16°38′S 032°20′W

Joanna Trollope

Joanna Trollope on coming out of the historical cupboard

Castaway · 11 September 1994·Sue Lawley

04°30′S 103°58′W

Zoe Wanamaker

How Zoe Wanamaker's father stopped her from changing her name

Castaway · 12 June 1994·Sue Lawley

15°50′S 111°06′W

Milton Shulman

Milton Shulman on how hay fever stopped him from becoming a crooner

Castaway · 5 June 1994·Sue Lawley

11°49′S 123°08′W

Douglas Adams

How lying drunk in an Innsbruck field gave Douglas Adams his Hitchhiker's idea

Castaway · 6 February 1994·Sue Lawley

22°43′S 167°04′W

Baroness Blackstone

Tessa Blackstone on being dubbed dark-eyed evil genius

Castaway · 25 April 1993·Sue Lawley

23°38′S 077°49′W

Lord Oaksey

John Oaksey on buying a half share in a horse for a Grand National ride

Castaway · 11 April 1993·Sue Lawley

06°43′S 081°03′W

Adelaide Hall

Adelaide Hall on accidentally inventing scat while humming to Ellington's 'Creole Love Call'

Castaway · 13 January 1991·Sue Lawley

09°43′S 118°14′W

Maeve Binchy

Maeve Binchy on losing her faith after a disappointing visit to Jerusalem

Castaway · 10 June 1990·Sue Lawley

21°38′S 043°25′W

Jonathan Pryce

Jonathan Pryce on being stopped in the corridor at RADA

Castaway · 20 May 1990·Sue Lawley

00°30′S 091°25′W

June Whitfield

June Whitfield on corpsing with Eric Morecambe

Castaway · 29 April 1990·Sue Lawley

12°13′S 173°32′W

Michael Tilson Thomas

Michael Tilson Thomas on being told to put his suit on and conduct mid-concert

Castaway · 11 February 1990·Sue Lawley

23°34′S 002°40′W

Sarah Miles

Sarah Miles on losing her virginity to a record

Castaway · 4 February 1990·Sue Lawley

06°54′S 022°50′W

Alan Plater

Alan Plater on being the answer to a Radio Times crossword clue

Castaway · 15 October 1989·Sue Lawley

12°20′S 035°13′W

Joan Armatrading

Joan Armatrading on arriving from the Caribbean alone aged seven with a sign around her neck

Castaway · 29 January 1989·Sue Lawley

23°41′S 043°21′W

Boy George

Boy George on seeing his mother's sad face on the news

Castaway · 22 January 1989·Sue Lawley

13°34′S 009°00′W

Patricia Neal

How a photograph of Roald Dahl's nieces convinced Patricia Neal to marry him

Castaway · 14 August 1988·Michael Parkinson

18°52′S 029°55′W

Rowan Atkinson

Rowan Atkinson on improvising in front of a mirror to create his first characters

Castaway · 15 May 1988·Michael Parkinson

10°50′S 051°01′W

Sue Lawley

Sue Lawley on being called the kind of girl you'd take home to mum

Castaway · 8 November 1987·Michael Parkinson

17°10′S 071°12′W

Susan George

Susan George on making up her mind to become an actress at age 11

Castaway · 16 August 1987·Michael Parkinson

17°12′S 128°43′W

Johnny Mathis

How a doctor secretly gave Johnny Mathis amphetamines

Castaway · 8 March 1987·Michael Parkinson

23°08′S 075°55′W

Ken Russell

How Ken Russell walked out of his own film Valentino

Castaway · 22 February 1987·Michael Parkinson

14°07′S 049°31′W

Tony Bennett

Tony Bennett on his first job as a singing waiter at 16

Castaway · 4 January 1987·Michael Parkinson

01°39′S 032°46′W

George Abbott

George Abbott on watching a producer chop scenery with an axe

Castaway · 1 September 1984·Roy Plomley

16°37′S 006°22′W

Ved Mehta

Ved Mehta on the 1,300-mile journey to a school for the blind

Castaway · 25 August 1984·Roy Plomley

16°06′S 172°22′W

James Stewart

James Stewart on being told to leave engineering because of his maths

Castaway · 17 December 1983·Roy Plomley

02°54′S 123°56′W

Tim Severin

Tim Severin on the bump in the night when his ship hit something

Castaway · 29 January 1983·Roy Plomley

14°16′S 083°30′W

Sir Anton Dolin

Anton Dolin on choosing a Russian-sounding name to hoodwink the press

Castaway · 12 June 1982·Roy Plomley

14°52′S 085°12′W

Buddy Rich

How a UFO buzzed Buddy Rich's car at 4am

Castaway · 9 May 1981·Roy Plomley

15°15′S 158°11′W

Tristan Jones

Tristan Jones on sailing further north than Nansen

Castaway · 23 August 1980·Roy Plomley

01°45′S 085°21′W

Kyung-Wha Chung

Kyung-Wha Chung on being banned from concerts by Jascha Heifetz

Castaway · 29 December 1979·Roy Plomley

21°11′S 105°19′W

Lauren Bacall

How a phone call to Howard Hawks saved Lauren Bacall’s crooked eyebrows

Castaway · 3 March 1979·Roy Plomley

09°58′S 037°13′W

Jule Styne

Jule Styne on jumping on stage to imitate Harry Lauder aged five

Castaway · 28 October 1978·Roy Plomley

13°05′S 142°56′W

Alan Coren

Alan Coren on selling his first piece to Punch

Castaway · 21 January 1978·Roy Plomley

11°58′S 044°52′W

Professor Alan Gemmell

Alan Gemmell on how his mother declared him a botanist after a neighbour's suggestion

Castaway · 12 November 1977·Roy Plomley

22°19′S 053°00′W

Claire Rayner

Claire Rayner on being too pregnant for a tight-waisted uniform

Castaway · 22 October 1977·Roy Plomley

03°22′S 068°28′W

Anthony Quayle

Anthony Quayle on his first taste of money from a musical sketch with Naylor Grimson

Castaway · 6 November 1976·Roy Plomley

07°36′S 141°06′W

Sir John Betjeman

John Betjeman on reciting his poetry in the bath

Castaway · 12 April 1975·Roy Plomley

04°42′S 047°04′W

Michael Parkinson

Michael Parkinson on learning nothing about bottles and a lot about women

Castaway · 19 February 1972·Roy Plomley

12°49′S 093°40′W

Annie Ross

Castaway · 26 July 1965·Roy Plomley

19°31′S 163°05′W

Anatole de Grunwald

Anatole de Grunwald on reading for pleasure, not for film inspiration

Castaway · 29 March 1965·Roy Plomley

20°54′S 055°04′W

Tallulah Bankhead

How Tallulah Falls gave Tallulah Bankhead her name

Castaway · 14 December 1964·Roy Plomley

10°57′S 119°55′W

Paul Tortelier

Paul Tortelier on his mother's ambition that he become a cellist

Castaway · 15 June 1964·Roy Plomley

00°09′S 176°03′W

David Jacobs

David Jacobs on the screw points that ruined his perfect cupboard mirror

Castaway · 25 May 1964·Roy Plomley

18°14′S 015°32′W

Judy Grinham

Judy Grinham on the ten-minute wait for her Olympic gold result

Castaway · 9 March 1959·Roy Plomley

07°54′S 134°14′W

Bob Monkhouse and Denis Goodwin

Bob Monkhouse and Denis Goodwin on both saying snap to the same joke

Castaway · 12 December 1955·Roy Plomley