about adultery, Peter Nichols talks to Sue Lawley about his life and writing, and chooses eight records to take to the mythical desert island. [Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs]Favourite track: Hostias (from Requiem in D Minor) by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Book: His diary which he has kept since he was 18 - to relive life since 1945 Luxury: Cyanide tablet (if he can't have a tower and telescope or a full-size snooker table)

Sue Lawley's castaway this week is Dr Max Perutz. When he left Austria in 1936 to study at Cambridge, his fellow students dismissed his ambition to decipher the structure of the protein haemoglobin as 'mad'. No-one had seriously attempted to map a molecule that was made up of 10,000 atoms. Twenty-two years later he was successful. It was an achievement that earned him and his colleague John Kendrew the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1962 - and has since contributed to the study of blood diseases like sickle cell anaemia and Huntington's disease. [Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs]Favourite track: Piano Sonata No.30 in E Major by Ludwig van Beethoven Book: The Origin of Species by Charles Darwin Luxury: Skis

Sue Lawley's castaway this week is Donald Sutherland. He has acted in 104 films, including such classics as MASH, Don't Look Now and JFK. Tall and lanky as a child, he was called 'Goofus' or 'Dumbo' because of his big ears. However, it was those ears that caught the attention of the director of The Dirty Dozen and thus his film career was launched. Now appearing on the British stage for the first time in 36 years, he chooses eight records to take to the mythical desert island.[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs]Favourite track: Horn Concerto No. 1 in D major 412 by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Book: A Distant Mirror by Barbara Tuchman Luxury: 100 cases of vintage Bordeaux

Sue Lawley's castaway this week is Clive James. Author, critic and television personality, he is presently contemplating his fourth autobiography - tracing the journey from his childhood in Australia to the Footlights Review at Cambridge University, and then to becoming the wittiest television critic and presenter in Britain.During the interview Clive reads extracts from his poem 'Young Australian Rider, P.G. Burman', taken from his book Other Passport Poems 1958-1985.[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs]Favourite track: Jailhouse Rock by Elvis Presley Book: My Method of Singing by Enrico Caruso Luxury: Karaoke piano