Terry Pratchett talks to Mark Lawson about his life and work, from the early days as a teenage journalist to his rise to fame as one of the world's most popular sci-fi writers.
Horror writer Stephen King talks to Mark Lawson about his life and work.
Mark Lawson in conversation with satirist Armando Ianucci.
Mark Lawson talks to Renaissance man Stephen Fry about his many talents, his mysterious disappearance from the cast of Cell Mates in 1995 and how he battles with his demons.
Mark Lawson talks to Sanjeev Bhaskar about his background and how it inspired him to turn the British Asian experience into comedy.
Top scriptwriter Russell T Davies in conversation with Mark Lawson.
Galton and Simpson talk about their famous creations Hancock's Half Hour and Steptoe and Son, how they met each other in hospital, and why they stopped working together.
With a comedy career which kicked off in strip clubs, Barry Cryer became a Windmill regular in the 1950s. A brief foray into musicals and the West End stage followed with Expresso Bongo, before he made his mark on the pop world with a cover of The Purple People Eater, which Barry claims went to Number One in Finland for three weeks. Barry Cryer talks to Mark Lawson about his days writing jokes for The Two Ronnies and Morecambe and Wise, his enduring role as a panellist on BBC Radio 4's I'm Sorry I Haven't a Clue, and the eczema that used to plague his life.
Mark Lawson talks to the actress Liz Smith about her life and career. She reflects on her lonely childhood and her days as a single mother struggling to make ends meet as well as her determination to become an actress. Smith got her big break at the age of 50, after being discovered by the film director Mike Leigh, but perhaps she's best known as the nations favourite gran - Nana in the iconic series The Royle Family.
Writer and television performer Jonathan Meades discusses his life and career with Mark Lawson. In his unmistakable dark suits and sunglasses, Meades has presented many opinionated and sometimes controversial documentaries on architecture, culture and food. Meades talks about the secrets of his distinctive presenting style, gaining weight as restaurant critic for The Times and his Humanist beliefs.
John le Carre converses with Mark Lawson about his fragmented childhood, life in the diplomatic service, working with Alec Guinness and his book A Most Wanted Man. Le Carre worked as an intelligence officer in the 1970s before turning to writing full time. His personal experiences during the Cold War informed a string of best-selling espionage novels including The Spy Who Came in from the Cold and Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy. He also wrote the corporate corruption thriller The Constant Gardener, which became a Oscar-winning film.
Phil Collins made his name as the drummer and then the lead singer of Genesis, before embarking on a successful solo career with hits including In the Air Tonight. In the 1980s he took on the role of one of the great train robbers in the film Buster and has recently had success with scoring for films such as Disney's Tarzan. Collins talks frankly to Mark Lawson about his three marriages and the various myths that surround him, including that he divorced his second wife by fax.
Antony Sher talks to Mark Lawson about growing up as a white South African, working with his partner Gregory Doran and bringing Shakespeare to life.
British film director Mike Leigh talks to Mark Lawson about his life and career. Leigh talks about his upbringing in Salford, where his father was a doctor, and his early foray into acting with the local Jewish youth group. After a scholarship to Rada, Leigh did occasionally act, but always wanted to write and direct, and discusses his plays for both stage and television and his films. He talks at length about the collaborative creative process with his actors to build characters and why he doesn't want to work with Hollywood stars, but wouldn't mind a bigger budget.
Private Eye editor Ian Hislop discusses his role as a satirist with Mark Lawson. He talks about how boarding school became a second home after the premature death of his father, and his own expectation of an early demise. Christianity has been a consistent factor in his life, and he describes how he regularly flirts with doubt but always returns to faith. He also reveals the goings on behind the scenes of Have I Got News For You? where he has been a team captain for almost 20 years, and how the long-running spat with Piers Morgan came about.
Mark Lawson talks to actor and director Richard Wilson about his life and work. Best known for playing the irascible character of Victor Meldrew in the hit BBC sitcom One Foot in the Grave, Wilson reflects on the opportunities that have come his way as a result of the staggering success of the series, as well as the drawbacks of being famously associated with one character and a catchphrase. Wilson talks about life before acting, growing up in Greenock, working as a laboratory technician and doing military service in Singapore. He remembers working with David Lean in A Passage to India and his rise to stardom through sitcoms such as Hot Metal and Tutti Frutti before agreeing to play Victor, a part written for him, after initially turning it down. He also discusses more recent roles in Merlin and as a documentary presenter, as well as looking forward to future projects and ambitions.
Mark Lawson talks to actress Jane Horrocks about her life's work. Renowned for her performances as Little Voice and Bubble in Ab Fab, Jane tells how a young girl from Rawtenstall in Lancashire rose to fame and acclamation. In a revealing interview, Jane explores how gender and age can affect career longevity as a performer. Currently starring as Annie Oakley in the Young Vic's Annie Get Your Gun, Jane details her backstage secrets for keeping focused and energetic for eight performances a week.
Imelda Staunton began her stage career playing the likes of St Joan and Piaf in repertory theatre. More recently she has starred as Dolores Umbridge in Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, busy-body Miss Pole in Cranford, and the eponymous back street abortionist in Mike Leigh's Vera Drake. She talks to Mark Lawson about her life and career, from her early ambitions to become an actress to her recent role on the West End stage in Entertaining Mr Sloane, as well as various experiences along the way: working on a Steven Seagal film; auditioning for Cats at Andrew Lloyd Webber's house and her Oscars experience when she was nominated for Best Actress for Vera Drake.
Mark Lawson interviews writer Alan Bennett at the National Theatre in London, where his latest play, 'The Habit of Art', is in production. They cover a range of subjects, from Bennett's childhood to the days of 'Beyond the Fringe' and his subsequent work for stage, television and literature. He admits to being much more open about his personal life than he used to be and speaks frankly about his views on Rupert Murdoch, his political leanings and his lifelong interest in the process of education. As well as refusing honours from Oxford University, as discussed in this programme, Alan Bennett also turned down a CBE (Commander of the British Empire) in 1988 and a knighthood in 1996.
Mark Lawson talks to AS Byatt after her Man Booker Prize nomination for her novel The Children's Book. Byatt talks about her passion for literature and how she has managed to combine family life with the solitary world of a writer.
Mark Lawson talks to Brian Cox, ahead of his lead role in the BBC4 Westminster drama, On Expenses. In this candid interview, Cox talks about his passion for portraying complex and difficult characters, but also about his personal psychological battles and the low point in his career when he almost gave up acting.
Mark Lawson talks to the enfant terrible of the British art world, Tracey Emin, famed for her unmade bed and the tent embroidered with the names of everyone she had ever slept with. The 1990s wild child talks in detail about her unconventional childhood and the traumatic adolescent experiences which inspired much of her controversial work.
Veteran 'home economist' Marguerite Patten reflects on nine decades of cookery. From learning to cook as a child, to being one of the first celebrity TV chefs to her performances at the Palladium, to writing over 170 books, she explains what has motivated her to keep going and how, in her early 90s, she shows little sign of slowing down.
Claudia Roden, the cookery writer who brought us Middle Eastern recipes long before couscous and houmous were on every supermarket shelf, talks to Mark Lawson about her memories of growing up Jewish in Cairo in the 1930s, the true origins of pasta, and going kosher for her award-winning Book of Jewish Food.
Mark Lawson talks to the award-winning actor Timothy Spall about his life and career. Spall reflects on his working-class roots and the joys and anxieties of being a 'professional depicter', as well as his personal fight with leukaemia. He rose to prominence in classic stage and television drama, but it was his work with director Mike Leigh that established him as one of the country's best-loved character actors in films such as Life is Sweet and Secrets and Lies. His sensitive and humane performances as Britain's last hangman Albert Pierrepoint and Dickens's Fagin speak of his fascination with the human condition and his desire to play all sorts of funny looking people.
Mark Lawson talks to notorious literary bad boy Martin Amis ahead of the BBC dramatisation of his book Money. In this revealing interview Amis speaks candidly about his relationship with his father Kingsley Amis, which survived the breakup of his parents' marriage and his father's disinterest in reading Martin's books. Amis also reveals how his sister Sally was a 'victim of the sexual revolution' whose consequent struggles in life influenced his latest book The Pregnant Widow.
Mark Lawson talks to the Oscar-winning actress Vanessa Redgrave about her life and career. She reflects on her legendary acting family, political activism and the loss of her daughter, actress Natasha Richardson. Redgrave rose to prominence as a Shakespearean heroine before becoming a key part of the 1960s New Wave film movement. After a succession of challenging stage and film roles she remains one of our finest dramatic actresses, as renowned for her humanitarian concerns as her performances.
Renowned broadcaster and satirist David Frost talks about his life and career.
Mark Lawson talks to the internationally-acclaimed actress Julie Walters about her life and extraordinary career. In this fascinating interview she explores her working class roots, struggles with self-confidence and finding peace at 60. Walters rose to prominence as a comic actress best known for her collaboration with Victoria Wood, before embarking on a succession of stage and film roles that catapulted her into the nation's heart. She remains one of our most revered actresses whose recent biographical performances as Mary Whitehouse, Mo Mowlam and euthanasia campaigner Anne Turner have cemented her position as one of the most versatile and celebrated actresses of her generation.
Mark Lawson talks to the much-loved actress Alison Steadman about her life and career. In this rare in-depth interview she explores her early gift for mimicry, passion for improvisation and her joy of working with some of the greatest writers in the country. Steadman won over both theatre and television audiences alike as the grotesquely comic Essex hostess Beverly in Mike Leigh's Abigail's Party. Alongside her beloved Candice-Marie in Nuts in May, her propensity for sharp wit and characterisation soon established her as a rising star in British television. Steadman has gone on to draw accolades in every decade with standout performances in The Singing Detective, Pride and Prejudice, The Worst Week of My Life and, as another Essex icon, Pamela in Gavin and Stacey.
Mark Lawson talks to the iconic singer Sir Tom Jones about his life in and out of the limelight. Jones reflects on his modest upbringing in a coal mining community from the early pub tours in his native south Wales to achieving international acclaim - and the accompanying pressures of fame. Since the 1960s Jones's unique voice and charisma established him as the quintessential pop star and sex symbol with hits such as It's Not Unusual and What's New Pussycat? After a succession of number one records, he moved to the USA where he hosted television shows and toured tirelessly. For five decades he has remained one of the most recognisable voices in popular music. Given his success at 70, a new album and new image, Sir Tom shares some of his most memorable life experiences and his dreams for the future.
Mark Lawson talks to the Emmy and BAFTA award-winning screenwriter Jimmy McGovern about his life and career in television drama. In this insightful interview McGovern shares his memories of working-class Liverpool, how his own struggle with speech drove his love of words, and the lasting impact of being 'steeped in Catholicism'. After his breakthrough role on Channel Four's Brookside, McGovern went on to pursue his passion for socially and emotionally powerful stories. His fascination with faith and the human conscience was deftly explored in ITV's Cracker and his interrogation of contemporary issues brought him acclaim for Hillsborough, Dockers and Sunday. Despite a foray into feature films in the controversial Priest, McGovern has remained resolutely smitten with the small screen, most notably in The Lakes, The Street and his latest BBC drama, Accused.
Mark Lawson talks to the revered actor Simon Russell Beale, hailed as 'the greatest actor of his generation'. In this reflective interview, Russell Beale discusses his life on and off stage and the pleasure and pressure of taking on some of the most distinguished roles in history. He offers valuable insights into how he approaches his diverse roles - from princes to psychopaths, boarding school boys to ballerinas - as well as his changing career as he now approaches fifty. Having begun life as a St Pauls chorister, Russell Beale's theatrical prowess was cemented with Best Actor plaudits for Hamlet, Uncle Vanya and Twelfth Night, as well as delighting audiences with performances in London Assurance, Spamalot, The Winter's Tale and Deathtrap. Having enthralled television audiences in his BAFTA award-winning drama Dance to the Music of Time, Russell Beale continues to demonstrate his versatility on screen, from performing Sondheim in the BBC Proms and presenting BBC Four's documentary series Sacred Music, to one of his best loved roles as the home secretary in Spooks.
Mark Lawson talks to the controversial artists and 'living sculptures' Gilbert and George about their lives and careers. Since meeting as students at St Martins School of Art in 1967, Gilbert Proesch and George Passmore have forged an extraordinary artistic partnership ranging from photo-pieces and dirty word pictures to their latest postcard exhibition. Their vivid, graphic work set out to challenge the elitist art world through universal themes of identity, sex, class and nationality.
Mark Lawson talks to the influential sculptor Sir Anthony Caro about his life and career in art. In this thoughtful interview Caro reflects on his time as Henry Moore's assistant, his groundbreaking shift from figurative to abstract sculpture, his position on public art and his dream of working 'until I drop'. Since his pioneering show at the Whitechapel London Gallery in 1963 Anthony Caro became recognised as one of the most important and prolific sculptors in the world. His innovative approach to scale, form and materials to 'expand the language of sculpture' has not only won him international plaudits but has revolutionised the field of three-dimensional art.
Mark Lawson talks to the renowned broadcaster Anne Robinson about her life in and out of the spotlight. In this candid interview Robinson reflects on the journey from finishing school to Fleet Street, alcoholism to America, and print journalism to prime-time television. Since rising through the ranks of newspapers in the 1960s Robinson has become television's favourite champion of the public in Points of View and Watchdog. She established herself as the steely host of The Weakest Link on both sides of the Atlantic, her 'Mrs Nasty' exterior belying a complex personal history. Her latest BBC series My Life in Books combines her lifelong passion for words and people - confessing that her famous 'tongue has earned me a living... but it's been my downfall as well'.
Mark Lawson talks to the versatile comedian David Mitchell about his life and career. In this charming interview, Mitchell charts his career from imitating newsreaders as a child to the award-winning success of That Mitchell and Webb Show and Peep Show. Having grown up under the spell of 1980s television, Mitchell found his comedy soulmate in Robert Webb at a Footlights audition in Cambridge. Mitchell and Webb became established in fringe theatre and radio before That Mitchell and Webb Sound transferred to television to critical acclaim. Mitchell's performance as Mark Corrigan in Channel Four's Peep Show cemented his position as a comic actor before going on to make his feature film debut with Webb in Magicians. He has remained loyal to his beloved small screen as a panel show regular and as co-host of the satirical series 10 O'Clock Live. Best known for his portrayal of 'furious, self-loathing and selfish failures', David Mitchell continues to delight audiences with his astutely observed vulnerability and irritability.
Mark Lawson talks to the revered actress Dame Diana Rigg about her life and 50-year career on stage and screen. In this thoughtful interview she explores her early years in India, her conflicted feelings about being seen as sexy and the pleasures of professional success into her 70s. Rigg rose to prominence as proto-feminist Emma Peel in The Avengers and her feisty Bond girl won over 007 in On Her Majesty's Secret Service. She has brought her RSC training and psychological insight to a number of distinguished performances including Medea, Mother Love and Rebecca. Her versatility has been showcased in comic turns on The Morecambe and Wise Show and Extras and musical numbers in Evil Under the Sun and the Stephen Sondheim musical Follies. She continues to pursue her passion for the theatre and a varied career that has brought 'no regrets at all'.
Mark Lawson talks to the versatile actor and comedian Rob Brydon about his life and career in entertainment. In this in-depth interview Rob discusses his long road to fame from Porthcawl to primetime via years of 'tiny roles that a labrador could have played'. Brydon's astute vocal and comedic observations have earned him a diverse career writing and performing for radio, film, television, stand-up and theatre, culminating in his BAFTA-nominated The Rob Brydon Show. He has gained a devoted audience following stand-out roles in The Trip, A Cock and Bull Story, Gavin and Stacey, Marion and Geoff and Human Remains, as well as hosting the popular panel show Would I Lie to You?
Mark Lawson talks to the prolific artist Sir Peter Blake about his life and 60-year career. In this in-depth interview he explores how he became an 'accidental artist', his reputation as the godfather of Pop Art, his iconic Sergeant Pepper album cover and 'barmy' late period. Blake rose to prominence with his autobiographical and collage-like art which drew on his fascination with circus life and comics, music halls and movie stars. His broad artistic training led him to produce work in a variety of forms - engraving and sculpture, graphic art and, of course, album covers. Blake was at the heart of swinging London until he moved to the West Country where he was a founding member of the Brotherhood of Ruralists - an artistic community governed by nature, poetry and techniques of the old masters. On moving back to London, Blake reverted to his trademark pop culture influences and is enjoying a 'naughty' renaissance and freedom from the critics.
Mark Lawson talks to Frank Skinner about a career that has made him one of the most successful and well-paid comedians of his generation. By Skinner's own admission he's a 'nondescript bloke from a working class family in West Bromwich who got lucky'. Lawson explores what drove him to succeed in stand-up, broadcasting, writing and even a No 1 hit single with the football anthem Three Lions. Skinner also talks candidly about his personal life, including his former alcoholism and reputation as a womaniser. Originally born Christopher Graham Collins, he first found fame when he won the prestigious 1991 Perrier prize for stand-up comedy at the Edinburgh Festival. He went on to present the highly successful Fantasy Football with David Baddiel as they inadvertently became the poster boys for the 'new laddism' of the 1990s. Skinner was subsequently poached by ITV and went on to present his own chat show, before parting ways with the broadcaster. In 2007 Skinner successfully returned to stand-up and has prodigiously worked on various BBC entertainment shows including Frank Skinner's Opinionated and the revamped Room 101.
Mark Lawson talks to legendary broadcaster Terry Wogan about his life and 50-year career. In this thoughtful interview Terry explores his early years growing up in Ireland, recalls how the shaky beginnings of Irish television provided him with a great training ground for a career in live broadcast and talks about how, because of his gentle demeanour, he has eluded the censors more than any of his peers. Wogan made a name for himself as a DJ for Raidió Teilifís Éireann in Ireland in the 1960s. When Irish television started up in 1962, he began his career in front of the camera, transferring across the channel in 1967 as one of the first DJs for the BBC's new station Radio 1. Loved for his genial charm and cheeky optimism, he has seduced audiences and listeners for over half a century. His stamina and ambition to be a major player in live broadcast continues well into his 70s, as the face of BBC's Children in Need and the front of his ever-popular Radio 2 show.
Mark Lawson turns the tables on celebrity interviewer and chat show host Graham Norton and discusses seminal moments from his life and career. From his southern Irish Protestant beginnings, Lawson explores what drove Norton to become one of the biggest names in light entertainment, via a brief stint as an actor and an even briefer stint as a failed rent boy. In this frank and funny interview he discusses growing up in Ireland, his sexuality and a near fatal mugging whilst he was at drama school. 'I started finding my life engaging when I was about 16, when I started having experiences outside of Ireland, that's when I sort of came alive.' Norton's journey out of Ireland first took him to live in a hippy commune in San Francisco before he returned to study acting. One of his earliest roles was in Puss in Boots in Harrogate, an experience which made him realise that a life on the boards was not for him. His TV breakthrough came in 1997 when he filled in as the main presenter for Channel 5's Not the Jack Docherty Show, which led to a best newcomer gong at the British Comedy Awards. In 1998 he was given his own hit show on Channel 4 and in 2005 he transferred to the BBC, where he continues to thrill Friday night audiences with his unique blend of celebrity guests, tongue-in-cheek humour and audience participation.
Mark Lawson talks to former Oasis lynchpin Noel Gallagher about his life, career and becoming one of the most successful songwriters of his generation. In this fascinating interview Noel talks frankly about his acrimonious relationship with his younger brother, the Oasis front man Liam. He explores his violent relationship with his father, his persistent truancy as a schoolboy and the fact that he was considered a weirdo because of his passion for music. Admitting that he was a control freak, he claims that he was driving force behind Oasis's phenomenal success: 'We were the last, we were the greatest, the end.' Noel's career in music began in the late 1980's when he toured with Manchester based band Inspiral Carpets, working as their roadie. In 1991 he joined his brother Liam's new band, Oasis, where he established himself as the main songwriter. The band shot to fame after being signed by Creation Records during a gig that they very nearly weren't allowed to play in Glasgow in 1993. Their debut album Definitely Maybe went straight to number one on initial release and became the fastest selling debut album of all time. Fuelling the Britpop movement , Oasis quickly became one of the biggest bands of the decade and, despite obvious tension between the Gallagher brothers, stayed together until 2009 when Noel quit after an argument with Liam minutes before they were due to appear on stage at a festival near Paris. Since then, Noel has formed his solo project, Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds.
Mark Lawson talks to writer, actor and comedian Mark Gatiss about his life, career and fulfilling childhood dreams. In this entertaining interview Gatiss explores formative memories of growing up opposite a psychiatric hospital in County Durham, admits the difficulty of coming out as a gay man, reveals why his role in the British film flop Sex Lives of the Potato Men was the biggest mistake of his career yet also his 'Pistols moment', and talks about how his lifelong passion for horror and science fiction have influenced his success and contributed to his 'long revenge against PE teachers who told me that I would never come to anything'. Gatiss first made a name for himself as one of the comedy quartet The League of Gentlemen, which he formed with university friends Reece Shearsmith, Steve Pemberton and Jeremy Dyson. Their first breakthrough was winning the Perrier Award for their stage show in 1997, and BBC radio and television success quickly followed. Gatiss has gone on to form a successful solo career as an actor, with notable roles including Bamber Gascoigne in Starter for Ten and Malcolm McLaren in Worried About the Boy. As a writer Gatiss is living out his childhood obsessions, writing episodes of Dr Who and the BAFTA-Award winning series Sherlock, and presenting a series on horror for the BBC.
Mark Lawson talks to Mark Rylance, one of the best stage actors of his generation, about his life and illustrious career. In this insightful interview, Rylance discusses how acting helped him overcome a childhood speech impediment; his lifelong relationship with Shakespeare and his controversial ideas about Shakespeare's authorship; how his role in the film Intimacy raised his respect for porn stars; and how he prepares for his highly-acclaimed role as Johnny Rooster Byron in the award-winning play Jerusalem. After leaving RADA in 1980, Rylance quickly established himself as a classical actor through major roles at the RSC. Frustrated with so called 'director's theatre' which left him feeling as powerless as 'a waiter', Rylance left the RSC in 1983 to set up his own actor-led production companies. He was the first artistic director of the Globe, where he worked from 1995 to 2005. He has had various film roles, including the alcoholic boxer and chess genius John Healy in the award-winning The Grass Arena, and weapons inspector David Kelly in The Government Inspector. Rylance confesses, however, to being more at home on stage than on screen and his most recent role in Jerusalem has proven to be one of his career highs - earning him Tony and Olivier awards both in Britain and in the US.
Mark Lawson talks to Felicity Kendal about her childhood in India and returning to the UK in the 1960s to become one of the best-loved actors of her generation.
In this in-depth interview Mark Lawson meets the award-winning journalist and filmmaker Sean Langan, whose kidnap by the Taliban in 2008 inspired BBC Four's hostage drama The Kidnap Diaries.
Mark Lawson talks to Zoe Wanamaker about inheriting a showbusiness name and making it even more celebrated in her own right.
Mark Lawson talks to the astronomer and English eccentric Sir Patrick Moore about his early life, career and the future of space exploration in an interview that was recorded in 2007. The late Sir Patrick presented the BBC programme The Sky at Night for over 50 years, making him the longest-running host of the same television show ever. He presented the first edition of the programme on 24th April 1957 and last appeared in an episode broadcast in late 2012.
Mark Lawson talks to Mark Knopfler, one of the most prolific songwriters of his generation about his early life and influences, the years with Dire Straits and his quiet contempt for modern TV talent shows. Mark Knopfler has been writing and performing for over 40 years, first with his band Dire Straits, and since their split in the mid nineties, as a solo performer. He has collaborated with numerous stars from Tina Turner to James Taylor and Bob Dylan and is about to start another sell out tour in 2013.
Mark Lawson talks to prolific writing duo Dick Clement and Ian La Frenais about their careers, spanning the breakthrough comedy The Likely Lads and Porridge to their latest foray into drama, Spies of Warsaw. They also speak about their reputation for rescuing foundering Hollywood scripts and the day-to-day joys of their working 'marriage'. Clement and La Frenais began writing together in a London pub in the 1960s. With their trademark combination of dramatic plot lines and sharp naturalistic dialogue, they have created classic British comedy, from The Likely Lads to Porridge and Auf Wiedersehen, Pet.
In a career spanning more than five decades, photographer David Bailey has captured many of the 20th century's most iconic faces. With his first major solo exhibition at the National Portrait Gallery currently on show, he talks frankly to Mark Lawson about his life, loves and illustrious career.
As she publishes her eighteenth novel, Joanna Trollope talks to Mark Lawson about creativity, divorce and the inescapable drama of domestic life. Her hugely popular novels include The Rector's Wife, The Choir and A Village Affair, which have all been adapted into major television dramas.
Julian Barnes won the 2011 Man Booker Prize for his novel The Sense of an Ending and his latest, Levels of Life is a memoir of bereavement following the loss of his wife to cancer. He talks candidly to Mark Lawson about love, death, memory and grief.
Mark Lawson talks to comedian, writer and actress Jo Brand. After a decade working as a psychiatric nurse, Jo turned her hand to comedy in the 1980s and has spent nearly 30 years at the top of what is widely accepted to be a male-dominated genre, receiving recognition by BAFTA in 2011 for her performance in the sitcom Getting On. One of the most important female comics of her generation, she reveals the backlash she faced on her arrival on the alternative comedy scene, her approach to hecklers and taboos, as well as her experiences as a TV personality - from the pressure of having her own sketch show, Jo Brand: Through The Cakehole, to being on panel shows such as Have I Got News for You and Mock the Week.
An extended interview with the author and former children's laureate Michael Morpurgo, who has written over 100 books. Morpurgo reflects on the huge success of his novel War Horse, which was adapted into a successful National Theatre production and into a film by Steven Spielberg, the recurring theme of war in his books such as Private Peaceful, and his most recent novel Listen to the Moon, which centres on a survivor of the sinking of the passenger liner the Lusitania in 1915. Morpurgo also discusses his relationship with his father, the celebrated actor Tony Van Bridge, his friendship with the late poet laureate Ted Hughes, and considers whether the role of a children's writer is to introduce young readers to adult issues.
Mark Lawson talks to one of Britain's greatest exponents of the detective novel, PD James.
Mark Lawson talks to actress Frances de la Tour about her life and career.
From Calendar Girls to Cranford, Celia Imrie has been a familiar face on both TV and film for more than four decades. Ahead of her latest cinema release The Second Best Exotic Marigold Hotel, and the publication of her first novel Not Quite Nice, the actress talks to Mark Lawson about her life and career.
Mark Lawson talks to the Booker Prize-winning writer Kazuo Ishiguro about his life and career. Ishiguro, who was born in Nagasaki in 1954, discusses the influence of Japan on his early novels A Pale View of Hills and An Artist's View of the Floating World, and the impact of American cowboy series and Victorian novels on his grasp of English as a child.
Mark Lawson talks to the internationally successful author Alexander McCall Smith, whose No.1 Ladies Detective Agency series of books, set in Botswana and centring on the investigations of the redoubtable Precious Ramotswe, have sold in their millions around the world.
From princes to professors and cardinals to comedians, star of stage and screen Jonathan Pryce is one of Britain's most versatile actors. Here he talks to Mark Lawson about his life and extensive career.
Mark Lawson Talks To... - David Hare Award-winning writer and director Sir David Hare talks frankly to Mark Lawson following the publication of his much-anticipated memoir The Blue Touch Paper. Hare, one of Britain's foremost political playwrights, rose to fame in the 1970s with Plenty, his play about post-war disillusion. He then went on to write a string of successes for the National Theatre, most notably his 1990s state-of-the-nation trilogy. Hare has also written screenplays including The Hours and The Reader and recently wrote and directed the political thriller The Worricker Trilogy for TV.
Tim Berners-Lee interviewed by BBC Newsnight's Mark Lawson Sources: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/4132752.stm http://journal.dajobe.org/journal/posts/2005/08/09/mark-lawson-interviews-tim-berners-lee/
