Desert Island Discs: A history of the 81-year-old BBC radio show
The Radio 4 show which features celebrities discussing their life story as they choose music to be cast away with began in 1946.
The BBC has announced plans to move production of Desert Island Discs to its for-profit division.
Along with other popular Radio 4 shows such as Melvin Bragg’s In Our Time and The Life Scientific, it will be made by commercial section BBC Studios, which aims to boost profit by attracting global listeners and exploring TV adaptations.
The radio show has broadcast more than 2,470 episodes in the 81 years it has been running – making it the second longest running radio programmed in the world, after US country music show Grand Ole Opry.
With celebrity guests invited to choose eight favourite records, a book and a luxury item to take to a desert island, the unique format gives listeners an intimate look at the life stories of its castaways.
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As Desert Island Discs prepares for a new wave, here is a history of the radio classic.
Vintage format
Desert Island Discs began in 1942 hosted by Roy Plomley – who came up with the idea for the programme late one November night. Like all Plumley's shows at that time during the Second World War, it was broadcast on the BBC Forces Programme to entertain the troupes.
Plumley wrote his ideal list of eight participants he would invite on the show to choose eight favourite tunes they would take to be cast away on a desert island with. Revealing why they had chosen the records would create an opportunity to look back at their life.
Celebrities often admit it is much harder than they realised to pick their discs, as they are not just tracks they love listening to, but ones which a symbolic to their life story. At the end of the episode they must choose just one of the eight to save from the waves.
The introduction of a luxury item began in 1951 when actor Margaret Lockwood asked to take a collection of crossword puzzles with her.
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And in the same year actor Henry Kendall asked to take a book of Who's Who In The Theatre with him.
Now all guests are given The Bible and The Complete Works of Shakespeare, should they want them, and can also choose a book and a luxury item.
Masterful voices
Plomley hosted the show from its inception until his death in 1985 at the age of 71.
Sir Michael Parkinson, 88, then took the helm in 1986.
In 1998 he handed the baton to Sue Lawley, 76, who continued to quiz castaways for 18 years.
Lawley announced she was stepping down in 2006, saying: "It is one of the best jobs in broadcasting. But it has dominated my professional life and I feel the time has come to concentrate on other aspects of broadcasting and maybe a bit of business too."
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Newsreader Kirsty Young, 54, was the next presenter of Desert Island Discs, gently prompting guests to share their intimate memories with listeners for the next 12 years.
Young announced in 2018 that she was taking a break for a “number of months” as she was suffering from a form of fibromyalgia.
Presenter and former Kenickie rock star Lauren Laverne, 45, stepped in temporarily, only to become the permanent host in 2019 when Young confirmed she would not be returning.
Young presented 496 episodes of the programme as well as fronting its 70th and 75th anniversary celebrations.
Premium castaways
Over the years Desert Island Disc castaways have included Tom Hanks, David Beckham, Maya Angelou Bruce Springsteen, Victoria Wood, Dame Kelly Holmes, George Michael, Alice Walker, Second World War pilot Eric Winkle Brown, Stephen Hawking and Simon Cowell.
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Some celebrity's lives are so enduring that they have appeared on the show more than once.
Sir David Attenborough has been cast away by Radio 4 a total of four times, while Sir David Frost, Sir Terry Wogan and Michael Crawford all recorded three separate shows. Dame Judi Dench and Hugh Laurie are among those to have appeared twice.
Deja Vu Discs
There are certain tunes that keep making an appearance on Desert Island Discs.
Handel’s Messiah is the most played track, selected by 119 of the show's guests.
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Mozart is the most picked artist overall, followed by Beethoven and Bach.
But in 2021 Nina Simone was the most popular artist picked by castaways on Desert Island Discs, with David Bowie, Joni Mitchell and The Beatles all proving to be increasingly popular in recent years.
Watch: Simon Pegg recently opened up about his alcoholism on Desert Island Discs
