Dame Patricia Routledge

Actress Dame Patricia Routledge is castaway by Sue Lawley.

Once voted the nation's favourite actress for her BBC TV roles as Hyacinth Bucket and Hetty Wainthrop, Patricia has also been successful in the theatre, in musicals, and of course as Victoria's Wood's Kitty and in Alan Bennett's monologues Talking Heads.

She grew up in Birkenhead and went to the Argyll Theatre before it was destroyed in the war.

With a deep love of English literature, Patricia wanted to be a glamorous headmistress.

She tells Sue about her life and work and chooses eight records to take to the mythical island.

Patricia was made a Dame of the British Empire in 2017 and died on 3rd October 2025 aged 96.

DISC ONE: New York Philharmonic Orchestra, conducted by Leonard Bernstein - Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No. 4 in F minor, 3rd movement
DISC TWO: Boston Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Seiji Ozawa - Gustav Holst’s Jupiter (from The Planets)
DISC THREE: Robb Wilton - Back Answers
DISC FOUR: St Paul’s Cathedral Choristers and The London Sinfonia, conducted by John Scott - John Rutter and F S Pierpoint’s For the Beauty of the Earth
DISC FIVE: Moscow Philharmonic Orchestra, conducted by Kirill Kondrashin - Dmitri Shostakovich’s Symphony No. 5 in D minor
DISC SIX: Dame Janet Baker, Sheffield Philharmonic Chorus & the Halle Choir & Orchestra, conducted by Sir John Barbirolli - Edward Elgar’s The Dream of Gerontius: Softly and gently (Angel's farewell)
DISC SEVEN: Amadeus Quartet, conducted by Robert Cohen - Franz Schubert’s String Quintet in C major, 2nd movement
DISC EIGHT: Alfred Brendel and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra conducted by James Levine - Ludwig van Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 5 in E flat major: “Emperor” 2nd movement.

CASTAWAY'S FAVOURITE: Amadeus Quartet, conducted by Robert Cohen - Franz Schubert’s String Quintet in C major, 2nd movement
BOOK CHOICE: The collected works - John Donne
LUXURY CHOICE: Tea service with tea

Producer Angie Nehring

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in August 1999.