Main content

Dr Dame Sue Ion

Kirsty Young's castaway is the nuclear engineer and scientist Dr Dame Sue Ion, who chooses the eight records that she would take with her to a desert island.

Kirsty Young's castaway is the engineer and nuclear scientist Dr Dame Sue Ion.

The first woman to be awarded the highly prestigious President's Medal by the Royal Academy of Engineering, she has worked her way to the heart of an industry that remains very contentious.

Her passion for understanding how and why the world works the way it does first began as she tinkered for hours at her parents' kitchen table with a little chemistry set.

Today she goes into schools to encourage more girls to take up engineering and her enthusiasm for the subject has galvanised many to take up the discipline.

Producer: Paula McGinley.

Available now

34 minutes

Last on

Fri 11 Mar 2016 09:00

Music Played

  • John Miles

    Music

    • Rebel.
    • London.
  • Giuseppe Verdi

    Chorus of the Hebrew Slaves

    Performer: Chorus and Orchestra of the Deutsche Oper Berlin. Conductor: Giuseppe Sinopoli.
    • Verdi: Nabucco - Querschnitt.
    • Deutschse Grammophon.
  • Mark Knopfler, Alan Clark

    Wild Theme

    Performer: Mark Knopfler.
    • Local Hero.
    • Phonogram.
  • CASTAWAY'S FAVOURITE

    • Antonio Vivaldi

      Gloria in Excelcis Deo

      Performer: The English Concert Choir. Director: Trevor Pinnock.
      • Vivaldi: Gloria.
      • Polydor.
  • Queen

    Radio GaGa

    • The Works.
    • EMI.
  • Elton John

    Your Song

    • Elton John.
    • Mercury.
  • Bruce Hornsby & the Range

    The Way It Is

    • The Way It Is.
    • RCA.
  • Journey

    WhoΒ’s Crying Now

    • Escape.
    • CBS.
  • BOOK CHOICE

    A box set of Wainwright Walks in the Lake District

  • LUXURY ITEM

    A guitar and a set of music

Credits

Role Contributor
Presenter Kirsty Young
Interviewed Guest Sue Ion
Producer Paula McGinley

Broadcasts

  • Sun 6 Mar 2016 11:15
  • Fri 11 Mar 2016 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