Last Word
Radio 4's weekly obituary programme, telling the life stories of those who have died recently
- Update frequency
- every 6 days
- Average duration
- 27 minutes
- Episodes
- 531
- Years Active
- 2015 - 2025
John W Young, Peter Preston, Raymond Thomas, Sir Brian Neill QC, Heather Stewart
Photo: John W. Young
Matthew Bannister on
John W. Young the American astronaut who went into in space six times, including landing on the moon and commanding the first space shuttle flight.
Peter Prest…
Maureen Baker, Richard Cousins, Bronwen Lady Astor Chatelaine of Cliveden, Meic Povey, Rick Hall
Photo: Maureen Baker
Matthew Bannister on
Maureen Baker who designed clothes for Princess Anne, including her Tudor inspired wedding dress.
Richard Cousins - the Chief Executive who transformed the fort…
Sir Peter Burt, Jill Lever, John Mattock, Peter Duffell and Tom Paley
Photo: Tom Paley
Julian Worricker on:
The businessman Sir Peter Burt, who was in charge of Bank of Scotland when it merged with the Halifax, and was later chairman of ITV
The woman credited with groundb…
Professor Heinz Wolff, Aline Countess of Romanones, Tony Whitten, Fritz Lustig, Keely Smith
Photo: Professor Heinz Wolff
Matthew Bannister on
Professor Heinz Wolff, the bioengineer who was known to millions of TV viewers as the presenter of "The Great Egg Race".
Aline, Countess of Romanones, t…
Max Clifford, Norman Baker, Tony Garrett, Virginia Surtees, Keith Chegwin
(Photo: Keith Chegwin)
Matthew Bannister on
The disgraced publicist Max Clifford who was known as the king of the kiss and tell story, made up many tabloid headlines and was convicted of eight charges …
King Michael of Romania, Shashi Kapoor, Christine Keeler, Jenny MacGregor, Johnny Hallyday
(Photo: Christine Keeler)
Matthew Bannister on
King Michael of Romania who ruled his country during the second world war and was forced to abdicate by the Soviet Union. .
Bollywood actor Shashi Kapoor…
Dmitri Hvorostovsky, Unity Spencer, Lewis Golden OBE, John Butler, Joy Lofthouse
(Photo: Russian baritone Dmitri Hvorostovsky)
Matthew Bannister on
The Russian baritone Dmitri Hvorostovsky, known for playing leading operatic roles - and for his silver hair and matinee idol looks.
U…
24/11/2017
Matthew Bannister on
Lord Imbert, the Commissioner who tried to change the culture of the Metropolitan Police. He invited TV cameras to observe his officers at work, leading to a controversial film of…
Lord Hutchinson of Lullington QC, Linda Nochlin, Dennis Banks, Geoff Tootill, Tim Gudgin
Matthew Bannister on
Lord Hutchinson of Lullington, the barrister who appeared in many celebrated cases, including defending the publication of Lady Chatterley's Lover and the director of the play Rom…
Antonio Carluccio, Sima Wali, Richard Wilbur, Mary Reveley, Dudley Simpson
Matthew Bannister on
The chef Antonio Carluccio who transformed Italian cooking in the UK.
Sima Wali who devoted her life to campaigning for the rights of Afghan women.
The Pulitzer Prize winning Ameri…
Harold Pendleton, Glenn Barr, Iona Opie, Gary Flather QC OBE, Sir John Manduell
Matthew Bannister on
Howard Pendleton who made the Marquee Club a launch pad for scores of rock stars including the Rolling Stones, the Who and David Bowie and started the Reading Festival.
Glenn Barr,…
Daphne Caruana Galizia, Fats Domino, Rodney Bickerstaffe, Geoffrey Schild, Rosemary Leach
Matthew Bannister on
The campaigning Maltese journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia who was killed by a car bomb after exposing corruption in politics and business.
Fats Domino - the rock and roll pioneer …
Sean Hughes, Sir Brian Barder, David Marks, Major Khush Ahmad-ul-Mulk, Marge Calhoun
Matthew Bannister on
Sean Hughes, the comedian who pioneered stand up with a narrative and was a team captain on "Never Mind the Buzzcocks".
Architect David Marks who mortgaged his house as he battled …
Lillian Ross, Jalal Talabani, Terry Downes, Sybil Flory, Hedley Jones
Julian Worricker on:
Lillian Ross, who wrote for the New Yorker, and created a new form of journalism....
The Iraqi president after the fall of Saddam Hussein, Jalal Talabani - a prominent Kurdish poli…
Tony Booth, Liliane Bettencourt, William G Stewart, Tom Petty
Matthew Bannister on
The actor Tony Booth, best known for playing Alf Garnett's left wing son-in-law in the TV comedy Till Death Us Do Part - and notorious for his womanising and heavy drinking. His d…
Hugh Hefner, Stanislav Petrov, Teddy Taylor, Liz Dawn
Matthew Bannister on
Hugh Hefner who built the Playboy empire on a best selling magazine. Was he a libertarian who changed attitudes to sex or a sleazy pornographer?
Soviet officer Stanislav Petrov wh…
David Shepherd, Nancy Hatch Dupree, Gordon Williams, Pat Albeck, Harry Dean Stanton
Matthew Bannister on
David Shepherd, the artist who painted trains, aeroplanes and elephants and worked tirelessly to conserve wild animals.
Nancy Hatch Dupree, the American born adventurer and writer…
Sir Peter Hall, Kate Millett, Sir Edward du Cann, JP Donleavy
Matthew Bannister on
Sir Peter Hall, the director who founded the Royal Shakespeare Company, ran the National Theatre and created many acclaimed theatrical and operatic productions.
Kate Millett, the r…
Sir David Tang, Professor Dame Margaret Turner-Warwick, Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O'Connor, Walter Becker
Matthew Bannister on:
The flamboyant businessman Sir David Tang who founded the fashion label Shanghai Tang and collected celebrity friends. Tracey Emin pays tribute.
Professor Dame Margaret Turner-Wa…
Dick Gregory, Jeannie Rousseau, Wayne Lotter, Sean O'Callaghan, John Abercrombie
Matthew Bannister on
Dick Gregory, the African American comedian and civil rights activist who was also a dietician to stars like John Lennon and Mohammed Ali.
Jeannie Rousseau who spied on the Nazis' …