Hello, I'm Christy Young, and this is a download from the Desert Island

Discs Archive. This edition may be slightly different from what was

actually broadcast, but it's the only version we have. It comes from the

British Library's radio collection. It was

archived without the music, so although the Castaways choices are introduced,

they're not part of this recording. Full details can be found on the Castaways page on the Desert Island Discs website.

The program was originally broadcast in 1980 and the presenter was Roy Plumlee. This week, I cast away as the actor Donald Pleasants.

Donald, I've never seen you in a musical.

Have you ever sung in public?

Well, I've done pantomime in places like the Birmingham

Reppetry Theatre. Donald Sinden and I for instance at the Bristol Old Vic

one Christmas were rusty and we pelted the audience with snowballs and squirted water

pistols at them.

We climbed ropes and did all kinds of funny things.

And we sang as well. What did they help you with?

Oh I think they were just rather angry I would have been. Do you play an

instrument? Do I play an instrument? No I wish I did. I started to play the violin, but I gave it up probably wisely at the age of about nine.

Do you play discs? Is that a game? Oh, discs, yes.

Records as we used to go.

Well, I play cassettes, because I'm not clever enough to put records. I'm rather inept.

Did you have any plan in choosing these eight records?

No, not really. I thought of the pieces of music that I really liked enormously and one that I thought was a bit of a joke, actually.

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