Desert Island Discs
BBC Radio 4Eight tracks, a book and a luxury: what would you take to a desert island? Guests share the soundtrack of their lives.
| Publishes | Twice weekly | Episodes | 2000 | Founded | 17 years ago |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Number of Listeners | Categories | Personal JournalsMusicMusic CommentarySociety & Culture | |||
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Latest Episodes
Professor Dame Parveen Kumar is a gastroenterologist and co-author of one of the most influential medical textbooks in the world - Kumar & Clark’s Clinical Medicine. She was born in Lahore (then still in British India) in June 1942, one of three chil... more
Matt Haig is the bestselling writer, whose work ranges from magical realism to memoir. His novel The Midnight Library became a global phenomenon, selling 15 million copies, while his memoir Reasons to Stay Alive has provided comfort to millions aroun... more
The writer and broadcaster Richard Osman was cast away by Lauren Laverne.
He is the author of the Thursday Murder Club series and has presented popular BBC shows including Pointless and Richard Osman's House of Games. When he appeared on Desert Isla... more
The actress Penelope Keith, who died earlier this year, was cast away by Roy Plomley in 1976.
She became best known for her roles in the BBC sitcoms The Good Life and To the Manor Born, but Penelope Keith began her career in repertory theatre. In 19... more
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The full episodes
Sorry I echo the above. I like the postcards but want to hear whole episodes x
Apple Podcasts5Woman in a Dressing Gown
United Kingdom14 days ago - Full access!
We need access to full episodes please…these bitesize postcards are a ridiculous tease! 🙄
Apple Podcasts1JoyP26United Kingdom14 days ago - Postcards ??
Please return to the old format ASAP! 👌👌
Apple Podcasts1peedeeclarkUnited Kingdom15 days ago - Stop clogging feed with excerpts
Bad enough duplicating episodes I've already listened to as 'relistens' when hosts are unavailable but now clogging my feed with already heard 4 minute excerpts. STOP IT. Uncubscibed.
Apple Podcasts1Customer93United Kingdom15 days ago - So sick of the postcards
I like the interviews but the postcards are frustrating. For some reason the podcast version won't play seamlessly one after the other. Also they play the theme time beginning and end for each 3 minute postcard. Boringly repetitive.
Apple Podcasts1Chicago Rose
New Zealand15 days ago
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Chart Rankings
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Apple Podcasts | #26 |  United States/Society & Culture/Personal Journals |
Spotify | #171 | United Kingdom/Top Podcasts |
Spotify | #21 | United Kingdom/Society & Culture |
Apple Podcasts | #80 | United Kingdom/Top Podcasts |
Apple Podcasts | #1 | United Kingdom/Society & Culture/Personal Journals |
Apple Podcasts | #8 |  Canada/Society & Culture/Personal Journals |
Talking Points
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Audience Metrics
Listeners, social reach, demographics and more for this podcast.
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Frequently Asked Questions About Desert Island Discs
What is Desert Island Discs about and what kind of topics does it cover?
Listeners typically tune in for intimate, thoughtful conversations with high-profile artists, writers, journalists, and cultural figures who share personal stories alongside eight-track soundtracks. The format blends life history, career milestones, and creative influences, often touching on resilience, identity, and mentorship. Episodes tend to highlight how music intersects with memory, fame, and everyday wisdom, making it appealing to fans of culture, storytelling, and human-interest profiles. A notable strength is the breadth of guests across arts, sport, journalism, and public life, yielding conversations that feel warm, candid, and universally relatable for listeners who value authenticity and curiosity about people's journeys.
Where can I find podcast stats for Desert Island Discs?
Rephonic provides a wide range of podcast stats for Desert Island Discs. We scanned the web and collated all of the information that we could find in our comprehensive podcast database. See how many people listen to Desert Island Discs and access YouTube viewership numbers, download stats, audience demographics, chart rankings, ratings, reviews and more.
How many listeners does Desert Island Discs get?
Rephonic provides a full set of podcast information for four million podcasts, including the number of listeners. View further listenership figures for Desert Island Discs, including podcast download numbers and subscriber numbers, so you can make better decisions about which podcasts to sponsor or be a guest on. You will need to upgrade your account to access this premium data.
What are the audience demographics for Desert Island Discs?
Rephonic provides comprehensive predictive audience data for Desert Island Discs, including gender skew, age, country, political leaning, income, professions, education level, and interests. You can access these listener demographics by upgrading your account.
How many subscribers and views does Desert Island Discs have?
To see how many followers or subscribers Desert Island Discs has on Spotify and other platforms such as Castbox and Podcast Addict, simply upgrade your account. You'll also find viewership figures for their YouTube channel if they have one.
Which podcasts are similar to Desert Island Discs?
These podcasts share a similar audience with Desert Island Discs:
1. Rosebud with Gyles Brandreth
2. The Louis Theroux Podcast
3. The Rest Is Entertainment
4. How To Fail With Elizabeth Day
5. This Cultural Life
How many episodes of Desert Island Discs are there?
Desert Island Discs launched 17 years ago and published 2000 episodes to date. You can find more information about this podcast including rankings, audience demographics and engagement in our podcast database.
How do I contact Desert Island Discs?
Our systems regularly scour the web to find email addresses and social media links for this podcast. We scanned the web and collated all of the contact information that we could find in our podcast database. But in the unlikely event that you can't find what you're looking for, our concierge service lets you request our research team to source better contacts for you.
Where can I see ratings and reviews for Desert Island Discs?
Rephonic pulls ratings and reviews for Desert Island Discs from multiple sources, including Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Castbox, and Podcast Addict.
View all the reviews in one place instead of visiting each platform individually and use this information to decide if a show is worth pitching or not.
How do I access podcast episode transcripts for Desert Island Discs?
Rephonic provides full transcripts for episodes of Desert Island Discs. Search within each transcript for your keywords, whether they be topics, brands or people, and figure out if it's worth pitching as a guest or sponsor. You can even set-up alerts to get notified when your keywords are mentioned.
What guests have appeared on Desert Island Discs?
Recent guests on Desert Island Discs include:
1. Matt Haig
2. Richard Osman
3. Penelope Keith
4. Anthony Joshua
5. Kathy Burke
6. Stephen Mangan
7. Nick Cave
8. Meera Syal
To view more recent guests and their details, simply upgrade your Rephonic account. You'll also get access to a typical guest profile to help you decide if the show is worth pitching.