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Episode details

Radio 4,18 Jul 2014,28 mins

Elaine Stritch, Nadine Gordimer, Michael Scudamore and Lorin Maazel

Last Word

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Matthew Bannister on The formidable actress Elaine Stritch. Famous for her remarkable voice, witty put downs and hard drinking youth, she was known as "The First Lady of Broadway". The South African novelist Nadine Gordimer, whose work embodied the complex story of the nation's struggle with race. The jockey and trainer Michael Scudamore, who competed in 16 consecutive Grand Nationals, winning in 1959 on a horse called Oxo. And the conductor Lorin Maazel, who was a child prodigy and went on to direct some of the world's greatest orchestras.

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