Hello, I'm Kirstie Young, and this is a podcast from the Desert Island Discs archive.

For rights reasons, we've had to shorten the music.

The program was originally broadcast in 1995, and the presenter was Sue Lawley. My castaway this week is a man of the church. His path to the top of the ecclesiastical hierarchy has been

unusual, but no one could accuse him of not understanding the lives of those

more disadvantaged than his own. He's the son of a hospital Porter from the east end of London. He left school at

15 with no qualifications and worked in an electricity showroom and as a wireless

operator in the R. A.F. before entering the church. Today he wrestles with the issues of female

ordination, homosexuality, and religious apathy, reflecting that while he didn't choose his job he's never run away from any

challenge in his life. He is the primate of all England, the Archbishop of Canterbury,

the most Reverend Dr George Carey. Not only did you not choose your job, Archbishop, you were in fact the 25 to 1 outsider, I think, in early 91.

How surprised were you when the call came?

Yes, I was aware that I was very much an outsider and I was very surprised who when the invitation came,

and as you said a moment ago, I've never run away from any challenge and this was certainly a

challenge but was it one you wanted it certainly wasn't one you expected I was

very happy being a darsus and Bishop of Barth and Well was a very happy darsus.

So no, I wasn't looking for a new challenge, particularly at that particular time.

So was there any part of you that thought,

yes, this is a wonderful opportunity and I am deeply flattered

to have this invitation but actually as part of me that wishes it hadn't come.

As I saw the opportunities for leadership in the Church of England and especially in the 90s

where the entire Anglican Communion were focusing on the decade of evangelism, I saw this

as some contribution I could make because that is very much at the heart of my

...