Desert island discovery

Through regular blog correspondent Bryan Graham, I've uncovered the list of tunes chosen by Len Deighton for his appearance on Desert Island Discs in 1976.

For anyone who doesn't know, this is a BBC Radio 4 series which has been running since the war, in which famous individuals are invited to select eight records which they would like to have with them, were they stranded on this mythical desert island, along with a luxury item and a book.

Len appeared on 19 June 1976. His choices were these:

• Ludwig van Beethoven, Für Elise, Soloist: John Ogdon
• Louis Armstrong & His All-Stars, Stars Fell On Alabama
• Johnny Cash, There ain't no easy run
• Gwendoline Brogden, I'll make a man out of you
• Maurice Ravel, La Valse, Orchestra: Swiss Romande Orchestra
• Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Piano Concerto No 11 in F, London Symphony Orchestra
• Neil Diamond, Crackling Rosie
• Gustav Mahler, Ich hab' ein glühender Messe (from Lieber eines fahrenden Gesellen), Halle Orchestra.

The latter piece Len picked as his favourite tune. His favourite book was The Art of Modern French Cooking - perhaps not surprising, as in his early twenties in Paris Len spent time in some of the great Parisian kitchens learning from top chefs. And his luxury was a photo darkroom, reflecting his early career as an RAF photographer and his long-standing interest in photography.

You can now listen to the interview online thanks to the BBC R4 archive.