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Desert Island Discs: Daily Summaries Delivered
by BBC Radio 4
Eight tracks, a book and a luxury: what would you take to a desert island? Guests share the soundtrack of their lives.
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- 2 days ago51 min
Gary O'Donoghue, journalist
Journalist Gary O’Donoghue is the Chief North America Correspondent for BBC News. Last year his coverage of the 2024 assassination attempt on Donald Trump won the Royal Television Society Breaking News Award. He made the news himself in 2025 when he secured a 20-minute exclusive phone interview with Trump who was by then the US President.Gary was born in London and brought up in Essex. When he was eight he lost his sight and attended specialist schools for blind and partially sighted children. He read philosophy and modern languages at the University of Oxford before embarking on his BBC career.He has reported on mass shootings, filed stories from the Macedonian border during the Kosovo conflict, covered the Iraq War and chronicled seven British general elections. He became the BBC’s Washington correspondent in 2014 and, as well as Donald Trump’s two terms, has covered the administrations of Presidents Obama and Biden. Gary is based in Washington DC and when in the UK lives in West Yorkshire with his partner Sarah. Presenter: Lauren Laverne Producer: Paula McGinleyDesert Island Discs has cast other journalists away to the island over the years including Lyse Doucet, Clive Myrie and Lindsey Hilsum, You can hear their programmes if you search through BBC Sounds or our own Desert Island Discs website.This episode was recorded before the shooting at the White House Correspondent's Dinner on 25th April 2026.
- 1 weeks ago51 min
David Morrissey, actor
David Morrissey is an actor who grew up in Liverpool. His screen work ranges from playing a ruthless survivor of the zombie apocalypse in The Walking Dead to a troubled police officer in James Graham’s Sherwood.His television debut performance came playing a teenager in the Channel 4 series One Summer. Since then his career has seen him win awards including the Royal Television Society award for Best Male Actor for his role as Gordon Brown in The Deal. Morrissey’s interest in acting started in primary school, when he was cast as the Scarecrow in a production of The Wizard of Oz. As a teenager, he developed his passion further at the Everyman Youth Theatre in Liverpool, where he took guidance from professional actors.After his first TV role, he went on to train at RADA. He is best known for portraying complex and troubled characters, and in more recent years has also demonstrated a flair for comedy in series such as Daddy Issues.David lives in London. Presenter Lauren Laverne Producer Sarah TaylorDesert Island Discs has cast other actors away over the years including David’s fellow actors in Sherwood, Monica Dolan and Lesley Manville. The writer, James Graham is in there too. You can hear their programmes if you search through BBC Sounds or our own Desert Island Discs website.
- 2 weeks ago34 min
Classic Desert Island Discs - Whoopi Goldberg
Kirsty Young talks to the actor and comedian Whoopi Goldberg in a programme first broadcast in 2009.
- 3 weeks ago48 min
Classic Desert Island Discs - Arsène Wenger
Laurene Laverne talks to the former football manager Arsène Wenger in a programme first broadcast in 2020.
- May 17, 202635 min
Classic Desert Island Discs - Dame Donna Langley
Lauren Laverne talks to the film studio executive Dame Donna Langley in a programme first broadcast in 2023. Dame Donna was awarded the BAFTA Fellowship this year.
- May 10, 202649 min
Classic Desert Island Discs - Thom Yorke
Lauren Laverne talks to the musician Thom Yorke in a programme first broadcast in 2019.
- May 3, 202636 min
Classic Desert Island Discs - Dr Jane Goodall
Sue Lawley talks to the primatologist Dr Jane Goodall in a programme first broadcast in 2000. Jane Goodall died in October 2025, at the age of 91.
- Apr 25, 202649 min
Si King, cook
Si King is a broadcaster and cook, best known as one half of the duo The Hairy Bikers. Together with his onscreen cooking partner and real-life best friend Dave Myers, the pair travelled over 650,000 miles around the world on motor bikes filming their cooking exploits and they also wrote a number of bestselling cookbooks.Si was born in a pit village near Gateshead, the youngest child of three. His father had served in the arctic convoys and had met his wife whilst on shore leave in Newcastle when she was singing with a big band. Si’s father died when he was eight years old and Si and his mum, Stella, bonded by cooking together which led to his lifelong appreciation of food.His love of motorcycles started early when his uncle introduced him to his garage full of broken motorbikes that he enjoyed tinkering around with. Si fell in love with motorbikes and as a teenager used to give him mum a lift back from the shops.After leaving school, Si played drums in a band to earn a living, during which time he met his former wife, Jane. He became a father at 23 and soon began his television career as a runner on the children’s series Byker Grove. This opened the door to work in TV and film as a location manager, where he met make up artist Dave Myers on the set of a Catherine Cookson drama. After discovering they shared a passion for food and motorbikes, the pair developed the idea for a TV show that would see these two rather hairy motorcyclists travel around the world cooking for people. After Dave’s death in 2024, Si was involved in two commemorative “Dave Days” in which many thousands of riders from the motorbike community showed their support for Dave and his family by travelling in convoy from London to Dave’s home town of Barrow in Furness.Si King lives in the North East.DISC ONE: Winter Song - Lindisfarne DISC TWO: Boil the Breakfast Early - The Chieftains DISC THREE: Anonymous: Liturgy of Saint Anthony - Ad Missam - Introitus: Os justi meditabitur - Coro Gregoriano De Lisboa DISC FOUR: Stay With Me Till Dawn - Judie Tzuke DISC FIVE: Set The Fire To The Third Bar - Snow Patrol feat. Martha Wainwright DISC SIX: Still in Love with You (Live) - Thin Lizzy DISC SEVEN: On The Wire - Troy Cassar-Daley DISC EIGHT: Ask the Lonely - JourneyBOOK CHOICE: Combined works of William Dalrymple LUXURY ITEM: A solar-powered fridge and rum CASTAWAY'S FAVOURITE: Ask the Lonely - Journey Presenter Lauren Laverne Producer Sarah TaylorDesert Island Discs has cast other cooks away to the island over the years including Delia Smith, Nigella Lawson and Nigel Slater. You can hear their programmes if you search through BBC Sounds or our own Desert Island Discs website.
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About Desert Island Discs
Eight tracks, a book and a luxury: what would you take to a desert island? Guests share the soundtrack of their lives.
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