Bill Nighy

Kirsty Young introduces an archive episode revisiting the castaway choices of a BAFTA winning and Academy Award nominated actor.

Bill Nighy is castaway by Sue Lawley.

Originally from Caterham in Surrey, Bill left school at 15 without any qualifications and ended up working at his local employment office.

He hoped to become an author and began work on The Field magazine as a messenger boy, but then ran away to Paris at seventeen to write a novel. This venture failed and he ended up begging on the streets before returning to Britain and the Guildford School of Drama and Dance.

His first film role was as a delivery boy in Joan Collins' steamy film The Bitch. He's featured in numerous stage, TV, and radio dramas including the acclaimed Men's Room in 1991 and, more recently, in State of Play, where he played a newspaper editor.

His career has been described by some critics as a slow burn rather than a beacon, although he's now widely recognised as achieving the acclaim he deserves. In 2004 he won Best Supporting Actor at the BAFTAS for his role as Billy Mack, a washed up singer in the film Love Actually.

DISC ONE: The Rolling Stones - Gimme Shelter
DISC TWO: James Brown - I Got You (I Feel Good)
DISC THREE: Bob Dylan - Just Like Tom Thumb Blues
DISC FOUR: The Who - Won't Get Fooled Again
DISC FIVE: Marvin Gaye - My Love Is Waiting
DISC SIX: John Lee Hooker and Van Morrison - Healing Game
DISC SEVEN: Freaky Realistic - Koochie Ryder
DISC EIGHT: The Rolling Stones - Winter

BOOK CHOICE: 1st edition of 49 Stories - Ernest Hemingway
LUXURY CHOICE: Boxed set of blues harps (harmonicas) and instruction book
CASTAWAY'S FAVOURITE: The Rolling Stones - Winter

Producer: Isabel Sargent

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in March 2004.