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Frequently Asked Questions

Frequently Asked Questions

Why can't I hear all the programmes?

More than 1450 programmes - from 1951 to the present day - are now available on the website. These include the vast majority of programmes presented by Roy Plomley, the show’s creator. Unfortunately some programmes were never archived or may be missing for legal or other reasons.

The first Desert Island Discs was broadcast in 1942 when most radio programmes were live and generally not recorded. In the decades that followed many programmes were not retained in the archives because the cost of keeping (and storing) the discs on which they were recorded was high.

As broadcasting technology developed, 1/4 inch tape was used to record the interviews, but even then the cost was so great that often the tapes were reused to record other programmes.

It may be that the Desert Island Discs archive will never be complete, but if you have access to any recordings of programmes broadcast particularly pre-1976 that you cannot see on our site now, we would be very pleased to hear from you. Please email us via the Us form which you can find on every castaway page.

How can I search the site?

There are several options.

You can browse by castaway name, date of broadcast, occupation-type, presenter-name (Roy Plomley, Michael Parkinson, Sue Lawley or Kirsty Young), gender or a combination of all of those.

You can also use the search box. You can search the entire archive at once, or just search for castaway names, music choices, books & authors or luxury items.

The data for every Desert Island Disc programme broadcast since 1942 is published on the site. For more information about how the site developed, see Making the Archive.

Searching for music tracks & composers – how do I get best results?

As with all search engines, the more complete the information you enter, the better the results will be.

When searching for music, you'll return the best results if you start by searching for the name of an artist or composer. We’ve formatted the description of classical tracks beginning with ‘symphony, concerto, sonata, cantanta’ etc and then followed that with the number, movement etc. So if you’re looking for a particular symphony, you will need to enter the words ‘Beethoven symphony 9’ rather than the phrase ‘Beethoven’s 9th’.

Why can’t I hear the music choices of the castaways?

Given the rights position and the number of tracks chosen by our castaways so far – in excess of 22,400 – we’re not able to provide samples of the music choices.

Why are some of the tracks shorter in the able version?

At the moment, our agreements with copyright holders mean we can only include shortened versions of tracks in able versions of our programmes. For musical choices we can include up to 1’00” of classical or jazz tracks and up to 0’30” of commercial recordings. In addition, we do not have the rights to certain speech extracts, particularly sports commentary.

Why have some of the castaway’s choices been edited out of the original programme?

Again, it’s a matter of our rights agreements. In some instances, particularly with sports commentaries, we’re unable to rebroadcast the Castaway’s choice of extract in either the able or the on-demand version.

Can I listen to Desert Island Discs on my mobile phone?

Yes, you can visit a mobile version of this site on any smartphone, or mobile phone with a web browser.

Just like the desktop website, you can find out what every castaway has chosen. Most smartphones will allow you to listen to the programmes, or them.

Data charges may apply when listening over the internet. Please visit BBC Mobile Help for more information.

Why are the audio versions of the programme on the mobile site edited versions?

For technical reasons, the version of the programme you’ll hear via the mobile site is the shorter, edited version. We are working to offer the longer version on mobiles.

Why isn’t the information about each castaway up-to-date?

The information is part of the Desert Island Discs archive and was sourced from the original material which was written about each programme at the time of broadcast. We are using the words that were written to promote, describe or introduce the programme at the time, taken from various databases and (some defunct) online systems and from the BBC archives.

The editorial principle underpinning the website is that every piece of data is part of the overall Desert Island Disc archive, and much of what was said captures a particular moment in the castaway’s life which puts the interview itself in the context of the time it was recorded. In addition, updating the information would have been an on-going project that required considerable resources.

Why aren’t there images for every castaway?

We'd love to have a suitable image for every castaway but it hasn’t been possible to source a high quality digital image for everyone yet.

However, if you are a castaway for whom we don’t have an image, and might be able to provide us with one, please us via the Us form.

How were the Occupation and Luxury categories decided?

Decisions about how to group our castaways were based on the occupations of those who have appeared on the programme. Some occupations are better represented than others, and others feature more in the early years than they do now, reflecting how society has changed since the programme began.

It was a challenge to coherently group the eclectic mix of luxuries chosen by Desert Island Discs guests and this caused much debate. It is obviously unscientific but at least provides some options for comparing one castaway’s choices with another.

How can I point out that there’s something missing or incorrect on the site?

With a data-rich site like Desert Island Discs there are bound to be elements of the data that are incorrect or missing. In some cases, people may disagree with the decisions we’ve taken about how to name musicians and musical tracks.

However we have tried, as far as possible, to standardise the naming and formatting of track descriptions in order to maximise the efficiency of the search facility.

We'd very much like to hear if you discover any information that is factually incorrect or missing on the site. Please use the us form.

How can I the programme?

If you’d like to bring something about this site to our attention, there is a us form on every page of the website. All emails will be read but we can’t undertake to answer every one individually.

If you wish to report a fault, mistake or broken link on our website, please use the us form.

For problems with BBC iPlayer Radio, please visit BBC iPlayer Radio Help.

How can I make a complaint?

If you’re concerned about something in one of the archive programmes we’ve published on the site, please us using the us form.

For any other editorial complaints, please visit the BBC Complaints website and follow the step-by-step guide. The website also contains BBC responses to previous complaints.

How can I find out about ing programmes or podcasting?

Please visit our BBC Podcasts - Help.

What is Desert Island Discs?

The format is simple – a guest is invited to choose eight discs, a book and a luxury to take with them as they’re castaway on a mythical desert island. They’re given the complete works of Shakespeare and the Bible. During the interview they explain their choices and discuss key moments in their lives, people and events that have influenced and inspired them and brought them to where they are today.

For more information about the programme see the History of Desert Island Discs.

There have been four presenters of the programme since it began in 1942 – Roy Plomley, Michael Parkinson (now Sir), Sue Lawley & Kirsty Young.

How do you decide on who to invite on the programme?

Castaways are people who’ve played a significant role in their field or in society and who have a story they’re happy to share, and who we feel will appeal to the Radio 4 audience.

Can I suggest a castaway to appear on the programme?

You can, by emailing desertislanddiscs@bbc.co.uk. We can’t answer all the many emails we get individually though we will consider all suggestions.

About Desert Island Discs