Last Word

Matthew Bannister on

Rob Reiner, the film director, screenwriter and actor behind pictures like “This Is Spinal Tap”, “Stand By Me” and “When Harry Met Sally”.

Stanley Baxter, the Scottish comedian best known for his impersonations of Hollywood stars and royalty. The actor Bill Paterson pays tribute.

And Joanna Trollope and Sophie Kinsella, two best-selling novelists who, in their different ways, told stories of modern life and relationships.

Interviewee: Hadley Freeman

Producer: Gareth Nelson-Davies

CORRECTION: In this episode we mistakenly refer to Stanley Baxter being born in 1928. He was born in 1926.

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Matthew Bannister on

Iain Douglas-Hamilton, the zoologist who devoted his life to the study and conservation of African elephants.

Vera Weisfeld, the businesswoman whose chain of What Every Woman Wants stores offered fashion designs at bargain prices.

Frank Gehry, the architect best known for his flamboyant designs for the Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao and the Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles

Martin Parr whose celebrated colourful photographs showed the messy details of British life.

Producer: Ed Prendeville

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Matthew Bannister has a star-studded cast on this week’s Last Word:

Sir David Hare pays tribute to his friend and fellow playwright Sir Tom Stoppard.

Boy George recalls the flamboyant fashion designer Pam Hogg.

Sir Mark Rylance gives an insight into the many talents of the actor, director and writer Jack Shepherd.

We also remember Yanxin He, one of the last surviving speakers in a village that spoke a secret language that helped women to share their suffering in a patriarchal society.

Interviewee: Sir David Hare

Producer: Gareth Nelson-Davies

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Jimmy Cliff, who took reggae music onto the global stage. His former record producer and founder of Island Records, Chris Blackwell pays tribute.

Charlotte Bingham, the writer who mined the experience of her upbringing and relationships to pen dozens of novels and screenplays.

Skye Gyngell, the Australian born chef whose devotion to fresh seasonal produce made a lasting impact on modern British cooking.

David Bellos, the award-winning literary translator who revelled in linguistic challenges.

Interviewee: Chris Blackwell

Producer: Gareth Nelson-Davies

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Baroness Newlove, who turned a tragic event in her own life into a powerful campaign for victims’ rights.

Zoe Wicomb, the South Africa-born author whose novels are set against the backdrop of the apartheid regime.

Sir Geoffrey Bindman, the lawyer who helped to shape equality legislation, represented Labour politicians and fought many human rights cases.

Roland Paxton, the civil engineer who campaigned to preserve the Forth Bridge and other fine examples of historic engineering.

Producer: Gareth Nelson-Davies

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Matthew Bannister on

James Watson who shared the Nobel Prize for identifying the structure of DNA, but was widely condemned later in life for his racist and sexist views.

Pauline Collins, the comic actor who triumphed in the role of Shirley Valentine on stage and screen. The play’s director Simon Callow pays tribute.

Judith Vidal-Hall, who edited the Index on Censorship magazine and campaigned for freedom of expression around the world

Dugald Ross, the crofter and palaeontologist from the Isle of Skye who discovered dinosaur footprints on the island as a schoolboy.

Producer: Ed Prendeville

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Matthew Bannister on

Dick Cheney, the Republican politician who was Vice President under George W Bush and played key roles in both Gulf Wars.

Yvonne Brewster, the Jamaican-born director and actor who founded the Black British Theatre Company Talawa.

Mary ‘May’ McGee, the Irish woman who brought s successful legal challenge against the country’s ban on contraception.

Peter Watkins, the film maker whose powerful depiction of a nuclear attack on the UK was banned by the BBC

Producer: Gareth Nelson-Davies

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The actor Prunella Scales, best known for playing Sybil in the TV comedy Fawlty Towers. Her son Samuel West reflects on her long career and happy marriage to fellow actor Timothy West.

Gillian Tindall, the writer who pioneered the technique of exploring history through the portal of a particular house or area.

Roger Smith, who co-founded and ran the Great Outdoors Challenge, encouraging thousands to walk across Scotland.

Anthony Grey, the novelist and journalist who was held in solitary confinement for over two years by Red Guards during China’s Cultural Revolution.

Producer: Ed Prendeville

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In this special edition of Last Word, Matthew Bannister talks to the actor Samuel West about his mother Prunella Scales.

Prunella died on the 27th October, aged 93.

Known for her work on stage and screen over many decades – Prunella was particularly renowned for her role as Sybil on Fawlty Towers. In addition to countless other roles, she appeared as Queen Elizabeth II in Alan Bennett’s A Question of Attribution in the early 90s – earning a BAFTA nomination. In later life – as she began living with dementia – her hobby of canal boating alongside her husband – the actor Timothy West – was turned into a much loved series on Channel 4.

Producer: Ed Prendeville

Matthew Bannister on

The influential Kenyan politician Raila Odinga, who was detained for his pro-democracy campaigns, but went on to be the country’s Prime Minister.

Bill Colley, who designed and built traditional wooden racing boats.

Baroness Rosalind Howells of St Davids, who campaigned for racial equality and supported the family of Stephen Lawrence after his murder.

And Sister Marion Irvine, the American nun who took up marathon running in middle age and went on to break many records.

Producer: Gareth Nelson-Davies

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