Martin Clunes

Desert Island Discs

BBC

Society & Culture, Music Commentary, Music, Personal Journals

4.4 • 13.7K Ratings

🗓️ 18 September 2011

⏱️ 35 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Kirsty Young's castaway is the actor Martin Clunes.

He became a household name in the 1990s in the comedy "Men Behaving Badly" and, in the years since, has performed at The National Theatre, presented a number of natural history documentaries and become the gruff GP in the comedy drama "Doc Martin."

His prominent ears are among his trademarks and he reveals that early in his career he turned down an opportunity to have them pinned back. He said: "I just didn't fancy it - maybe I hadn't noticed them".

Record: Sailing - Rod Stewart Book: Puckoon by Spike Milligan Luxury: An electric guitar

Producer: Leanne Buckle.

Transcript

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0:00.0	Hello, I'm Kirstie Young. Thank you for downloading this podcast of Desert Island Disks from BBC Radio 4.
0:06.0	For rights reasons, the music choices are shorter than in the radio broadcast.
0:10.0	For more information about the program, please visit BBC.co.uk.
0:17.0	Radio 4. My cousin My castaway this week is Martin Kloons, actor and now also a documentary maker.
0:40.0	We've witnessed his graduation from being one of the men behaving badly to a stint at the National Theatre
0:45.2	and on to becoming an adventuring natural history presenter, enthusiastically exploring our islands,
0:50.6	endangered elephants and even the story of dogs. His own pedigrees nothing to sniff
0:55.3	out either. His father was the acclaimed actor Alec Kloons and his mother spent time as Orson Wells
1:01.0	secretary. Yet he claims to have fallen into his profession because it sounded good.
1:06.3	Thinking as a teenager, I'll go and do that then. And I did and I sort of got on. Well sort of did didn't you Martin and you're you're going to be 50 this year
1:16.4	Yes, does that feel like a biggie? Yes, it does now. Yeah, when I was 49 I thought well what's 50 it's just another gun but now I I am about to be 50 I keep thinking
1:26.1	should I be here or should I be where I don't know I've come on this program it's sort of quite a
1:30.9	reflective time I guess is it. How are you going to celebrate? We're having a party at home is all I know
1:38.7	Yeah, so an element of surprise and what are you reflecting on then this? I don't know just sort of
1:44.9	find myself because I'm desperately to be liked by everyone and always have been
1:50.1	hence what I do probably. But I sort of sometimes find myself contorting myself to be like
1:58.2	my people. Hang on, I'm nearly 50, I don't have to do this. I guess because I was the younger sibling I always felt like
2:06.9	the youngest I never felt like the oldest but now of course I'm older and people
2:12.4	are now just this year a few people are coming
2:14.9	and said oh I've grown up watching you and I slap them. I didn't say in the
2:20.9	introduction but you have gathered quite a few awards along the way in your acting career.
2:26.0	Yes, you haven't brought them with you today, but you picked up a BAFTA, you won a British comedy award for men behaving badly,
	...

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