Main content

John Bishop

Comedian John Bishop is interviewed by Kirsty Young.

Kirsty Young's castaway is the comedian John Bishop.

Growing up on a Merseyside council estate, his early ambition was to play football for Liverpool - otherwise, he thought he might find a way out by winning the Pools or joining a band. The youngest of four children, his family were, he says, the kind that filled factory floors rather than lecture halls. Now a hugely popular stand-up comedian, it was a failing marriage and a sense of desperation that led him, one night, to a comedy bar. He decided to give it a try - it turned his life, and marriage, around.

"There was a time where the stand-up was the thing that I think kept me sane - it was like therapy and if I stopped doing it, I would go backwards."

Producer: Leanne Buckle.

Available now

45 minutes

Last on

Fri 29 Jun 2012 09:00

Music Played

  • The Beatles

    I Saw Her Standing There

    Composer: Paul McCartney and John Lennon

  • David Bowie

    Let's Dance

    Composer:

  • Jim Reeves

    Bimbo

    Composer: Rod Morris

  • Lynyrd Skynyrd

    Sweet Home Alabama

    Composer: Ed King, Gary Rossington, Ronnie Van Zant

  • Elvis Presley

    The Wonder Of You

    Composer: Knight

  • Castaway's Favourite

    • Simple Minds

      Don't You (Forget About Me)

      Composer: Simple Minds

  • David Gray

    Sail Away

    Composer: David Gray

  • Snow Patrol

    Chasing Cars

    Composer: Lightbody / Connolly / Simpson / Quinn / Wilson

  • Book Choice

    • Family photo album

  • Luxury Choice

    • Lifetime's supply of toothbrushes and toothpaste

Credits

Role Contributor
Presenter Kirsty Young
Interviewed Guest John Bishop

Broadcasts

  • Sun 24 Jun 2012 11:15
  • Fri 29 Jun 2012 09:00

Featured in...

The Desert Island Discs podcast

The Desert Island Discs podcast

Subscribe or download individual episodes.

Listen to over 2,000 programmes

Click above to browse castaways, from 1942 to today.

Articles

Read the surprising things we've learned about some stand-out castaways.

Podcast