Desert Island Discs

Alan Cumming's wide-ranging career on stage includes playing Hamlet, starring opposite Daniel Radcliffe in Samuel Beckett’s Endgame and – perhaps most notably - taking the role of the Emcee in the musical Cabaret in London and New York to great acclaim: his 1998 Broadway performance won seven awards, including a Tony. He’s also appeared in films including GoldenEye and Stanley Kubrick’s Eyes Wide Shut, and in the TV series The Good Wife. Alan was born in Perthshire in 1965. His father was a forester and the family moved to the Panmure estate on the east coast of Scotland. Encouraged by his English teacher, Alan grew up loving drama at school but his childhood was blighted by his violent and abusive father. He worked for the publisher DC Thomson as a sub-editor before going to the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama. There he launched his performing career with fellow student Forbes Masson: together they were Victor and Barry, a comedy and music double-act. They drew on these characters for their BBC TV sit-com The High Life, based around a fictional Scottish airline. Alan has published a novel and three memoirs: his 2014 autobiography Not My Father’s Son detailed his very difficult relationship with his father, both in his early years and later in his life. In 2022 Alan is developing a solo dance-theatre work, focusing on the personal history of the Scottish poet Robert Burns, which he will perform in Scotland and New York. He’s now also the co-owner of a bar, Club Cumming, in Manhattan. DISC ONE: Dignity by Deacon Blue DISC TWO: L’Amour Looks Something Like You by Kate Bush DISC THREE: Barcelona by Freddie Mercury & Montserrat Caballé DISC FOUR: I’m Gonna Be (500 Miles) by The Proclaimers DISC FIVE: Whenever Wherever Whatever by Maxwell DISC SIX: Give Me Back My Heart by Dollar DISC SEVEN: Catalani: La Wally : Ebben? ne andrò lontana Act 1 by Maria Callas and Philharmonia Orchestra, conducted by Tullio Serafin DISC EIGHT: These Are My Mountains by Peter Morrison BOOK CHOICE: Desert Gardening for Beginners: How to grow vegetables, flowers, and herbs in an Arid Climate by Cathy Cromell, Linda A. Guy, Lucy K. Bradley LUXURY ITEM: Marijuana seeds CASTAWAY'S FAVOURITE: Give Me Back My Heart by Dollar Presenter Lauren Laverne Producer Sarah Taylor

Robert Plant is a singer and songwriter who was Led Zeppelin’s frontman from the band’s inception in 1968 until it disbanded in 1980. Led Zeppelin sold hundreds of millions of albums and in their heyday acquired a reputation for unbridled rock ‘n’ roll hedonism. Since 1980 Robert has gone on to achieve success as a solo artist and has collaborated with other musicians, notably the bluegrass singer Alison Krauss. Their 2007 album Raising Sand won five Grammy Awards. Robert was born in West Bromwich in 1948. At 15 he appeared on stage for the first time as the lead vocalist for a local band after the regular singer fell ill. In 1965 he started performing with the Crawling King Snakes and it was after one of the band’s gigs that he met his friend, the drummer John Bonham. In 1968 Robert and John joined up with Jimmy Page and John Paul Jones to form Led Zeppelin. Later that year the band embarked on its first US tour and the enthusiastic response from American audiences heralded a new force in British music. Over the next 12 years the band released eight studio albums including Led Zeppelin IV which featured one of their most popular tracks – Stairway to Heaven.In 1980 John Bonham died from alcohol poisoning at the age of 32 and Led Zeppelin broke up. Devastated by his friend’s death, Robert took himself off to explore other creative avenues, recording and performing with a wide range of artists. Robert and Alison Krauss released their second album, Raising the Roof, in 2021. Robert lives in Worcestershire near where he grew up. He is a committed fan of Wolverhampton Wanderers and Black Country homing pigeons.DISC ONE: Pink Peg Slacks by Eddie Cochrane DISC TWO: Serenade by Mario Lanza DISC THREE: I Ain’t Superstitious by Howlin’ Wolf DISC FOUR: Teenage Ska by Baba Brooks DISC FIVE: Ohio by Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young DISC SIX: Raha Gardishon Mein Hardam by Mohammed Rafi DISC SEVEN: Diaraby by Ali Farka Touré with Ry Cooder DISC EIGHT: Your Long Journey by Robert Plant and Alison Krauss BOOK CHOICE: The Earliest English Poems, translated by Michael Alexander LUXURY ITEM: A basket containing photos of homing pigeons CASTAWAY'S FAVOURITE: Serenade by Mario Lanza Presenter: Lauren Laverne Producer: Paula McGinley

Oti Mabuse is a dancer, choreographer and TV talent show judge. She has enjoyed great success on the BBC show Strictly Come Dancing and is one of only two professional dancers to win the glitterball trophy twice.Oti was born in South Africa in 1990, the year that Nelson Mandela was released from prison, and dance was a central part of her life from a very early age: her mother had set up a dance school so that black children could learn ballroom and Latin dancing. Oti followed in the footsteps of her two older sisters, winning dance competitions in South Africa and taking part in international events. She competed in Blackpool when she was just 11 years old, and retains strong memories of the elegant Tower Ballroom and the poor weather. Oti's father trained as a lawyer and her mother worked in education, and they felt that their youngest daughter needed the security of a professional qualification, so Oti studied civil engineering at university. Shortly before qualifying, she decided to abandon her degree and become a professional ballroom dancer, joining her sister Motsi in Germany. She first appeared on Strictly Come Dancing in 2015 and has recently announced her departure from the show. She lives in London with her husband, the dancer Marius Lepure. DISC ONE: Lose My Breath by Beyoncé (with Kelly Rowland and Michelle Williams) DISC TWO: My Afrikan Dream by Vicky Sampson DISC THREE: A Song for Mama by Boyz II Men DISC FOUR: Dance With My Father by Luther Vandross DISC FIVE: Un-break my Heart by Toni Braxton DISC SIX: I'm Not a Girl, Not Yet a Woman by Britney Spears DISC SEVEN: It’s My Life by Bon Jovi DISC EIGHT: Survivor by Destiny’s Child BOOK CHOICE: Will by Will Smith LUXURY ITEM: A photo of Oti and her Grandma CASTAWAY'S FAVOURITE: It’s My Life by Bon JoviPresenter Lauren Laverne Producer Sarah Taylor

Professor Nick Webborn has chaired the British Paralympic Association since 2017. He is a world-leading expert on Paralympic sports medicine and the most widely-published author on the subject. He has attended 11 Paralympic and one Olympic Games. He was born in Swansea in 1956, trained as a doctor in London and joined the RAF as a junior medical officer. In 1981 he was playing in an RAF rugby match when a mistimed opposition tackle left him with a severe spinal injury. After many months of treatment and rehabilitation, which he now describes as 'long and tortuous,' he wanted to return to work in medicine, but found that there was a reluctance to employ a doctor with a disability. He worked as a GP and also pursued an interest in sports medicine, leading to research in this area and an academic role. When he saw the medical support available for Olympic athletes, he felt strongly that para-athletes deserved the same level of specialist help - especially as many also had to deal with underlying problems that their Olympic peers did not face. His pioneering research has made Paralympic sport safer for athletes, and has driven the development of sports medicine in areas such as rehabilitation. He also represented Great Britain in wheelchair tennis in 2005. Nick is Professor of Sport and Exercise Medicine at the University of Brighton. DISC ONE: Heroes by David Bowie DISC TWO: Hallelujah, composed by George Frideric Handel, performed by London Musici Chamber Choir and London Musici Orchestra, conducted by Mark Stephenson DISC THREE: Jamaica Farewell by Nina and Frederik DISC FOUR: Will Ye Go Lassie Go by The Corries DISC FIVE: For Crying out Loud by Meat Loaf DISC SIX: This is Me by Keala Settle DISC SEVEN: Sweet Caroline by Neil Diamond DISC EIGHT: You’ll Never Walk Alone by Gerry & the Pacemakers BOOK CHOICE: The Complete Works of Charles Dickens LUXURY ITEM: Nick’s adapted Segway, with a built-in espresso machine CASTAWAY'S FAVOURITE: This is Me by Keala Settle Presenter Lauren Laverne Producer Sarah Taylor

Anne Tyler is a novelist and short story writer. Her 23 novels include the Accidental Tourist, Dinner at the Homesick Restaurant and the Pulitzer Prize-winning Breathing Lessons. Anne was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota in 1941, the oldest of four children. Her parents were Quakers and the family lived in a succession of Quaker communities in the South until they settled in a Quaker commune in Celo, in the mountains of North Carolina in 1948. When she was 11 the family moved to Raleigh, the capital of North Carolina, where Anne attended a mainstream school.Anne majored in Russian literature at Duke University in North Carolina where she enrolled in a creative writing class run by the author Reynolds Price. After completing her studies she worked as a librarian in the university library.Anne’s first novel, If Morning Ever Comes, was published in 1964 when she was just 22-years-old. Her writing is widely praised for the way it chronicles the lives of middle-class America and celebrates endurance and the complexities of family relationships.Anne moved to Baltimore with her husband and children in 1967 and the city has been the setting for her books ever since. DISC ONE: Darby’s Castle by Kris Kristofferson DISC TWO: This is My Father’s World by Cedarmont Kids DISC THREE: Hearts Of Stone by The Charms DISC FOUR: Darling Dareyne by Shusha DISC FIVE: Un Canadien Errant by Ian And Sylvia DISC SIX: Heart of Glass by Blondie DISC SEVEN: While Sheep May Safely Graze, composed by J.S Bach, performed by Philharmonic Orchestra and conducted by Richard Hayman DISC EIGHT: Baltimore by Nina Simone BOOK CHOICE: The Golden Apples by Eudora Welty LUXURY ITEM: A supply of pet foodCASTAWAY'S FAVOURITE: While Sheep May Safely Graze, composed by J.S Bach, performed by Philharmonic Orchestra and conducted by Richard Hayman Presenter Lauren Laverne Producer Paula McGinley

Leslie Caron is an award-winning actress and dancer who starred in some of the most memorable films of Hollywood’s golden age including An American in Paris and Gigi. Leslie was first cast away on Desert Island Discs in 1956 when she was 25, and her return, nearly 66 years later, marks the greatest gap between appearances in the programme's 80-year history. She was born in Paris in 1931 and started ballet lessons at 11 to please her mother, a dancer herself who had performed on Broadway. Her early childhood was marred by the war and growing up in occupied Paris, but when she was 16 she joined Roland Petit’s Ballets des Champs-Elysées which opened up a new world of possibility. A year later she was spotted during a performance by a member of the audience - Gene Kelly. He lobbied MGM to cast her as his leading lady in An American in Paris, which launched her Hollywood career.Leslie played the tile role in Gigi both on stage in London in a production directed by Peter Hall, who she married, and in the feature film directed by Vincente Minelli. The film won all nine of its nominations at the 1959 Academy Awards – a record at the time.Leslie went on to star in the L-Shaped Room and later played roles in the films Chocolat and Damage. In 2006 she won an Emmy Award for her part in the television series Law and Order: Special Victims Unit. More recently she was on our TV screens playing the Countess Mavrodaki in the drama series The Durrells. She was awarded the Commandeur de la Légion d’honneur in 2013 and the JF Kennedy Gold Medal in the Arts two years later.Leslie lives in London and describes herself as “almost retired.”DISC ONE: L’Accordeoniste by Édith Piaf DISC TWO: Sì, Mimì chiamano Mimi, composed by Giacomo Puccini, performed by Maria Callas and Philharmonia Orchestra, conducted by Tullio Serafin DISC THREE: Ne me quite pas by Jacques Brel DISC FOUR: Miss Otis Regrets by Ella Fitzgerald DISC FIVE: One for My Baby (from The Sky’s The Limit) by Fred Astaire DISC SIX: Requiem in D minor (Introitus: Requiem) Composed by Mozart, performed by Vienna Philharmonic and Vienna Singverein, conducted by Herbert Von Karajan DISC SEVEN: Burn On by Randy Newman DISC EIGHT: Les Feuilles Mortes by Yves Montand BOOK CHOICE: The Sixth Sense of Animals by Maurice Burton LUXURY ITEM: A cutlass CASTAWAY'S FAVOURITE: Sì, Mimì chiamano Mimi, composed by Giacomo Puccini, performed by Maria Callas and Philharmonia Orchestra, conducted by Tullio SerafinPresenter Lauren Laverne Producer Paula McGinley

Professor Sir David Spiegelhalter specialises in medical statistics. He is the Chair of the Winton Centre for Risk and Evidence Communication at Cambridge University, and one of the most frequently cited experts in his field. During the Covid 19 pandemic, he has made regular appearances as a broadcaster and newspaper commentator, analysing and explaining complex data for a general audience. David was born in Barnstable, the youngest of three children. After studying maths at Oxford University and University College London, he spent a year teaching at the University of Berkeley, California before returning to the UK. He has also worked in the field of computer-aided diagnosis. His expertise was called upon in the Bristol Royal Infirmary Inquiry and the Harold Shipman Inquiry.He was knighted in 2014 for his services to medical statistics. DISC ONE: Everybody Knows by Leonard Cohen DISC TWO: Dragostea Din Tei by O-Zone DISC THREE: Oh Well Part 1 by Fleetwood Mac DISC FOUR: A Vaca de Fogo by Madredeus DISC FIVE: If I Should Fall From Grace With God by The Pogues DISC SIX: Four Last Songs: Beim Schlafengehen, composed by Richard Strauss and sung by Jessye Norman DISC SEVEN: St Matthew Passion: Erbarme dich, mein Gott! Composed by Bach, sung by Németh, with Hungarian State Orchestra, conducted by Geza Oberfrank DISC EIGHT: When Father Papered The Parlour by Billy Williams BOOK CHOICE: Ultimate Survival Handbook by Bear Grylls LUXURY ITEM: An unlimited supply of printed Killer Sudoku CASTAWAY'S FAVOURITE: Dragostea Din Tei by O-Zone Presenter Lauren Laverne Producer Sarah Taylor

Lyse Doucet is the BBC’s award-winning chief international correspondent, reporting from a range of postings including in Kabul, Islamabad, Tehran and Jerusalem for nearly 40 years. Lyse was born in Bathhurst, New Brunswick, in eastern Canada and after graduating with a master’s degree from the University of Toronto she set her sights on becoming a journalist. She took her first step by signing up with the volunteer agency Canadian Crossroads International which offered her a placement in Ivory Coast, West Africa.In 1982 the BBC set up a West Africa office and Lyse began filing reports as a freelance journalist. After stints working in London and Pakistan she made her first visit to Kabul in 1988 and covered the Soviet withdrawal from Afghanistan. This trip was the beginning of her long association with the country – a country she now calls her ‘second home’.In 1989 she became the BBC’s Afghanistan and Pakistan correspondent and later on in her career she reported from India and Indonesia in the aftermath of the tsunami. In 2011 she played a leading role in the BBC’s coverage of the Arab Spring, reporting from Tunisia, Egypt and Libya.She was appointed an OBE in 2014 for services to British broadcast journalism and in 2019 she was admitted to the Order of Canada. DISC ONE: Habibi Nour Al Ain by Amr Diab DISC TWO: Passionate Kisses by Mary Chapin Carpenter DISC THREE: Searching for Abegweit (Live) by Lenny Gallant DISC FOUR: Annie’s Song by John Denver DISC FIVE: Bi Lamban by Toumani Diabate and Ballake Sissoko DISC SIX: L Einaudi: Elegy For The Arctic, composed and performed by Ludovico Einaudi DISC SEVEN: Here and Now by Derek Roche, featuring Kathy Evans DISC EIGHT: Dawn by The Orchestra of the Afghanistan National Institute of Music BOOK CHOICE: A Persian language book LUXURY ITEM: Essential oils CASTAWAY'S FAVOURITE: Searching for Abegweit (Live) by Lenny Gallant Presenter: Lauren Laverne Producer: Paula McGinley

John Caudwell is a businessman and philanthropist who founded the mobile phone company Phones 4U in 1996. It became the UK’s largest independent mobile phone retailer and made him one of Britain’s most successful businessmen. John was born in Birmingham and grew up in Stoke-on-Trent. He came up with his first business venture when he was five – he sold his toys to the other children in his neighbourhood. After he left school he became an apprentice engineer at the Michelin Tyre Factory, but the hunger to have his own business drove him on. In his spare time he set up a variety of enterprises from a grocery store to a mail order business selling motorcycle clothing.In 1980 he set up a car dealership with his brother Brian and a few years later spotted a mobile phone in use at a car auction. Although the phone was heavy and cumbersome, John saw the potential of cellular technology and set up his own retail business, starting off with 26 phones which took him almost a year to sell.In 2000 he set up Caudwell Children, his charity which helps children with disabilities, and remains its largest single benefactor. He was one of the first people in the UK to sign up to Bill and Melinda Gates’s Giving Pledge, vowing to give away 70% of his wealth during his lifetime. In 2006 John sold the Caudwell Group for £1.5 billion. DISC ONE: Bennie and the Jets by Elton John DISC TWO: She Loves You by The Beatles DISC THREE: Bring Him Home by Alfie Boe and the cast and orchestra of Les Misérables DISC FOUR: Maggie May by Rod Stewart DISC FIVE: My Way by Frank Sinatra DISC SIX: Bat out of Hell by Meat Loaf DISC SEVEN: Fix You by Coldplay DISC EIGHT: Truly Madly Deeply by Savage GardenBook: A Desert Island Survival manual Luxury: Sunblock CASTAWAY'S FAVOURITE: Fix You by Coldplay Presenter Lauren Laverne Producer Paula McGinley

Deborah Levy is a writer whose novels Swimming Home and Hot Milk were both shortlisted for the Booker Prize. Last year she published the final instalment of her ‘living autobiography’ trilogy of memoirs, and her earlier work includes plays for the RSC as well as short story collections and poetry.Deborah was born in South Africa in 1959, the eldest child of anti-apartheid activists Norman and Philippa Levy. Her father was arrested when she was five and was imprisoned for four years. During this time, Deborah became an almost silent child, but was encouraged by a teacher to write down her thoughts, sparking her love of creative writing. After her father’s release, the family relocated to the UK and first lived above a menswear shop in London. As a teenager Deborah worked as a cinema usher, and a chance encounter with the film-maker Derek Jarman inspired her to change her plans to take a degree in literature, and instead she headed to Dartington College of Arts, where she studied writing for the stage and performance. Her first play, Pax, was commissioned in 1984, and was followed by more than a dozen dramas. Deborah then turned to writing novels in the late 1980s and 1990s. Swimming Home was shortlisted for the 2012 Booker Prize, although it initially struggled to find a publisher. Her trilogy of autobiographies, beginning in 2013 with Things I Don't Want to Know, have enjoyed considerable critical acclaim. DISC ONE: Nkosi Sikelel I’Afrika by Sol Plaatje DISC TWO: Starman by David Bowie DISC THREE: Opening by Phillip Glass DISC FOUR: Moritat Vom Mackie Messer (German version of Mack the Knife) by Lotte Lenya DISC FIVE: Black is the Color of my True Love’s Hair by Nina Simone DISC SIX: Soothing by Laura Marling DISC SEVEN: Diamonds and Rust by Joan Baez DISC EIGHT: Because the Night by Patti Smith BOOK CHOICE: The Archetypes and the Collective Unconscious (Collected Works of C. G. Jung) LUXURY ITEM: A silk sheet CASTAWAY'S FAVOURITE: Because the Night by Patti Smith Presenter Lauren Laverne Producer Sarah Taylor