Last Word

Matthew Bannister on

Jeremy Clarke, who chronicled his experiences of living a “low life” in the Spectator magazine for more than 20 years. We have a tribute from Eric Idle.

The women’s rights campaign…

Matthew Bannister on Tina Turner, the singer who overcame an abusive relationship to become an international superstar Martin Amis, one of the literary giants of his generation Leroy Cooper, th…

Matthew Bannister on

Newton Minow, who was just 35 when he was appointed chairman of the US Federal Communications Commission by President John F. Kennedy. He gave a famous speech describing TV as a “…

Matthew Bannister on

The opera singer Grace Bumbry who broke down barriers by becoming the first black performer at the Bayreuth Festival.

Don Short, the showbusiness journalist who coined the term “Be…

Matthew Bannister on

Harry Belafonte, the singer and actor who was also a leading civil rights campaigner.

Jerry Springer, whose TV talk show was once voted the worst in history – but was watched by m…

Matthew Bannister on

Barry Humphries, best known for his comic creations Dame Edna Everage and Sir Les Patterson. We have tributes from Rob Brydon and John Humphrys.

Len Goodman, who went from working …

Matthew Bannister on

Anne Perry, the best-selling crime novelist who committed a murder when she was a teenager.

Dame Mary Quant, the influential fashion designer at the heart of the swinging 60s. Patt…

Matthew Bannister on Ben Ferencz, the last surviving prosecutor at the Nuremberg War Crimes Trials. He devoted his life to campaigning for an international system of justice for the victims of such c…

Matthew Bannister on

Nigel Lawson – Baron Lawson of Blaby, the reforming Chancellor of the Exchequer under Margaret Thatcher. He cut income tax, led the campaign of privatisation and paved the way for…

Matthew Bannister on

Paul O’Grady, who made his name as the drag queen Lily Savage, and went on to become a much-loved TV and radio star.

Gordon Moore, the tech entrepreneur who founded the chip maker…

Matthew Bannister on

Jacqueline Gold CBE – the businesswoman who turned Ann Summers from a couple of seedy sex shops into a multi-million pound high street success.

Lance Reddick, the American actor b…

Matthew Bannister on

The actor and singer Chaim Topol (pictured), best known for his performances in the musical Fiddler on the Roof.

Zandra Flemister, the first African American woman to work as a Sec…

Matthew Bannister on

Judith Heumann (pictured), the American disability rights campaigner who led the longest non-violent occupation of a Federal building in US history.

Brian Tufano, the cinematograph…

Kirsty Lang on

The extraordinary Lady Betty Boothroyd (pictured) who went from humble beginnings in a Yorkshire mill town to becoming Westminster’s first female Speaker.

John Motson OBE - the BBC’s vo…

Kirsty Lang on Dorothy Pitman Hughes who brought black women into the 70s Feminist movement and inspired Gloria Steinem.

Raquel Welch (pictured), the Hollywood actor who became a Sixties sex symbol …

Matthew Bannister on

Professor David Vaughan OBE, who was a leading expert on the effects of climate change on glaciers in the Antarctic.

Burt Bacharach (pictured), who wrote scores of hit songs includ…

Matthew Bannister on

Frene Ginwala (pictured), one of the leading figures in the anti-apartheid struggle in South Africa, who became Speaker of the country’s first democratically elected parliament.

La…

Matthew Bannister on Ralph Ehrmann, the German-born businessman behind the success of the Airfix model kits that delighted a generation of young boys in the 1960s and 70s. Sylvia Syms (pictured)…

Matthew Bannister on

Howard Baderman, the hospital consultant who transformed the discipline of emergency medicine and treated casualties from high profile events like the Kings Cross Tube Fire and th…

Matthew Bannister on

Jeff Beck (pictured), who was acclaimed as one of the most influential and innovative rock guitarists of all time.

Alice Mahon, the left wing Labour MP who often rebelled against h…