I Was
First broadcast from 20081202 to 20081223.
Andrew McGibbon presents a series of interviews analysing great artists from the perspective of someone who knew them.
4 episodes
| Series | Episode | Title | First Broadcast | Repeated | Description |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | 01 | Dudley Moore's First Bandleader | 20081202 | 20090617 | John Bassett met Dudley Moore at Oxford in the late 1950s and asked him to join his band. John Bassett met Dudley Moore, then a talented organ scholar, at Oxford in the late 1950s, and asked him to become the pianist in his jazz band, The Basset Hounds. The success of Moore's musical comedy skits led to Bassett introducing him to three other up-and-coming talents who would go on, with Moore, to find fame in Beyond the Fringe. Including contributions from Bassett Hound members Duncan Lamont and Pete Shade and Dudley's Beyond the Fringe colleague Jonathan Miller A Curtains for Radio production for BBC Radio 4. John Bassett met Dudley Moore at Oxford in the late 1950s and asked him to join his band. |
| 01 | 02 | Ernest Hemingway's La Secretaria | 20081209 | Valerie Danby Smith was Ernest Hemingway's secretary in the final two years of his life, accompanying him on trips to Spain, New York and his house in Havana. As their relationship blossomed, Ernest even proposed to her - while he was still married to his wife - and later confided to her that he was planning to commit suicide after learning he was going blind. Valerie Danby Smith was Ernest Hemingway's secretary in the final two years of his life. | |
| 01 | 03 | Douglas Adams' Flatmate | 20081216 | 20090624 | Jon Canter shared a flat with his friend Douglas Adams while the latter struggled for success and then coped with the fame he found following the success of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. Jon reveals the business of sharing a flat with his fiercely loyal, manically obsessive, loveable giant of a friend, who is still greatly missed after his sudden death ten years ago. Featuring contributions from other flatmates and Douglas's friend Professor Richard Dawkins. Jon Canter shared a flat with his friend Douglas Adams while the latter struggled for success and then coped with the fame he found following the success of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. Jon reveals the business of sharing a flat with his fiercely loyal, manically obsessive, loveable giant of a friend, who is still greatly missed after his sudden death ten years ago. Featuring contributions from other flatmates and Douglas' friend Professor Richard Dawkins. A Curtains for Radio production for BBC Radio 4. Jon Canter shared a flat with Douglas Adams while the latter struggled for success. |
| 01 | 04 LAST | David Lean's Boy Star | 20081223 | John talks about starring, aged eight, in David Lean's 1948 film version of Oliver Twist. As an eight-year-old, John Howard Davies played Oliver Twist in David Lean's classic 1948 film. Although the fame it brought him was not to his liking, John talks of the respect he had for Lean that led to him ultimately becoming a successful director and producer himself. Featuring contributions from producer Ronald Neame and David Lean's biographer Kevin Brownlow. |