Desert Island Discs

Desert Island Discs

Hosted by Lauren Laverne and Kirsty Young and Sue Lawley · BBC Radio 4

4.7from 3,111 ratings

Books guestsgb

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62Podcast AuthorityScore out of 100 · How it is scored
1,186
Episodes
183
Transcribed
3,111
Ratings
Daily
Cadence
2000
First episode

About Desert Island Discs

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

Publisher
BBC Radio 4
Category
music · society & culture
Language
en
Explicit
No
First episode
9 Jan 2000
Latest episode
2 Nov 2026
Apple PodcastsSpotifyWebsiteRSS feed

Latest episodes

183 of 1,186 episodes have a transcript.

  1. 2 Nov 2026TRANSCRIPT

    T C Fairbairn

  2. 1 Nov 2026TRANSCRIPT

    Professor Dame Parveen Kumar

  3. 24 Oct 2026TRANSCRIPT

    Matt Haig, writer

Inside a recent episode

T C Fairbairn

Published 2 Nov 2026 · Transcript excerpt

[…] Come, I need only thee, if could my beauty see. Miriam Lisette singing the jewel song from Guno's False Now, Mr. Fairbairn, you didn't start out in life as a professional musician. What job did you do when you first left school? I finished my school in Scotland in the house of my uncle, John. Yes. […]

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Who has been a guest on Desert Island Discs

Names identified in recent episode analyses. Showing up to five guests.

  • T C Fairbairn
  • Parveen Kumar
  • Matt Haig
  • Richard Osman
  • Penelope Keith

Reach and audience

Public platform figures. Ratings count people who left a rating, not total listeners.

Apple Podcasts (US)
4.6 / 5
1,508 ratings
Spotify
4.9 / 5
1,603 ratings

Podcast Authority Score: 62 / 100

A composite of feed quality, social presence, YouTube performance and engagement. Read the methodology.

Quality
85
Social presence
0
YouTube
0
Engagement
98

Contact Desert Island Discs

Guest appearances
Books guests

Based on episode analysis; this does not confirm that the show is currently accepting guests.

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Questions about Desert Island Discs

Who hosts Desert Island Discs?

Lauren Laverne and Kirsty Young and Sue Lawley host the show. Published by BBC Radio 4.

How often do new episodes come out?

The show publishes daily, based on its RSS feed.

Does Desert Island Discs take guests?

Yes. Guests have been identified in episode analyses.

Where can I read transcripts?

183 of 1,186 episodes have a transcript on Pod Engine. Full transcripts are available with a Pod Engine plan.

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