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
Kirsty Smitten, Kat Anderson, Beverly Willis, Tony Wade
Kirsty Lang on
The talented young scientist Kirsty Smitten who did pioneering work developing a new generation of antibiotics. Singer Kat Anderson who made pop history with Motown’s first Number On…
Michael Gambon, Pat Arrowsmith, Treleven Haysom, Dianne Feinstein
Matthew Bannister on the acclaimed actor Sir Michael Gambon. His son Fergus reveals his love of cars, antique firearms – and lying to journalists.
The peace campaigner Pat Arrowsmith, who went to pri…
Gita Mehta, Matteo Messina Denaro, Irma Brenman Pick, John Stevenson
Matthew Bannister on
Gita Mehta, the author who set out to reveal the truth about India to the West. Her friend the theatre director Sir Richard Eyre pays tribute.
Matteo Messina Denaro, the Italian ma…
Sir Horace Ové, Su Gorman, Roger Whittaker, Jean Combes
Matthew Bannister on
Sir Horace Ové, the director whose films told stories of the experiences of black people in Britain.
Su Gorman, who campaigned for justice for the victims of the contaminated blood…
Mike Yarwood, Ada Deer, Sir Ian Wilmut, Dorothy Purdew
Matthew Bannister on Mike Yarwood, whose impressions of famous people made him one of TV’s biggest stars in the 1970s and 80s.
Ada Deer, the Native American campaigner who became head of the Bureau of…
Mohamed Al-Fayed, Dorothy Goodman, Professor Anthony Bryceson, Denyse Plummer
Matthew Bannister on
Mohamed Al-Fayed, the controversial businessman who owned Harrods department store and Fulham Football Club. His son Dodi died in the car crash that killed Princess Diana.
Dorothy …
Julian Haviland, Johaar Mosaval, Tricia Tyler, Matyelok Gibbs
Matthew Bannister on:
Julian Haviland who was political editor at ITN and then the Times, covering key events at Westminster in the 1970s and 80s.
Johaar Mosaval, the South African dancer who overcame …
Michael Parkinson, Renata Scotto, John Brierly, Isobel Crook
John Wilson on:
The journalist and broadcaster who became synonymous with the British chat show, Sir Michael Parkinson.
Italian soprano Renata Scotto, one of the biggest stars of opera in the 1960s and…
SPECIAL EDITION: Michael Parkinson
Sir Michael Parkinson was a journalist, broadcaster, and arguably Britain’s greatest television chat show host. During a TV career than spanned six decades, Parky interviewed hundreds of the world's …
Nick Kaiser, Angela Flowers, Robbie Shepherd, Doreen Mantle.
Kirsty Lang on:
Nick Kaiser, an internationally renowned British scientist who reached not just for the stars but the entire cosmos....
A gallerist who championed British contemporary art: Angela Flow…
Sir Michael Boyd, Jess Search, Warren Ford, Leny Andrade
Kirsty Lang on:
Sir Michael Boyd, the former Artistic Director of the Royal Shakespeare Company.
Jess Search, the fearless documentary producer who backed award winning but controversial films others …
Richard Barancik, Yvonne Littlewood MBE, Edward Sexton, Dr Christian Carritt
Kirsty Lang on:
Richard Barancik, the last known surviving member of a World War II allied unit - The Monuments, Fine Arts, and Archives section - known as the Monuments Men and Women.
Yvonne Lit…
George Alagiah, Sinead O'Connor, Ann Clwyd, Tony Bennett, and Trevor Francis
John Wilson on
George Alagiah, the BBC Journalist and Presenter is remembered by his colleagues Sophie Raworth and John Simpson.
Sinead O’Connor, the Irish singer who won worldwide fame with Nothing …
Lady Williams of Elvel, Professor John Goodenough, Christine Baker, Lord Palmer
Matthew Bannister on
Lady Williams of Elvel, who, as Jane Portal, was personal secretary to Winston Churchill and the mother of the Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby.
Professor John Goodenough, the…
Malcolm Mowbray, Victoria Amelina, Roger Lovegrove, Mavis Cheek
Matthew Bannister on
Malcolm Mowbray, the British film director best known for making “A Private Function” - the comedy about wartime rationing starring Michael Palin and Maggie Smith. The film’s writ…
Lord Kerslake, Dame Ann Leslie, Diane Rowe, Tim Blackmore
Matthew Bannister on
Dame Ann Leslie, the journalist who reported on some of the most significant events of recent times.
Lord Kerslake, who was Head of the Civil Service under the coalition government…
Baroness McDonagh, Craig Brown, Godfrey Merlen, Winnie Ewing
Matthew Bannister on
Baroness McDonagh
Margaret McDonagh was the youngest person and the first woman to become General Secretary of the Labour Party. She was a key player in the New Labour project tha…
Daniel Ellsberg, Glenda Jackson, Melanie Phillips, Sir Ben Helfgott
Matthew Bannister on
Daniel Ellsberg, the whistleblower who leaked the Pentagon Papers, revealing the US government’s secret approach to the Vietnam War.
Glenda Jackson, the Oscar winning actor and Lab…
Silvio Berlusconi, Cormac McCarthy, Kathryn Harries, Francoise Gilot
John Wilson on
Silvio Berlusconi, Italy's flamboyant and controversial media mogul and four-time Prime Minister.
Kathryn Harries, The soprano sang in more than 60 major operatic roles and raised millio…
Mel Parry, Professor Alice Coleman, Hugh Callaghan, Cynthia Weil
Matthew Bannister on
Mel Parry, the SAS veteran who was part of the team that stormed the Iranian embassy in London in 1980.
Professor Alice Coleman, the geographer whose modifications to modernist hig…