Hello I'm Krusty 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 1987 and the presenter was Michael Parkinson. A castaway described himself in the Who's Who of the Theatre as being formally in business. We shall

discover what that means in a moment. What we do know about him is that for 50 years

he's played everything from comedy to tragedy with a rare distinction. He's one of our greatest actors, but more than that, in my view at least, he's a national institution.

Here's Sir Michael Horton. Do you like the thought of being a national institution?

National Institute? Like an ancient monument to me and Cleopatra's needle.

I think you are actually. This formerly in business quote in the Who's of the Theatre,

what exactly does that mean formally in business?

Well I was in a firm in London called the Educational Supply Association for some I think

four or five years immediately before before I crept in through a stage door.

And that's 50 years ago because you're about to celebrate your 50 years.

So you obviously made the right choice and you've rarely been out of work for those 50 years and it's got you to this desert

Ireland.

Hmm.

Are you looking forward to it?

I'm not really, I don't think, looking forward to it, but I wouldn't be too bad on it because I'm not a townsman you know and I think I could

find a way about a bit. And what about music? I mean would music be a great comfort and

solace to you on this island? Yes.

You've always enjoyed music enormously and very much regretted that I never learned it, that I never

played an instrument.

Let's have an indication of the kind of music you like.

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