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Desert Island Discs

Castaway guests share the soundtrack of their lives.

Eight tracks, a book and a luxury: what would you take to a desert island? Guests share the soundtrack of their lives.

Desert Island Discs: André Previn

18/08/1996

André Previn

BBC Radio 4 - Desert Island Discs, André Previn

Sue Lawley's castaway is composer and conductor André Previn

Sue Lawley's castaway is composer and conductor André Previn.

The castaway in Desert Island Discs this week is the composer and conductor André Previn. He'll be talking to Sue Lawley about how he and his family fled from Nazi Germany and ended up in California. His skill as a jazz musician led to a job at MGM and four Oscars for the film scores he wrote there. However, in the mid-1960s he turned his back on Hollywood and became principal conductor of the London Symphony Orchestra. He'll be discussing this dramatic transition, his famous appearance on the Morecambe and Wise Show and the perils of his now-abandoned celebrity status.

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

Favourite track: Symphony No 40 In G Minor by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Book: The collected works by Anton Chekhov
Luxury: Piano

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Letter from America by Alistair Cooke

Alistair Cooke’s weekly talks on American life, history and politics from 1946 – 2004.

Alistair Cooke’s weekly talks on American life, history and politics, as broadcast on BBC Radio 4 from 1946 – 2004.

Alistair Cooke’s weekly talks on American life, history and politics. Over 900 programmes, as broadcast from 1946 – 2004.

Letter from America by Alistair Cooke: The return of Ross Perot and US social concerns

The return of Ross Perot and US social concerns

BBC Radio 4 - Letter from America by Alistair Cooke, The return of Ross Perot and US social concerns

Third tri-mester abortions and the resurgence of Ross Perot.

The return of Ross Perot as a presidential candidate, the prohibition of third-trimester abortions, the proliferation of guns and the education of children about global warming.

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