Last Word

BBC

Radio 4's weekly obituary programme, telling the life stories of those who have died recently

  • 27 minutes 50 seconds
    Terry Anderson, Trina Robbins, Lord Field, Ann Trevenen Jenkin

    Matthew Bannister on

    The American journalist Terry Anderson who was held captive in Lebanon for almost seven years. In an emotional interview, his daughter Sulome tells us how she followed in his footsteps as she tried to connect with a father she met for the first time when she was seven years old.

    Lord Field who, the Labour MP Frank Field who campaigned tirelessly for welfare reform.

    Trina Robbins the feminist cartoonist and writer who was the first woman to illustrate the Wonder Woman comics.

    Ann Trevenen Jenkin the first woman Grand Bard of Cornwall and a founding member of the Cornish nationalist party Mebyon Kernow.

    Interviewee: Sulome Anderson Interviewee: Ellin Stein Interviewee: Liam Halligan Interviewee: Loveday Jenkin

    Producer: Gareth Nelson-Davies

    Archive Used:

    Sulome Anderson writes a letter to her father on his birthday, BBC News, 07/10/1991; Terry Anderson release, Live press conference, BBC News, 04/12/1991; Terry Anderson interview, BBC Radio 1, 01/01/2000; Terry Anderson on What It’s Like to Live as a Hezbollah Hostage, Slate. YouTube Channel uploaded, 17/11/2014; Trina Robbins, Meet Trina Robbins, the first woman to draw Wonder Woman for D.C. Comics, KTVU FOX 2 San Francisco, YouTube uploaded 30/03/2023; Frank Field MP interview, Straight Talk, BBC News, 19/06/2010; Frank Field, Profile, BBC Radio 4, 13/12/2014; Frank Field, Lent Talks, BBC Radio 4, 01/04/2009; Ann Trevenen Jenkin interviewed by Carmen Talbot for Dreadnought South West’s Rebellious Sounds Archive, 2019; Ann Trevenen Jenkin interview, Cornish March, BBC News, 21/06/1997;

    26 April 2024, 3:25 pm
  • 23 minutes 21 seconds
    “I was born while my father was a hostage”

    Sulome Anderson first met her father – journalist Terry Anderson – at the American Embassy in Damascus. She was seven years old and he had just been released from nearly seven years as a hostage in Lebanon. She desperately wanted to build a relationship with him, even going so far as to become a war correspondent herself and tracking down and meeting one of his captors. But Terry’s traumatic experiences made the task very challenging. When she was nearly kidnapped in the Middle East herself, she became determined to break out of the “cycle of fascination with war” that had bedevilled the family. In this moving interview recorded shortly after Terry’s death she speaks candidly about the pressures they faced.

    Presented by Matthew Banister Produced by Gareth Nelson-Davies and Eirian Jones

    26 April 2024, 7:48 am
  • 27 minutes 49 seconds
    Sir Paul Fox, Lynne Reid Banks, Joan Hills, Amnon Weinstein

    Matthew Bannister on:

    Sir Paul Fox, the respected TV executive who commissioned some of the best loved programmes of the 1960s and 70s. We have a tribute from his former colleague Sir David Attenborough.

    Lynne Reid Banks, the author best known for her novel “The L Shaped Room.”

    Joan Hills, the artist who played a key role in the art world of the 1960s and, with her husband and two children, was part of the Boyle Family quartet.

    Amnon Weinstein, the luthier who collected and restored violins which had been played in concentration camps during the Second World War.

    Interviewee: Sir David Attenborough Interviewee: Gillon Stephenson Interviewee: Georgia Boyle Interviewee: Avshalom Weinstein Interviewee: Jaap Hamburger

    Producer: Gareth Nelson-Davies

    Archive Used: Sportsview, BBC Television, 27/01/1955; Roger Bannister 4 minute mile news report, BBC Archive Newsreel, 07/05/1954; Interview with Paul Fox, The Oral History of the BBC, connectedhistoriesofthebbc.org, 30/11/1984; Lynne Reid Banks interview with Rita Hayworth1956, On This Day, ITN Archive Facebook channel, uploaded 13/07/2022; L-Shaped Room, Official Trailer, 20th Century Fox, 1962, Dir: Bryan Forbes; Lynne Reid Banks interview, With Great Pleasure, BBC Radio 4, 24/09/1999; Reading extract, The Indian in the Cupboard, Episode 1, BBC Radio 4, 02/10/1986; Official Film Promo, Paramount Pictures, Dir: Frank Oz, 1995; Lynne Reid Banks talks about how her life would be different if she couldn't write, gconversations YouTube Channel, uploaded 25/10/2012; Joan Hills interview, The Boyle Family, BBC Four, 27/08/2003; Amnon Weinstein 2018, Alabama Holocaust Education Center, YouTube uploaded 02/06/2022; Violins of Hope, CBS Sunday Morning, YouTube uploaded 22/03/2024;

    19 April 2024, 3:25 pm
  • 27 minutes 40 seconds
    Peter Higgs, Trevor Griffiths, Hella Pick, Margaret Tynes

    Matthew Bannister on Professor Peter Higgs, the physicist who won the Nobel prize for explaining why the building blocks of the universe have mass. Trevor Griffiths, the playwright whose stage and TV dramas focused on left wing politics and social issues. We have a tribute from the actor Jack Shepherd. Hella Pick, the long serving Guardian foreign correspondent who enjoyed the company of many world leaders. Margaret Tynes, the African-American soprano who sang leading operatic roles and worked with Duke Ellington.

    Interviewee: Roland Pease Interviewee: Dr Alan Walker Interviewee: Jack Shepherd Interviewee: Paul Allen Interviewee: Linda Christmas Interviewee: Michael Harper

    Producer: Catherine Powell

    Archive used: BBC News at Six : 04/07/2012; BBC The Life Scientific 18/02/2014; Nobel Prize Announcement in Physics 2013, Youtube, 08/10/2013; All Good Men, Play for Today, BBC 1, 31/01/1974; Trevor Griffiths, BFI, YouTube Upload, 02/06/2017; Through the Night, Play for Today, BBC 1, 04/08/1977; Trevor Griffiths interviewed by Sir Tony Robinson, Showreel 88, BBC2, 26/12/1988; Hardtalk, BBC, 1997; Desert Island Discs, BBC Radio 4, 16/11/2018; Aida - 'Ritorna vincitor' az I. felvonásból, 08/09/1962; Macbeth - 'Una macchia e qui tuttora' a IV. felvonásból (Gran Scena del Sonnambulismo / Alvajáró jelenet) 08/09/1962; A Drum Is a Woman, Pt. 1 by Duke Ellington, Margaret Tynes, Duke Ellington & His Orchestra; "Salome" excerpt, Spoleto, 1961

    12 April 2024, 3:12 pm
  • 27 minutes 43 seconds
    Joe Lieberman, Diana Baring, Lynn Kinnear, Kay Benbow

    Matthew Bannister on Joe Lieberman, the US Democrat politician who fell out with his party over the Iraq War. Diana Baring, the respected literary agent. We have a tribute from her client Frederick Forsyth. Lynn Kinnear, who was one of the most influential landscape architects of her generation. Kay Benbow, who commissioned and made many acclaimed TV shows for children. Interviewee: Matt Lieberman Interviewee: Frederick Forsyth Interviewee: Caroline Dawnay Interviewee: Sean Griffiths Interviewee: Kim Tserkezie

    Producer: Catherine Powell Archive used: Joe Lieberman addresses the Senate floor, 04/09/1998, AP Archive, YouTube upload, 21/07/2015; Joe Lieberman interview, The Mehdi Hasan Show, MSNBC, YouTube Upload, 27/10/2021; Joe Lieberman interview, HardTalk, BBC News, 29/06/2017; Joe Lieberman interview, All things considered, NPR, 12/10/2015; Late Night with Conan O'Brien 15/01/2003 Show Executive Producers Lorne Michaels Jeff Ross; The Day of the Jackal trailer, Universal City Studios LLC, IMDb, 1973; Walthamstow Wetlands, London Wildlife Trust, YouTube upload 04/2021; Lynn Kinnear interviewed by Hattie Hartman, 01/07/2022; Balamory Theme Song – BBC Foster Paterson; Woman's Hour : Children's Television; 12/09/2014; Nina and the Neurons BBC Series 2 “Nina’s Cake Bakes” 02/04/2008; The Clangers, Smallfilms for the BBC, 31/10/08

    5 April 2024, 3:23 pm
  • 27 minutes 31 seconds
    Richard Taylor, Lisa Lane, Rose Dugdale, Ian Green

    John Wilson on

    Richard Taylor, who became a tireless campaigner against knife crime and supported disadvantaged young people.

    Lisa Lane, the chess champion who was the first player to feature on the cover of Sports Illustrated.

    Rose Dugdale, the English heiress and debutante who went onto join the IRA.

    Ian Green, the Scottish folk music champion who started the record label Greentrax.

    Producer: Ed Prendeville

    Archive used: Rose Dugdale – Mná an IRA, Sé Merry Doyle Loopline Film, 2012; Rose Dugdale charges, BBC News, 06/05/1974; Anti-war march 1967,BBC,26/03/1967; Alfred Beit – Russborough House interview, Midweek, BBC, 03/07/1974; What’s my Line, Freemantle – May 1961, YouTube upload 26/04/2014; BBC Archive – News report Rose sentencing, BBC, 27/11/1974; BBC News – report on murder of Damilola; BBC News – Hardtalk; BBC News interview with Richard Taylor; Ian McCalman – Farewell to the haven; Shian Road sung by Isla St Clair. Written by Ian McCalman; The Pearl Aly Bain, Phil Cunningham and Violet Tulloch; Take the Floor – 19/02/11 Programme number: 10L33047/01; Dateline East Asia Presented By Kathryn Davies;

    29 March 2024, 4:21 pm
  • 18 minutes 19 seconds
    John Boyega on campaigner Richard Taylor, father of Damilola Taylor

    In this special edition of Last Word, John Boyega pays tribute to campaigner Richard Taylor, the father of Damilola Taylor who was killed 24 years ago.

    Richard Taylor - a Nigerian civil servant - dedicated years to improving the lives of disadvantaged children in the wake of his son's death via the Damilola Taylor Trust. Mr Taylor said he wanted his son to be remembered as a boy of hope and for his legacy to be a better life and opportunities for underprivileged young people.

    Boyega - best known for his roles in Star Wars sequel movies – was schoolfriends with Damilola Taylor in South London, as well as being a beneficiary of the Trust set up in his friend’s name.

    John was one of the last people to see him alive. Until now he had never spoken about that night, or the impact the death of Damilola has had on him.

    Presented by John Wilson Produced by Ed Prendeville

    29 March 2024, 12:02 am
  • 27 minutes 31 seconds
    Vince Power CBE, Olga Murray, Akira Toriyama, Cecilia Eckelmann-Battistello

    Matthew Bannister on Vince Power, the live music promoter whose Mean Fiddler group operated a string of London venues and built up the Reading and Leeds festivals. Olga Murray, the American lawyer who devoted her later life to helping the children of Nepal. Cecilia Eckelmann-Battistello, the Italian businesswoman who ran a major container shipping company. Akira Toriyama, the Japanese manga artist who created the Dragon Ball series which has millions of fans around the world.

    Interviewee: Melvin Benn Interviewee: Shaun Clarkson Interviewee: Gina Parker Interviewee: Som Paneru Interviewee: Janet Porter Interviewee: Chris Gray Interviewee: Shao Dow

    Producer: Gareth Nelson-Davies

    Archive used; Reading Festival 2023 Aftermovie promo, Reading and Leeds Festival, YouTube uploaded 27/10/2023; Vince Power interview , BBC 6Music, 27/03/2008; Vince Power interview, BBC Radio London, 04/12/2022; The Pogues appearance at the Mean Fiddler, 26/01/201986; New Order appearance at the Reading Festival, Reading Festival,1989; Olga Murray interview, Nepal Youth Foundation, YouTube uploaded, 17/09/2012; Olga Murray presentation, TEDx Talks, YouTube uploaded 18/11/2015; Cecilia Eckelmann-Battistello acceptance speech, Lloyds Group, YouTube uploaded 28/10/2015; ShaDow Clone, Shao Dow, YouTube uploaded 26/01/2024;

    22 March 2024, 4:25 pm
  • 27 minutes 26 seconds
    Audrey Adams, Nicola Trahan, Edward Bond, Eric Carmen

    Matthew Bannister on

    Audrey Adams who became a tireless campaigner for the rights of black people after her son was stabbed to death in a racist attack.

    Nicola Trahan, who joined the French Resistance as a teenager and was later awarded the Croix de Guerre.

    Edward Bond, the controversial playwright who played a key role in the abolition of censorship in British theatre.

    The singer and songwriter Eric Carmen whose biggest hit “All By Myself” was based on a Rachmaninov piano concerto.

    Interviewee: Lord Simon Woolley Interviewee: Reverend Eleanor Rance Interviewee: Simon Callow and Sean Holmes Interviewee: Debbie Wiseman

    Producer: Ed Prendeville

    Archive used: French Wartime Service: Musical Items, Sound Archive, BBC; D-Day Announcement - Communique No. 1, Sound Archive, BBC; The Reverend Al Sharpton, Kilroy BBC 1, BBC; Audrey Adams interviewed by C4 news in 2021, C4 News, YouTube upload, 19/03/2021; Edward Bond interview - TX Date: 12.10.2011; Eric Carmen - Never Gonna fall in love again; Eric Carmen - All by myself; The Raspberries – Go all the way

    15 March 2024, 4:25 pm
  • 27 minutes 43 seconds
    Iris Apfel, Colin Murray Parkes, Baroness Henig, Jim Lawrence

    Matthew Bannister on

    Iris Apfel the colourful fashion and interior designer whose own dress sense made an impact until her death aged 102.

    Dr Colin Murray Parkes, the psychiatrist once described as “the David Attenborough of the bereavement world.”

    Baroness Henig, the deputy House of Lords Speaker who was a historian and expert on the security industry.

    Jim Lawrence who became skipper of a Thames sailing barge aged eighteen and went on to set up a successful sail making business in Essex.

    Interviewee: Dame Zandra Rhodes Interviewee: Laura Higginson Interviewee: Debbie Kerslake Interviewee: David Henig Interviewee: Baroness McIntosh of Pickering Interviewee: Simon Devonshire KC

    Producer: Catherine Powell

    Archive used: Iris Apfel on BBC Radio 4 “Woman's Hour” 31/07/2015; Colin Murray Parkes on BBC Radio 4 “Word of Mouth - The Language of Bereavement and Grief” 14/01/23; BBC Wales “Aberfan 2 days after the disaster” 24/10/1966; BBC News 20/09/2001; St Thomas Church Memorial Service, BBC New Special, BBC, 20/09/2001; Colin Murray Parkes courtesy: Cruse Bereavement Support, YouTube 23/09/2019; Baroness Henig on Woman's Hour - 20/10/2011; House of Lords 08/11/23; Parliamentlive.tv. BBC Parliament “Levelling up and Regeneration” 6/9/24; Jim Lawrence: Jim Lawrence singing, “The Singing Bargee”, Paul Desmond, YouTube 14/11/2012; Jim Lawrence Recalls His Early Days, Paul Desmond, YouTube uploaded 14 Nov 2012

    8 March 2024, 4:27 pm
  • 27 minutes 42 seconds
    Nicholas Dimbleby, Lord Patrick Cormack, Wendy Mitchell, Eleanor Fazan

    John Wilson on the celebrated sculptor Nicholas Dimbleby, responsible for numerous well known commissions around the country.

    Lord Patrick Cormack the politician, historian and prolific author.

    Wendy Mitchell, the author and blogger who was diagnosed with young onset dementia and worked tirelessly to help improve the understanding of the condition.

    Eleanor Fazan, the theatre director, choreographer and actor. Her career spanned almost 70 years and saw her working with some of the biggest names in the business.

    Archive Details

    Archive used:. “Wogan” BBC 1 10/12/1986. BBC Midlands Today News 13/7/2011. BBC News West 09/09/1999. “The Bright Side of Life” BBC Radio 4 21/11/2023 & 28/11/2023 Parliamentlive.tv 21/02/23 & 05/09/19. The Michael Ball Show, BBC Radio 2, BBC, 16/01/2022 Wendy Mitchell reads from “Somebody I used to know”. Bloomsbury publishing, uploaded to Youtube 29 Jan 2018. "The Complete Beyond The Fringe" Label - Parlophone Records Ltd, a Warner Music Group Company. Oh! It's a Lovely War, Title Oh! It's a Lovely War Performer - Courtland and Jeffries Album - Oh! It's A Lovely War (Volume 1) Label - CD41 Recordings. Stage to Screen BBC

    1 March 2024, 4:20 pm
  • More Episodes? Get the App
© MoonFM 2024. All rights reserved.