Main content

Brian Cox

Michael Berkeley's guest is the actor Brian Cox, whose roles range from King Lear and Titus Andronicus to the media tycoon Logan Roy in the acclaimed TV series Succession.

Brian Cox has enjoyed a prolific career in theatre, film and television over the last 60 years.

Born in Dundee, he was obsessed by film from an early age and when he left school he worked behind the scenes at Dundee Rep theatre. He soon fell in love with the life he saw there and moved to London to train as an actor. Over the years he’s never been afraid to take on difficult, unlikeable characters, including Hannibal Lecter in Manhunter, Hermann Goering in Nuremberg and most recently the terrifying media tycoon and patriarch Logan Roy in the TV series Succession, for which he won a Golden Globe.

On stage Brian has played King Lear at the National Theatre and won Olivier awards for his performances in Titus Andronicus and Rat in the Skull. In 2023 he portrayed the composer J S Bach in a play called The Score at the Theatre Royal, Bath.

His musical choices include Bach, Mahler, Verdi and Joni Mitchell.

Presenter Michael Berkeley
Producer Clare Walker

(This is an extended version of a programme first broadcast in 2023.)

Available now

37 minutes

Last on

Sun 27 Oct 2024 12:00
Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ Radio 3

More episodes

Previous

Fay Dowker

Next

Black History Month

See all episodes from Private Passions

Music Played

  • Giuseppe Verdi

    Grand March (Aida)

    Ensemble: Band And State Trumpeters Of The Royal Horse Guards. Ensemble: The State Trumpeters of The Royal Horse Guards.
    • The Band & State Trumpeters of The Royal Horse Guards.
    • Tradition Records.
    • 9.

  • Gustav Mahler

    Symphony no. 5 in C sharp minor (4th mvt)

    Orchestra: Berliner Philharmoniker. Conductor: Claudio Abbado.
    • Gustav Mahler: Symphonie No. 5.
    • Deutsche Grammophon.
    • 4.

  • Giacomo Puccini

    Un bel dì vedremo (Madam Butterfly)

    Orchestra: Philharmonia Orchestra. Singer: Maria Callas. Conductor: Tullio Serafin.
    • Popular Music from TV Film and Opera.
    • EMI Classics.
    • 6.

  • Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

    Piano Concerto No. 21 in C major (2nd mvt)

    Performer: Arthur Rubinstein. Orchestra: RCA Victor Symphony Orchestra. Conductor: Alfred Wallenstein.
    • Mozart: Piano Concerto No. 23 in A Major, K. 488 & Piano Concerto No. 21 in C Ma.
    • RCA Red Seal.
    • 5.

  • Felix Mendelssohn

    Violn Concerto in E minor (1st mvt)

    Performer: Itzhak Perlman. Orchestra: Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra. Conductor: Bernard Haitink.
    • Mendelssohn & Bruch: Violin Concertos.
    • Warner Classics.
    • 1.

  • Johann Sebastian Bach

    Ciaconna (Partita No.2)

    Performer: Hilary Hahn.
    • Hilary Hahn - The Complete Sony Recordings.
    • Sony Classical.
    • 12.

  • Joni Mitchell

    A Case Of You (2021 remaster)

    Singer: Joni Mitchell.
    • The Reprise Albums (1968 -1971).
    • Rhino Records.
    • 9.

Broadcasts

  • Sun 15 Oct 2023 12:00
    Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ Radio 3
  • Sun 27 Oct 2024 12:00
    Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ Radio 3

What makes Boogie-woogie piano legend Jools Holland tick?

What makes Boogie-woogie piano legend Jools Holland tick?

For Private Passions, Jools Holland revealed his piano history to Michael Berkeley.

11 things we learned from Harry Enfield’s Private Passions

11 things we learned from Harry Enfield’s Private Passions

Harry doesn't usually give interviews – but he couldn't say no to Michael Berkeley.

Archive Unlocked: Two Decades of Private Passions

Michael Berkeley introduces memorable interviews from Private Passions' archives.

Podcast

  • Private Passions

    Guests from all walks of life discuss their musical loves and hates