Great Lives

Original version

BBC Radio 4 LW

Discussion & Talk

Factual: Life Stories

Biographical series in which guests choose someone who has inspired their lives.

BBC Radio 4 FM

Great Lives: Judy Garland

31/05/2022

Judy Garland

BBC Radio 4 - Great Lives, Judy Garland

Ethel Gumm, better known as Judy Garland, picked by Susie Boyt.

Born in 1922 in Minnesota, this great star was known for Dorothy in the Wizard of Oz and electrifying audiences at the London Palladium and Carnegie Hall.

Susie Boyt picks Judy Garland, the child star who became one of the most famous entertainers of the twentieth century. June 2022 will be the centenary of her birth.

"All people ever said to me was, ‘You have got to toughen up,'" Susie told us. "You cannot go round nursing  these  wild cascades of feelings,  or you’re never going to have a happy life. Then one day my mother took me to see The Wizard of Oz. It was the first film I ever saw at the cinema, and when I heard Dorothy singing Over the Rainbow, I thought, here is someone whose feelings seem to run as high as my own and she’s not hiding it, she’s not embarrassed by it, she’s not ashamed. She was  leading with her feelings as though they were the best thing life contains."

Joining Susie Boyt is John Fricke, leading Judy Garland expert who put her ability to thrill her audiences far ahead of the many tabloid accounts of her life.

The presenter is Matthew Parris, the producer in Bristol is Miles Warde

BBC Radio 4

Intelligent speech, the most insightful journalism, the wittiest comedy, the most fascinating features and the most compelling drama and readings anywhere in UK radio.

Accessibility links

Programme Index

Great Lives

Judy Garland

Genres

Brand

BBC Radio 4 LW

About BBC Radio 4