Hello I'm Krestey 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 1993 and the presenter was Sue Lolly. My castaway this week is a politician. She was born in Yorkshire the only child of parents who, though sometimes short of money, never stinted on their devotion to their daughter.

At 17, she went south to join a dance troop and made a fleeting appearance as a tiller girl.

Eventually however she settled down as an MP secretary and since then parliament has been her life.

She became an MP herself in 1973, a triumph, she says of stamina, faith, hope,

and bloody-mindedness. And last year she made history when she was elected Speaker of the House

of Commons, the first woman to hold the office,

and the first since 1835 to be elected from the opposition benches.

She is of course Betty Boothroyd.

Were you christened Betty, Betty, One never sees you as Elizabeth earlier.

Yes, I was.

My mother was very keen that I had the shortest possible name.

Of course it could even be shortened to Bet,

but my father wanted to call me Hannah. My mother was very insistent and at the last moment said, make it better.

But these days they call you Madam Speaker.

Did either of your parents live to see this great triumph of yours?

Sadly, no. My father died even before I became a member of parliament. My mother was around a great

campaigner for me and a great supporter. It was just

wonderful for her that I really did become a member but she was never around

when I was even a deputy speaker. They burst with pride.

Well, my friends tell me who knew my mother,

...