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

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

The program was originally broadcast in 1984 and the presenter was Roy Plumlee. I'm happy to say that our cast away this week is her Royal Highness Princess Michael of Kent.

We're very glad to welcome you to our island ma'am.

Could you endure loneliness?

Yes, I think we've found any trouble at all.

I don't think I get lonely. I've spent a lot of time on my own in Africa, and I like to be alone. I like my own company.

Provided, I have a cat or two around.

Well, cats will refer to late. Let's leave them out for the moment. How much does music mean to you?

Well, a very great deal at certain times the day. I like silence. I like to be quiet at sometimes. In Africa

particularly I learned that I could only have music in the evenings because that was

the only time I could get the battery out, the lorry,

so I could play my music then.

So during the day I was totally in peace and quiet with sort of animal noises, birds-on.

Right. Now that is playing recorded music. Do you make music? Have you studied it? Do you play an instrument?

Yes I do actually. I play the guitar.

Well I've studied the classical guitar many years ago. I have a younger brother who's a hornist, plays the horn.

And an older brother who wished that he'd been a pianist, but he's a scientist instead.

And I don't play enough really anymore because it takes time

and practice to play as well as you would like to play. But when you were young there was family

music, the best kind of music. Always always always terrible arguments between my mother and my brother about the speed of some

movement of some concerto.

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