This week's Sue Lawley's castaway is the President of the Royal Society, Lord May.

During his tenure as Chief Scientific Adviser to the Government, between 1995 and 2000, Bob May gained a reputation for speaking his mind on subjects ranging from GM foods to embryology. He chooses eight records to take to the mythical island.

[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs]

Favourite track: Parsifal by Richard Wagner
Book: Capablanca's Hundred Best Games of Chess by Hans Golombek
Luxury: Isle of Lewis chess set from The British Museum Show less