Bill Nighy

This week Sue's castaway is the award winning actor Bill Nighy.
Originally from Caterham in Surrey, he left school at 15 without any qualifications and ended up working at his local employment office. He hoped to become an author and began work on The Field magazine as a messenger boy, but then ran away to Paris at seventeen to write a novel. This venture failed and he ended up begging on the streets before returning to Britain and the Guildford School of Drama and Dance.

His first film role was as a delivery boy in Joan Collins' steamy film The Bitch. He's featured in numerous stage, TV, and radio dramas including the acclaimed Men's Room in 1991 and, more recently, in State of Play, where he played a newspaper editor. His career has been described by some critics as a slow burn rather than a beacon, although he's now widely recognised as achieving the acclaim he deserves. In February he won Best Supporting Actor at the Baftas for his role as Billy Mack, a washed up singer in the film Love Actually.

[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs]

Choices

1.

The Rolling Stones

Gimme Shelter

Others who chose this artist

2.

James Brown

I Feel Good

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3.

Bob Dylan

Just Like Tom Thumb Blues

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4.

The Who

Won't Get Fooled Again

Others who chose this artist

5.

Marvin Gaye

My Love Is Waiting

Others who chose this artist

6.

John Lee Hooker and Van Morrison

Healing Game

7.

Freaky Realistic

Koochie Ryder

Others who chose this artist

8.

Castaway's favourite

The Rolling Stones

Winter

Others who chose this artist

Book

1st edition of 49 Stories by Ernest Hemingway

Others who chose this author

Luxury item

Boxed set of blues harps (harmonicas) and instruction book

Others who chose a similar luxury