Interviews, context and analysis. 
Chapters
5 items-
Angela Culme-Seymour
Dazzling personality of smart society who has died aged 99.
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Karimierz Smollen
Auschwitz survivor and museum director who has died aged 91.
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Nigel Doughty
Venture capitalist who has died aged 54.
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Antoni Tapies
Catalan artist who has died aged 88.
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Don Cornelius
Television producer and presenter who has died aged 75.
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ANGELA CULME-SEYMOUR
Dazzling personality of smart society who has died aged 99
Angela Culme-Seymour was a socialite who became notorious for her series of marriages to aristocratic men – and the string of affairs she had in artistic and literary circles. Her final marriage was to the Turkish philosopher Ali Bulent Rauf, who established a school of esoteric education in a grand house in the Scottish borders where Angela lived until her death.
Matthew spoke to her son Mark and to the social historian Juliet Gardiner.
Born 3 August 1912 and died 22 January 2012. -
KAZIMIERZ SMOLEN
Auschwitz survivor and museum director who has died aged 91
Kazimierz Smolen was the former inmate of the concentration camp at Auschwitz who became the Director of the museum that was set up at the camp. When the Nazis invaded, he joined the resistance, but was arrested and sent to the newly established work camp at Auschwitz. For thirty five years he lived at Auschwitz, leading the preservation of the site and developing an exhibition which attracts visitors from all over the world.
Matthew spoke to Professor David Cesarani, an expert on the history of the Holocaust and to his colleague at the Auschwitz Museum, Alicja Bia?ecka.
Born 19 April 1920 and died 27 January 2012. -
NIGEL DOUGHTY
Venture capitalist who has died aged 54
Nigel Doughty was the successful private equity investor who spent his wealth on the Labour Party and Nottingham Forest Football club. He was born in Newark on Trent, just outside Nottingham. His career began at Standard Chartered Bank, but by the end of the 1980s he had teamed up with Dick Hanson to start his own investment firm, Doughty Hanson.
Matthew spoke to Mark Florman who is the Chief Executive of the British Private Equity and Venture Capital Association and to Justice Secretary Kenneth Clarke, who is the local MP and a keen supporter of Nottingham Forest.
Born 10 June 1957 and died 4 February 2012. -
ANTONI TAPIES
Catalan artist who has died aged 88
Antoni Tapies was a Catalan artist known for his use of unconventional materials. He worked in a diverse range of styles – making sculpture in terracotta and bronze, mixing paint with sand and dust to create dense wall-like pieces and even using an overturned hospital bed as part of a response to the war in the former Yugoslavia.
Matthew spoke to art historian Christopher Masters and to art dealer Leslie Waddington
Born 13 December 1923 and died 6 February 2012. -
DON CORNELIUS
Television producer and presenter who has died aged 75
Don Cornelius was the man behind the influential American TV programme Soul Train. As both producer and host of the show, Don was responsible for bringing black music and culture into the mainstream of the American media. He hosted the show for more than twenty years, giving exposure to stars like Marvin Gaye, James Brown, The O’Jays and Barry White.
Matthew spoke to Nile Rodgers, the influential producer and creative force behind the band Chic, and to Mark Anthony Neal who is a Professor of black popular culture at Duke University.
Born 27 September 1936 and died 1 February 2012.
Broadcasts
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BBC Radio 4Fri 10 Feb 2012 16:00 BBC Radio 4
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BBC Radio 4Sun 12 Feb 2012 20:30 BBC Radio 4
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Last Word
Radio 4’s obituary programme, marking the lives of significant figures who have died recently,...
