The New Elizabethans

The New Elizabethans: Goldie.

James Naughtie considers the contribution of musician, artist, actor and DJ Goldie to the rise of dance music and club culture over the past 25 years. Goldie began as a graffiti artist but was interested in the breakbeat scene. After visiting America in the late 80's he turned his attention to music - particular jungle and drum & bass. He is well known for his innovations in these genres and indeed his debut album "Timeless" in 1995 is acknowledged as a classic. Goldie continues to DJ all over the world.

The New Elizabethans have been chosen by a panel of leading historians, chaired by Lord (Tony) Hall, Chief Executive of London's Royal Opera House. The panellists were Dominic Sandbrook, Bamber Gascoigne, Sally Alexander, Jonathan Agar, Maria Misra and Sir Max Hastings.

They were asked to choose: "Men and women whose actions during the reign of Elizabeth II have had a significant impact on lives in these islands and/or given the age its character, for better or worse.".

The New Elizabethans: Charles Saatchi

James Naughtie reflects on the high flyer from the advertising world Charles Saatchi. The company he founded with his brother - Saatchi & Saatchi - was one of the most successful ad agencies in the 1980's. Saatchi is also a major art collector, known for his early sponsorship of Damien Hirst and Tracy Emin. He set up The Saatchi Gallery, which he donated to the public in 2010,along with over 200 pieces of art.

The New Elizabethans have been chosen by a panel of leading historians, chaired by Lord (Tony) Hall, Chief Executive of London's Royal Opera House. The panellists were Dominic Sandbrook, Bamber Gascoigne, Sally Alexander, Jonathan Agar, Maria Misra and Sir Max Hastings.

They were asked to choose: "Men and women whose actions during the reign of Elizabeth II have had a significant impact on lives in these islands and/or given the age its character, for better or worse.".

The New Elizabethans: Norman Foster. James Naughtie considers the significance of the British architect whose prolific output has transformed skylines and landscapes around the world.

Foster's breakthrough was his innovative designs for the Willis Building in Ipswich in 1974, an office complex which now has listed status. He is probably best known for his iconic buildings and structures including Wembley Stadium, the Millau Viaduct in France, and 30 St Mary Axe in London, also known as "the Gherkin".

The New Elizabethans have been chosen by a panel of leading historians, chaired by Lord (Tony) Hall, Chief Executive of London's Royal Opera House. The panellists were Dominic Sandbrook, Bamber Gascoigne, Sally Alexander, Jonathan Agar, Maria Misra and Sir Max Hastings.

The New Elizabethans: Anita Roddick.

James Naughtie considers the influence of one of Britain's most successful businesswomen, Anita Roddick. She was the first to base a large High Street business on being socially and environmentally conscious. Her cosmetics company The Body Shop championed fair trade long before it became a buzz word.

The New Elizabethans have been chosen by a panel of leading historians, chaired by Lord (Tony) Hall, Chief Executive of London's Royal Opera House. The panellists were Dominic Sandbrook, Bamber Gascoigne, Sally Alexander, Jonathan Agar, Maria Misra and Sir Max Hastings.

They were asked to choose: "Men and women whose actions during the reign of Elizabeth II have had a significant impact on lives in these islands and/or given the age its character, for better or worse.".

The New Elizabethans: Salman Rushdie

James Naughtie portrays the British Indian novelist Salman Rushdie, whose celebrated novel Midnight's Children takes the moment of India's Independence as its starting point and won him the Booker Prize.

"The Satanic Verses" was more controversial. When it was published, Ayatollah Khomeini issued a fatwa against him. Copies of the novel were burned on British streets and Rushdie had to live under police protection for several years.

The New Elizabethans have been chosen by a panel of leading historians, chaired by Lord (Tony) Hall, Chief Executive of London's Royal Opera House. The panellists were Dominic Sandbrook, Bamber Gascoigne, Sally Alexander, Jonathan Agar, Maria Misra and Sir Max Hastings.

They were asked to choose: "Men and women whose actions during the reign of Elizabeth II have had a significant impact on lives in these islands and/or given the age its character, for better or worse."

Producer: Clare Walker.

The New Elizabethans: Amartya Sen the Nobel-winning laureate known as the Mother Theresa of economics for his work understanding and fighting the causes of poverty.

Best known for his work on the causes of famine, his book Poverty and Famines: An Essay on Entitlement and Deprivation, argued that famine occurs not only from a lack of food, but from inequalities built into mechanisms for distributing food. Sen also helped to create the United Nations Human Development Index which is used to rank countries by standard of living or quality of life.

Now working as Professor of Economics and Philosophy at Harvard University, he began at the tender age of twenty-three by setting up a new economics department at Jadavpur University in Calcutta, but he has also held professorships at Delhi University, the London School of Economics and the University of Oxford.

When in 1998 he was appointed Master of Trinity College, Cambridge, he became the first Asian academic to head an Oxbridge college. In the same year he received the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences for his work in welfare economics.

The New Elizabethans have been chosen by a panel of leading historians, chaired by Lord (Tony) Hall, Chief Executive of London's Royal Opera House. The panellists were Dominic Sandbrook, Bamber Gascoigne, Sally Alexander, Jonathan Agar, Maria Misra and Sir Max Hastings.

They were asked to choose: "Men and women whose actions during the reign of Elizabeth II have had a significant impact on lives in these islands and/or given the age its character, for better or worse."

Producer: Clare Walker.

The New Elizabethans. Ralph Robins

James Naughtie on one of the foremost industrialists of the second Elizabethan age, Ralph Robins, who is credited with turning around the fortunes of Rolls-Royce.

In 1971 Rolls-Royce was nationalised by Edward Heath's government in order to save the ailing company. Their fortunes improved and under the leadership and long term strategies of Ralph Robins, Rolls-Royce was privatised again and is now a hugely successful power systems company again and the world's second-largest maker of aircraft engines.

The New Elizabethans have been chosen by a panel of leading historians, chaired by Lord (Tony) Hall, Chief Executive of London's Royal Opera House. The panellists were Dominic Sandbrook, Bamber Gascoigne, Sally Alexander, Jonathan Agar, Maria Misra and Sir Max Hastings.

They were asked to choose: "Men and women whose actions during the reign of Elizabeth II have had a significant impact on lives in these islands and/or given the age its character, for better or worse.".

James Naughtie considers Scottish comedian Billy Connolly, who went from from the Clyde shipyards to being one of the UK's most popular and enduring stand up comedians.

Connolly began as a folk singer in The Humblebums but realising his gift for humour, he changed direction to concentrate on comedy. He came to wide public attention with his first appearance on Parkinson in 1975 with the "bike joke", and never looked back.

He's cited as one of the most influential stand up comedians of the era, has had much success in television as well as making his mark in Hollywood, and is often considered a Scottish national treasure.

The New Elizabethans have been chosen by a panel of leading historians, chaired by Lord (Tony) Hall, Chief Executive of London's Royal Opera House. The panellists were Dominic Sandbrook, Bamber Gascoigne, Sally Alexander, Jonathan Agar, Maria Misra and Sir Max Hastings.

They were asked to choose: "Men and women whose actions during the reign of Elizabeth II had a significant impact on lives in these islands and/or given the age its character, for better or worse."

Producer: Alison Hughes

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in August 2012

Born in Bradford, artist David Hockney's work has been shown around the globe. Now 75, his recent exhibition at London's Royal Academy, 'The Bigger Picture' had people queuing round the block to look at his latest collection of Yorkshire landscapes - epic in scale and ambition. Accompanying his paintings, were a collection of pictures he'd drawn on an I-pad - still experimenting in his eighth decade.

He launched on to the British Pop art scene in the sixties, left London to live in America and he enjoys a creative career which has seen him at the forefront on art and artistic technology.

The New Elizabethans have been chosen by a panel of leading historians, chaired by Lord (Tony) Hall, Chief Executive of London's Royal Opera House. The panellists were Dominic Sandbrook, Bamber Gasgoigne, Sally Alexander, Jonathan AGar, Maria Misra and Sir Max Hastings.

They were asked to choose: "Men and women whose actions during the reign of Elizabeth II have had a significant impact on lives in these islands and/or given the age its character, for better or worse".

Producer Sarah Taylor.

The New Elizabethans. Margaret Thatcher, politician.

James Naughtie considers the lasting influence of Margaret Thatcher, the longest serving Prime Minister of the 20th Century and the only woman to hold the post. Her uncompromising policies and leadership style earned her the enduring nickname "The Iron Lady".

Among her initiatives were the deregulation of the financial sector, the privatisation of state-owned companies, and the reduction of the power and influence of trade unions, policies that have become known as "Thatcherism".

The New Elizabethans have been chosen by a panel of leading historians, chaired by Lord (Tony) Hall, Chief Executive of London's Royal Opera House. The panellists were Dominic Sandbrook, Bamber Gascoigne, Sally Alexander, Jonathan Agar, Maria Misra and Sir Max Hastings.

They were asked to choose: "Men and women whose actions during the reign of Elizabeth II have had a significant impact on lives in these islands and/or given the age its character, for better or worse.".