Desert Island Discs Revisited

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Selected castaway gems from the BBC Desert Island Discs archive.

Desert Island Discs Revisited: Nobel Prize Winners: Peter Mansfield

Peter Mansfield

Nobel Prize Winners

Desert Island Discs

BBC Radio 4 Extra - Desert Island Discs Revisited, Nobel Prize Winners, Peter Mansfield

The Nobel-winning scientist Peter Mansfield shares his castaway choices with Sue Lawley.

From Perry Como to Purcell. Nobel-winning scientist Peter Mansfield shares his castaway choices with Sue Lawley. From June 2006.

Sue Lawley's castaway is the Nobel prize-winning physicist Sir Peter Mansfield. His work in magnetic resonance imaging more than 30 years ago led to the development of the MRI scanner, which has revolutionised the diagnosis of illness today.

He was born in London before the Second World War and as a boy, remembers the first Doodlebug attack on the capital. Watching the flying bombs gave him an interest in rocket propulsion which was to lead to a life-long career in science. The son of a gas-fitter, he left school without O levels at the age of 15. His school careers' officer had laughed at his ambition to be a scientist and fixed him up with a job as a printer. He put himself through night school, and went on to graduate with a first class degree in physics.

The first MRI scan was performed using him as the guinea-pig and with next-of-kin on hand because of the risks involved. His pioneering research was carried out at the University of Nottingham where he became Emeritus Professor of Physics. In 2003 he was jointly awarded the Nobel Prize for Medicine at the age of 70.

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in June 2006.

Desert Island Discs Revisited: Nobel Prize Winners

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Kirsty Young introduces gems from the Desert Island Discs archive

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