Sue Lawley's castaway is the actress Kim Cattrall. Kim Cattrall became a household name in her forties as a result of playing man-eater, defiant singleton and PR mogul Samantha Jones in Sex and the City. She is about to star in the play Whose Life is it Anyway? in the West End of London.

She was born in Liverpool but grew up in Canada and decided to be an actress at a young age. She says a formative experience was appearing in a school play Piffle It's Only a Sniffle when she took the role of a cold germ which had to infect the other children by tickling them with a feather until they sneezed. She spent time in drama schools in Canada, Liverpool and New York and says now that her first love is theatre - and her film roles allow her to feed her theatre habit.

[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs]

Favourite track: My Favourite Things by John Coltrane Book: An English Dictionary Luxury: Fragrant body cream

Sue Lawley's castaway is the singer Engelbert Humperdinck. Engelbert Humperdinck is one of Britain's most successful entertainers. He is known as the King of Romance and has been at the top of the showbusiness ladder for nearly 40 years - selling more than 130 million records including sixty-four gold and 23 platinum albums. He was born Arnold George (Gerry) Dorsey in 1936 in India and was one of 10 children. At the age of 10, his family returned to the UK and Leicester. At 17 he began performing in clubs and pubs. In 1965 his manager changed his name to Engelbert Humperdinck but it was still two years before his chance arrived. His big break came in April 1967 when Dickie Valentine was ill and Engelbert took his slot on the show Sunday Night at the London Palladium. His single Release Me flew off the shelves staying in the charts for 56 weeks. He went off to conquer America and there he shared the bill with Dean Martin and Frank Sinatra while he counted Elvis Presley as a close friend. He starts a new UK tour in February next year and his autobiography Engelbert - What's in a Name? was published this year.

[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs]

Favourite track: Return to Me by Dean Martin Book: What's in a Name? by Engelbert Humperdinck Luxury: A saxophone

Sue Lawley's castaway this week is the Liberal Democrat politician Sir Menzies Campbell. Born in Glasgow, he excelled at both academia and sports making it to the University in Glasgow and then Stanford in California where he studied law but all the while dividing his time between this and his other great love - athletics. He became the fastest man in Britain holding and re-breaking the record for the 100 metres between 1967 and 1974 and competed in the 1964 Olympic and 1966 Commonwealth games.

As a lawyer he was called to the Scottish Bar in 1968 and was made QC in 1982. His political career began 30 years ago when he stood for his first parliamentary seat in 1974, fighting three more elections before winning North East Fife in 1987. He quickly became a fast-rising star and is now Deputy Leader of the party and spokesman on Foreign Affairs. He was awarded a CBE in 1987, became a privy councillor in 1999 and was knighted earlier this year in the New Year's Honours list.

[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs]

Favourite track: The Ride of the Valkyries by Richard Wagner Book: Treasure Island & Kidnapped as one volume by Robert Louis Stevenson Luxury: Set of golf clubs

Elizabeth Harman was born in London in 1906. Her parents were both doctors, her mother was the niece of Joseph Chamberlain and cousin of Neville Chamberlain, the future Prime Minister. She was one of only a few girls at that time to attend Oxford University. Joining the social set that included John Betjemen, Evelyn Waugh and Maurice Bowra, she became one of the first female Isis idols and was proposed to numerous times before she accepted Frank Pakenham, who was later to succeed to the Longford earldom. Ever since the occasion she was read Homer's Illiad as a child and felt sympathy for the Trojans, Elizabeth had developed a sympathy for the underdog. And when she began teaching at Oxford in a summer school for the working classes from the Potteries, this sympathy was consolidated. She became interested in politics and a Labour supporter and was to become a Labour party candidate twice, in 1935 and 1950, but never elected to parliament.

Elizabeth married Frank Pakenham in 1931 and they had eight children by 1947. Her experience and expertise with a large family came to the notice of The Daily Express, and she was soon to be writing a column. This led to her first book, Points for Parents, which was published in 1954. It was the start of her writing career. Her next subject, Queen Victoria, was more ambitious: she felt the Queen had been misrepresented in the past and by looking at her and Prince Albert as human beings she adopted a different approach. Elizabeth had access to the Royal archives at Windsor and spent many days in the library there imagining how the Queen would have lived. As well as her book on Victoria, Lady Longford wrote books about Wellington; The House of Windsor; Byron; The Queen Mother; and Queen Elizabeth, as well as her own autobiography. She remains an experienced authority on families and marriage: her own lasted almost seventy years until she was widowed last year.

[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs]

Favourite track: I Vow To Thee My Country by Westminster Abbey Choir Book: Diplomacy and Murder in Tehran - Alexander Griboyedov and Imperial Russia's Mission to the Shah of Persia by Lawrence Kelly Luxury: An orange tree

Sue Lawley's castaway is writer Jan Morris.

Leonard Rosoman's career saw him travel the world as an Official War Artist in the Second World War. He is also a member of the Royal Academy, an illustrator and teacher. The young Leonard dodged the family business by getting a scholarship to the Edward VII School of Art in Durham and went on to paint and teach. When war broke out Leonard was drafted into the Auxiliary Fire Service in London but he didn't stop painting, and he used his experiences to create some of his finest work. This drew him to the attention of the Home Office, and Sir Kenneth Clarke asked him if he would be an Official War Artist. He agreed and was appointed an official war artist to the Admiralty and was posted to the British Pacific Fleet. In April 1945 was posted to Sydney and from there he joined HMS Formidable.

After the war Leonard went back to teaching, first in London then to Edinburgh College of Art in 1948, and later on to the Royal College of Art where he met his most memorable student - David Hockney: "I didn't find him at all difficult, but it was a little bit scary because if anybody ever had something written on his forehead, he had. Every single member of that staff pretty well guaranteed that when David left, he would be a success of some kind. He was a very rare bird - he had a quality of understatement - rare and important in its way."

[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs]

Favourite track: I Got A Gal in Kalamazoo by Glenn Miller & his Orchestra Book: Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man by James Joyce Luxury: A sloping lawn

Sue Johnston has rarely been out of work since she made her name in Brookside. Her versatility is clear, with credits including such varied programmes as acclaimed drama Goodbye Cruel World; the 1950s feel-good nostalgia series Sex, Chips and Rock 'n' Roll; cult comedy The Royle Family and, most recently, psychological thriller Waking the Dead. Her early career was with the Pilkington Glass Factory, where she got a job in the pensions department specifically so she could join their amateur dramatics group. After rebelling against her parents wishes and attending drama school in London, Sue acted in repertory theatre until her mid-30s.

Having a son brought new responsibilities and, realising the bonus of a regular income and regular hours, she auditioned for Channel 4's Brookside. She became a household name and recognised as Sheila Grant wherever she went. She left after eight years and never looked back: her first role was as a motor neurone sufferer in Goodbye Cruel World, for which she was Bafta nominated and she has been in demand ever since. She was also Bafta nominated for her role as lovable put-upon mum Barbara in The Royle Family, which in 1998 and 2000 won British Comedy Awards.

[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs]

Favourite track: You'll Never Walk Alone by Gerry and the Pacemakers Book: Dickens by Peter Ackroyd Luxury: BBC Radio 5 Live

Suggs made his name as front man of 80s pop phenomenon Madness and impressed a whole generation with his unique style of singing, silly dancing and fondness for making the mundane the subject of his songs, such as Baggy Trousers, inspired by memories of school. Although his cockney accent is part of his singing style, he was actually born in Hastings and moved to London as a child. His singer mother was perhaps a subconscious inspiration, but Suggs didn't have any particular ambitions in his teens. He dropped out of school and did what a lot of teenage boys do - formed a band with his friends.

Madness, a seven-piece gang of friends, became a huge success. Their first single 'The Prince' went to number 16 in 1979 and three years later they had a number one with House of Fun. In seven years they had 20 singles in the top twenty UK chart and travelled the world playing to large audiences. Now Madness occasionally meet up and play their hits list, and Suggs has launched a successful solo career and is also working in TV, hosting Night Fever on Channel 5 and captaining a team on BBC1's A Question of Pop.

[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs]

Favourite track: Is That All There Is? by Peggy Lee Book: A concise book of Italian verbs Luxury: A nucleus of bees

Sir Aaron Klug grew up in Durban, South Africa on the edge of the Bush, which provided him with enough snakes and monkeys to satisfy his curiosity. A bright child, he read anything that was available and enjoyed an idyllic childhood. He started studying medicine at university level in Johannesburg at the age of fifteen, but soon switched to chemistry, physics and mathematics, which provided more stimulus for his enquiring mind.

He began to research at Cape Town University and later Cambridge, where he joined the world-famous Cavendish Laboratory and later the MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology. His work led to him winning the Nobel prize for Chemistry in 1982 for his work on cell structure.

[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs]

Favourite track: The Ode to Joy (Symphony No 9) by Ludwig van Beethoven Book: A set of books on Roman Republican and Imperial coinage Luxury: A set of mixed Greek and Roman coinage

This week the castaway on Desert Island Discs is the theatre director Jude Kelly. Currently based at the West Yorkshire Playhouse - which under her creative directorship has become The National Theatre of the North, Kelly is known for her enthusiasm to bring the arts to everyone, and embracing new ideas in the creative arts.

In conversation with Sue Lawley, she talks about her life and work and chooses eight records to take to the mythical island.

[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs]

Favourite track: In A Landscape by John Cage Book: A specially commissioned complete history of art book, with sections by John Berger, David Hockney and Jeanette Winterson among others Luxury: A notebook and pencil

This week the castaway on Desert Island Discs is the fashion designer Betty Jackson. For three decades Betty Jackson has been at the cutting edge of the British Fashion scene and this year presented her 40th show at London Fashion week. In conversation with Sue Lawley, she talks about her life and work and chooses eight records to take to the mythical island.

[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs]

Favourite track: You Don't Have To Say You Love Me by Dusty Springfield Book: Vision: 50 Years of Creativity by Melvyn Bragg Luxury: Red lipstick

This week the castaway on Desert Island Discs is the organist Wayne Marshall. He describes himself as a virtuosic performer, preferring to play "loud and fast". The energy he brings to his performances has brought him fans from around the world. He is a renowned interpreter of Gershwin on the piano, also conducts and he has turned his hand to composing - his first work was published in 2001. In conversation with Sue Lawley, he talks about his life and work and chooses eight records to take to the mythical island.

[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs]

Favourite track: Gershwin's Piano Concerto in F by George Gershwin Book: Grove's Dictionary of Music and Musicians Luxury: A Steinway model D piano, specially conditioned to deal with all weathers

This week the castaway on Desert Island Discs is the Chairman of BT, Sir Christopher Bland. Passionately interested in business, Sir Christopher's business career maps a total of 18 different business and industries, about which he says "I was shocked!" It also includes Chairmanships of LWT and the BBC. In conversation with Sue Lawley, he talks about his life and work and chooses eight records to take to the mythical island.

[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs]

Favourite track: Write Myself a Letter by Fats Waller Book: The collected works by John Donne Luxury: Two and half miles of the Hampshire Chalk Stream

Sue Lawley's castaway this week is the journalist and writer Anne Scott-James. Now in her 92nd year, Anne Scott-James came from a line of critics and writers and became one of the first women career journalists, editors and columnists, before embarking on a second career as the author of a series of gardening books. After Oxford she joined Vogue - first as an assistant to a secretary and then went from writing the odd picture caption to proper articles. She became editor of Harper's Bazaar - and during her magazine career she commissioned work from such figures as Cecil Beaton, John Betjemen and Elizabeth David. Her marriage to Macdonald Hastings collapsed and in the early 60s she met the writer and illustrator Sir Osbert Lancaster and they married in 1967. At around the same time she embarked on a new stage in her career - gardening writing. Her first book, Down to Earth, and The Pleasure Garden, which she produced jointly with Sir Osbert, are now being republished as gardening classics.

[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs]

Favourite track: Double Concerto for Two Violins in D by Johann Sebastian Bach Book: Semi-attached Couple by Emily Eden Luxury: Nightdress made of pure white cotton

This week the castaway on Desert Island Discs is the Director General of the National Trust, Fiona Reynolds. Passionate about the countryside, the job at the National Trust was a dream come true for Fiona, but six weeks into the job she was faced with Foot and Mouth and had to make the drastic decision to close almost all of the National Trust properties.

In conversation with Sue Lawley, she talks about her life and work and chooses eight records to take to the mythical island.

[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs]

Favourite track: The Salutation from Dies Natalis by Finzi Book: The Making of the English Landscape by W G Hoskins Luxury: The full collection of Ordnance Survey maps of the British Isles

This week the castaway on Desert Island Discs is the chef Gordon Ramsay, the only British chef in the country to have three Michelin stars, at his eponymous restaurant in London. He has recently become 'chef Patron' (head chef) at the restaurant at Claridges, owns two more restaurants, Pétrus in London and Amaryllis in Glasgow and is the author of four books. In conversation with Sue Lawley, he talks about his life and work and chooses eight records to take to the mythical island.

[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs]

Favourite track: Yellow by Coldplay Book: Kitchen Confidential by Anthony Bourdain Luxury: A fresh vanilla pod

This week the castaway on Desert Island Discs is the psychologist Dorothy Rowe, author of groundbreaking books on depression such as Choosing not Losing, Breaking the Bonds and The Courage to Live. Translated into 12 languages, her books have helped many people round the world learn about themselves. In conversation with Sue Lawley, she talks about her life and work and chooses eight records to take to the mythical island.

[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs]

Favourite track: Finale (Allegro vivace) by Franz Schubert Book: The Oxford Companion to the Body by Professor Colin Blakemore Luxury: A snorkelling suit with prescription goggles

This week the castaway on Desert Island Discs is the landscape photographer Fay Godwin. Her evocative pictures brought Fay Godwin to the notice of the poet Ted Hughes and their collaboration Remains of Elmet led Fay to "discover Britain through the soles of her feet", taking photographs as she walked the length and breadth of the British Isles. In conversation with Sue Lawley, she talks about her life and work and chooses eight records to take to the mythical island.

[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs]

Favourite track: 5th movement, String Quartet No 13 in Bflat by Ludwig van Beethoven Book: The Rattlebag: An Anthology of Poetry by Ted Hughes Luxury: Egg tempura paints, brushes, and boards to paint on

This week the castaway on Desert Island Discs is the ballerina, Dame Beryl Grey. When she joined Sadlers Wells at 14 she quickly took on leading roles and became Britain's first 'Baby Ballerina'. In the late 1950s she left the Royal Ballet to pursue a glittering freelance career - becoming the first Western ballerina to perform at the Bolshoi. In conversation with Sue Lawley, she talks about her life and work and chooses eight records to take to the mythical island.

[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs]

Favourite track: The Beginning of the Third Movement by Jean Sibelius Book: This Sceptred Isle by Christopher Lee Luxury: Box of watercolour paints

This week's Sue Lawley's castaway is the President of the Royal Society, Lord May. During his tenure as Chief Scientific Adviser to the Government, between 1995 and 2000, Bob May gained a reputation for speaking his mind on subjects ranging from GM foods to embryology. He chooses eight records to take to the mythical island.

[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs]

Favourite track: Parsifal by Richard Wagner Book: Capablanca's Hundred Best Games of Chess by Hans Golombek Luxury: Isle of Lewis chess set from The British Museum

Sue Lawley's castaway is broadcaster Sue MacGregor.

Favourite track: Adagio by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Book: History of the World by J M Roberts Luxury: Unlimited supply of sun block (nicely scented)

This week the castaway on Desert Island Discs is the award-winning writer, Kazuo Ishiguro. Titles such as When We Were Orphans, An Artist of the Floating World and the Booker prize-winning The Remains of the Day have made Kazuo Ishiguro a household name all over the world. In conversation with Sue Lawley, he talks about his life and work and chooses eight records to take to the mythical island.

[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs]

Favourite track: Trying To Get To Heaven by Bob Dylan Book: Collected short stories by Anton Chekhov Luxury: Big roll of paper

This week the castaway on Desert Island Discs is Sir Paul Nurse, the Director General of Science for the charity Cancer Research UK. Thanks to his work on the genes controlling the division of cancer cells, Sir Paul was one of three scientists to share the Nobel Prize for Medicine last year. In conversation with Sue Lawley, he talks about his life and work and chooses eight records to take to the mythical island.

[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs]

Favourite track: Dancing In The Street by David Bowie/Mick Jagger Book: Ascent of Man by Jacob Bronowski Luxury: A telescope

This week the castaway on Desert Island Discs is Viscount Linley. The son of Princess Margaret and the Earl of Snowdon has always made a point of playing down his royal connections. Having set up his own company specialising in bespoke furniture, David Linley is now one of the country's most fervent advocates for modern craftsmanship. In conversation with Sue Lawley, he talks about his life and work and chooses eight records to take to the mythical island.

[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs]

Favourite track: Piano Concerto in C Minor K.491: 2nd Movement by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Book: The Art of Looking Sideways by Alan Fletcher Luxury: A guitar

Sue's Lawley's castaway this week is the zoologist turned author and broadcaster Desmond Morris. He made his name with The Naked Ape first published in 1967 in which he persuasively argued the case for viewing man as a 'risen ape' rather than a 'fallen angel'. To him, humans should be observed like any other beast in the animal kingdom. The book has sold more than 12 million copies and has been translated into 23 languages. Dozens more books have followed including The Human Zoo, which compared the social problems of humans living in cities to the behaviour of stressed animals in a zoo.

He's also a successful artist - once holding the directorship of the Institute of Contemporary Arts - and he's exhibited his work at galleries around the world.

[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs]

Favourite track: Imagine by Alex Parks Book: Tales from Arabia: One Thousand and One Nights by Richard Burton Luxury: Snorkel

This week the castaway on Desert Island Discs is the pianist, Phyllis Sellick.

Phyllis Sellick enjoyed a glittering career as a solo performer but was just as well known as one half of a duo, with her husband Cyril Smith. Then he suffered a stroke and lost the use of his left arm, but by adapting the music they continued to perform together successfully in Britain and abroad. In conversation with Sue Lawley, she talks about her life and work and chooses eight records to take to the mythical island.

[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs]

Favourite track: Serenade To Music (Excerpt) by Vaughan Williams Book: The Oxford Companion to Music Luxury: Clockwork radio tuned to Radio 4

Sue Lawley's castaway is pollster Bob Worcester.

Favourite track: Organ Symphony in C Minor: Finale by Camille Saint-Saëns Book: Globes at Greenwich by Elly Dekker Luxury: Celestial and terrestrial globes

This week the castaway on Desert Island Discs is Lady Walton. Within two weeks of meeting the composer Sir William Walton, Susana Gil Passo had accepted his marriage proposal and left her home in Argentina. When they moved to the island of Ischia, she began transforming the barren land into what is now La Mortella - one of the most famous and beautiful gardens of the Mediterranean. It boasts more than 600 exotic plants - including tree ferns, jacaranda and the huge Victoria Amazonica Waterlily - and is the backdrop to summer concerts organised in Sir William's memory. In conversation with Sue Lawley, she talks about her life and work and chooses eight records to take to the mythical island.

[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs]

Favourite track: Troilus and Cressida, Act Two by Sir William Walton Book: The Education of a Gardener by Russel Page Luxury: Downy pillow

Sue Lawley's castaway is President of the Royal College of Surgeons Sir Peter Morris.

Favourite track: Piano Concerto No 21 in C Major by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Book: The Aubrey and Maturin Series 20-Volume Complete Hardcover Set by Patrick O'Brien Luxury: Set of golf clubs and balls

This week the castaway on Desert Island Discs is the actor Ewan McGregor. In the last 10 years, Ewan McGregor has become a star on both sides of the Atlantic, thanks to films such as Trainspotting, Moulin Rouge, Brassed Off and Star Wars - the Phantom Menace. In conversation with Sue Lawley, he talks about his life and work and chooses eight records to take to the mythical island.

[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs]

Favourite track: Dark Lochnagar by Jimmy O'Brien Moran Book: In Search of Lost Time by Marcel Proust Luxury: Chromatic Harmonica

Sue Lawley's castaway is TV chef Jamie Oliver.

Favourite track: Only To Be With You by Roachford Book: Doesn't read books - needs notepaper and pens to write recipes Luxury: Leatherman - like a Swiss army knife but more substantial

This week the castaway on Desert Island Discs is the Children's Laureate Anne Fine. She wrote her first book because a blizzard prevented her going to the library and there was nothing to read in the house! That was in the 1970s. Now she has more than 60 books in print, won numerous awards and seen one novel - Madam Doubtfire turned into a successful film starring Robin Williams. In conversation with Sue Lawley, she talks about her life and work and chooses eight records to take to the mythical island.

[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs]

Favourite track: Domine Deus from B Minor Mass by Johann Sebastian Bach Book: Collected Poems by Philip Larkin Luxury: Pencil and paper

When, at the tender age of eight, Sir Cameron Mackintosh went to see a production of Salad Days, he was so entranced that he introduced himself to the show's composer Julian Slade and decided immediately to become a producer. Those early ambitions were not misplaced; in the last 20 years Sir Cameron has produced a string of hits - from Cats and Miss Saigon to Phantom of the Opera, Les Miserables and My Fair Lady. He is Sue Lawley's castaway on Desert Island Discs this week.

[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs]

Favourite track: Pie Jesu (from Requiem) (1985) by Andrew Lloyd Webber Book: Complete Cookery Course by Delia Smith Luxury: Solar-powered Magimix

This week the castaway on Desert Island Discs is the Rt Hon. William Hague, MP for Richmond. He talks about his childhood in Yorkshire, his rapid rise within the Conservative party and his aspirations now that he is no longer the party's leader.

[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs]

Favourite track: Enigma Variation No. 9 - Nimrod by Edward Elgar Book: The Master of the Senate - the Years of Lyndon Johnson (3rd Volume) by Robert Caro Luxury: Dojo

This week the castaway on Desert Island Discs is the writer Ken Follett. Novels such as Eye of the Needle, The Pillars of the Earth and The Third Twin have put him in the best seller lists all over the world - although when he started writing his first novel his agent suggested he use a pseudonym in case he "wanted to write something better later!". In conversation with Sue Lawley, he talks about his life and work and chooses eight records to take to the mythical island.

[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs]

Favourite track: Beginning of Violin Concerto No 3 in G Major by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Book: Philosophical Investigations by Ludwig Wittgenstein Luxury: Entire cellar of a great collector of French wine

Sue Lawley's castaway this week is the actress and wildlife campaigner Virginia McKenna. She was born in London and, after spending five years of her childhood in South Africa to escape the Blitz, she returned to England. She enrolled at the Central School of Drama but left after two years when offered six months in Repertory at Dundee. Classics such as the Cruel Sea, Carve Her Name with Pride and A Town Like Alice, for which she won a British Academy Award for Best Actress, have been highlights in a long and successful career.

However her most remembered and best loved roles have been in Born Free and Ring of Bright Water, starring opposite her actor husband the late Bill Travers. For Born Free, she won the Variety Club Best Actress Award . Making Born Free in 1964, which told the true story of George and Joy Adamson as they returned Elsa the lioness to the wild, profoundly affected Bill and Virginia and it was a key influence in their lives. They realised that wild animals belong in the wild and should be protected there, not imprisoned in captivity. But the premature death in London Zoo of Pole Pole, a young elephant, who had featured in their film, An Elephant Called Slowly, led to the founding of Zoo Check in 1984. The Trust was dedicated to preventing the abuse of captive wild animals and strove to protect and conserve them in the wild. Zoo Check grew to become a major force in the animal welfare movement and was renamed The Born Free Foundation in 1991. She was awarded the OBE in the New Year's Honours List in 2004 for services to wildlife and the arts.

[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs]

Favourite track: We Are The Music Makers by Edward Elgar Book: Animal - the Definitive Visual Guide to the World's Wildlife by David Burnie Luxury: Language tapes to learn Italian and Swahali

This week the castaway on Desert Island Discs is the comedian and actor, Billy Connolly. His one-man shows continue to pack venues on both sides of the Atlantic and his performances in films such as Mrs Brown, The Debt Collector and The Imposters have won him great critical acclaim. In conversation with Sue Lawley, he talks about his life and work and chooses eight records to take to the mythical island.

[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs]

Favourite track: Long Gone Lonesome Blues by Hank Williams Book: Oxford English Dictionary Luxury: Banjo

Sue Lawley's castaway this week is the historian Simon Schama. Books such as The Embarrassment of Riches, Landscape and Memory and Citizens have won Simon Schama countless awards and critical acclaim, and he takes a break from his latest project - the BBC television series A History of Britain - to choose eight records for his desert island.

[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs]

Favourite track: Symphony No. 9 in C Major 'Great' by Franz Schubert Book: The Leopard by Giuseppe di Lampedusa Luxury: Bethsheba by Rembrandt

Sue Lawley's castaway this week is Lord Roll.

Now in his 90s, Eric Roll is enjoying his third career as an investment banker. As a young man he was a talented academic, but he left university life in the 40s to join the civil service. There he was regarded as one of the cleverest negotiators of his generation, working with Ernest Bevin on the Marshall Plan, Edward Heath on EEC membership and Harold Wilson on the Department of Economic Affairs. Lord Roll chooses eight records to take with him to the mythical island.

[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs]

Favourite track: Clarinet Quintet in A major by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Book: Faust by Johann Wolfgang Goethe Luxury: Cassette recorder and cassettes

Sue Lawley's castaway this week is the vet Bruce Fogle. His interest in the relationship between pets and their owners has turned Bruce Fogle into a best selling author on dog and cat behaviour. His advice on how to tackle unruly animals has helped readers all over the world. He chooses eight records to take with him to the mythical island.

[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs]

Favourite track: It's Me Oh Lord by Hank Jones Book: Canoe Craft Luxury: Molecular engineering laboratory - to construct a 'dog'

Sue Lawley's castaway is actor Joss Ackland.

Favourite track: My Cup Runneth Over by Mary Martin and Robert Preston Book: The Diary of Samuel Pepys by Samuel Pepys Luxury: A huge jar of liquorice

Sue Lawley's castaway this week is Lord Deedes. In a journalistic career spanning 70 years, Bill Deedes has witnessed and written about some of the most important milestones of the 20th century. He chooses eight records to take with him to the mythical island.

[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs]

Favourite track: God Bless Africa by George Fenton/Janas Gwangwa Book: Original Prayer Book without any amendments Luxury: Mister Trumper's aftershave

This week Sue Lawley's castaway is the award-winning cookery writer Claudia Roden whose Book of Middle Eastern Food revolutionised Western attitudes to the cuisines of the Middle East. Her Book of Jewish Food has been described as 'the richest and most sensuous encyclopaedia of Jewish life ever set in print'. She chooses eight records to take with her to the mythical island.

[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs]

Favourite track: L'Accordeoniste by Edith Piaf Book: A La Recherche Du Temps by Marcel Proust Luxury: Oil paints and brushes

Sue Lawley's castaway is Archbishop of Westminster Cormac Murphy O'Connor.

Favourite track: Praise to the Holiest by Edward Elgar Book: Lifelines by Seamus Heaney Luxury: Grand piano

This week Sue Lawley's castaway is Martin Bell, who, after a distinguished career as a BBC foreign correspondent, became the Independent MP for Tatton in 1997. With politics now behind him, he tastes life on a mythical desert island.

[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs]

Favourite track: Amazing Grace by Royal Scots Dragoon Guards Book: Corduroy (his father's first book) by Adrian Bell Luxury: A barrel of Adnam's Ale brewed in Suffolk

Sue Lawley's castaway is folk singer-songwriter Peggy Seeger.

Favourite track: The Air from Suite No 3 in D Major by Johann Sebastian Bach Book: A Scots Quair by Lewis Grassic Gibbon Luxury: Banjo with plastic head with an inexhaustible supply of strings & pegs

Sue Lawley's castaway this week is the mountaineer Joe Simpson. He was born in Kuala Lumpur in 1960 where his father was stationed with the British Army. Over the next few years the family lived in Gibraltar, Ireland and Germany, although Joe returned to England for schooling at Ampleforth and showed an early adventurous spirit and love of sport.

But it was only after reading the classic account of attempted ascents on the Eiger - 'The White Spider' - by Heinrich Harrer that he developed an interest in his future passion. After a brief spell working at a saw mill and then at a quarry he studied English Literature at Edinburgh University. There he began climbing in earnest often attempting dangerous routes beyond his experience before tackling a previously unconquered route up Siula Grande - a peak in the Peruvian Andes. This climb was to make his name. He and his partner Simon Yates made the first successful ascent of the mountain's west face only to run into difficulties after Joe shattered his leg on their descent. After running out of resources and with no prospect of rescue Simon painstakingly lowered Joe towards shelter before being forced to cut the rope on his friend. Joe had inadvertently slid over an overhanging rock and was slowly pulling the two off the mountain. He landed in a crevasse and after being left for dead amazingly managed to crawl miles back to safety. Simon Yates was widely attacked for his actions in the climbing community leading Joe to write a defence of the rescue with his book 'Touching the Void', which has also been made into an award-winning film. Told he'd never climb again following the accident, Joe went on to climb many more mountains over the last two decades. He's worked as a mountaineering guide all over the world and written five more books.

[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs]

Favourite track: I'm Not A Man You Meet Everyday by Cait O'Riordon and the Pogues Book: Blank book and pen Alternative to Bible: The Sutras - the teachings of Gautama Buddha Luxury: A drink-making machine

This week Sue Lawley's castaway is the businessman, Sir Stanley Kalms. Over the last fifty years he's turned Dixons, the small photographic studio his father opened in the 1930s, into one of Britain's biggest retail outlets. The group now covers PC World, Currys and The Link. He chooses eight records to take with him to the mythical island.

[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs]

Favourite track: Air On A G String by Johann Sebastian Bach Book: The Wealth of Nations by Adam Smith Luxury: Pack of cards

Sue Lawley's castaway is chemist Sir Harry Kroto.

Favourite track: 3rd Movement of Symphony No4 in G Major by Gustav Mahler Book: Quantum Electro Dynamics Physics by Feynman Luxury: Airbrush computer graphics set

Sue Lawley's castaway is Pulitzer prize-winning writer Frank McCourt.

Favourite track: The Kyrie from St Cecilia Mass by Charles Gounod Book: Oxford Anthology of English Verse Luxury: A pair of binoculars