Main content

Jenny Beavan, costume designer

Jenny Beavan, costume designer, shares the eight tracks, book and luxury item she would take with her if cast away to a desert island. With Lauren Laverne.

Jenny Beavan has won three Oscars for her costumes for the films Room with a View, Mad Max: Fury Road and Cruella, and has received nine further Academy Award nominations.

She was born in London, and her parents were both professional musicians who encouraged her to paint, draw and learn a musical instrument. After studying theatre design, she was invited at the age of just 21 to create the sets for a production of Carmen at the Royal Opera House, conducted by Sir Georg Solti. She also worked on the costumes, which eventually led to her current career.

Her credits now include more than 60 films and television series, including a long collaboration with the Merchant Ivory team, on titles such as Howards End and Remains of the Day, as well as Room with a View. Her costumes range from precise period recreations, in films such as The King’s Speech, to the post-apocalyptic world of Mad Max and the extravagant 1970s-inspired gowns for Emma Stone and Emma Thompson in Cruella. Along with her Oscars, Jenny has also won four Baftas and two Primetime Emmy awards.

She was appointed a OBE in 2017.

DISC ONE: Endure from Bach’s St Matthew Passion. Performed by Hans Peter Blochwitz and the Chapelle Royale Orchestra, conducted by Philippe Herreweghe
DISC TWO: The Stately Â鶹ԼÅÄs of England - Noël Coward
DISC THREE: Bizet: Carmen / Act 2 - "La fleur que tu m'avais jetée" (The flower you threw at me) Performed by Plácido Domingo and London Philharmonic Orchestra, conducted by Sir Georg Solti
DISC FOUR: O Mio Babbino Caro. Composed by Giacomo Puccini and performed by Kiri Te Kanawa and The London Philharmonic Orchestra
DISC FIVE: Scream - Caitlin Albery Beavan and Jim Bell
DISC SIX: Parking Fines - Joe Lycett from his That’s the Way, A-Ha, A-Ha tour
DISC SEVEN: I Will Survive - Gloria Gaynor
DISC EIGHT: Radamisto, HWV 12, Act 2: "Ombra cara di mia sposa" (Radamisto) (Beloved shadow of my bride) Composed by George Frideric Handel, performed by Emöke Baráth and Ensemble Artaserse, conducted by Philippe Jaroussky

BOOK CHOICE: The Complete Novels of Jane Austen
LUXURY ITEM: A cello
CASTAWAY'S FAVOURITE: Endure from Bach’s St Matthew Passion. Performed by Hans Peter Blochwitz and the Chapelle Royale Orchestra, conducted by Philippe Herreweghe

Presenter Lauren Laverne
Producer Sarah Taylor

Available now

39 minutes

Last on

Fri 24 Feb 2023 09:00

Music Played

  • Johann Sebastian Bach

    St. Matthew Passion Endure

    Orchestra: La Chapelle Royale. Conductor: Philippe Herreweghe. Singer: Hans Peter Blochwitz.
    • Matthäus Passion.
    • Harmonia Mundi France.
    • 12.
  • Noël Coward

    The Stately Â鶹ԼÅÄs of England

    • Noël Coward: His Art.
    • Editions Audiovisuel Beulah.
    • 1.
  • Giacomo Puccini

    Bizet: Carmen / Act 2 - "La fleur que tu m'avais jetée"

    Orchestra: London Philharmonic Orchestra. Conductor: Georg Solti. Singer: Plácido Domingo.
    • Bizet: Carmen / Act 2 - "La fleur que tu m'avais jetée".
    • Decca Music Group Ltd..
    • 8.
  • Giacomo Puccini

    O Mio Babbino Caro

    Performer: Kiri Te Kanawa and The London Philharmonic Orchestra.
    • A Room with a View.
    • Parlophone UK.
    • 1.
  • Caitlin Albery Beavan

    Scream

  • Joe Lycett

    Parking Fines

    • That's the Way, A-Ha, A-Ha, Joe Lycett: Live.
  • Gloria Gaynor

    I Will Survive

    • I Choose Joy, Vol. 1.
    • Top Tracks.
    • 4.
  • George Frideric Handel

    Radamisto, HWV 12, Act 2: "Ombra cara di mia sposa" (Radamisto)

    Singer: Emőke Baráth. Singer: Philippe Jaroussky.
    • ¶Ù³Ü²¹±ô¾±³Ùà.
    • Warner Classics.
    • 6.

Broadcasts

  • Sun 19 Feb 2023 11:15
  • Fri 24 Feb 2023 09:00

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