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Gordon Buchanan, cameraman and presenter

Gordon Buchanan, wildlife cameraman and presenter, shares the eight tracks, book and luxury item he would take with him if cast away to a desert island. With Lauren Laverne.

Gordon Buchanan is a wildlife cameraman and TV presenter. He is best known for the Animal Family & Me series of Âé¶¹Éç documentaries in which he gets up close to wild bears, Arctic wolves, elephants and reindeer among other species.

Gordon was brought up in Tobermory on the Isle of Mull where he spent his days exploring the island and developed his lifelong love of the outdoors. In 1988, when he was 17, he met the charismatic wildlife cameraman Nick Gordon who invited him to become his assistant for a project to film primates on the island of Tiwai in Sierra Leone.

Gordon spent 18 months in Sierra Leone working with Nick and after that the two of them worked in West Africa and South America. At 22 Gordon set up on his own – his first job was a year-long assignment to make three half-hour programmes for a 14-part wildlife series called Wild Islands.

In 2001 he made his debut as a presenter on the Âé¶¹Éç’s Natural World strand. He was appointed an MBE for services to conservation and wildlife filmmaking in 2020.

Gordon lives in Glasgow with his wife Wendy. They have two children.

DISC ONE: Take Me Home, Country Roads - John Denver
DISC TWO: Brandy in the Airidh - Peat & Diesel
DISC THREE: Purple Haze – The Jimi Hendrix Experience
DISC FOUR: Heart-Shaped Box - Nirvana
DISC FIVE: High and Dry - Radiohead
DISC SIX: Last Nite - The Strokes
DISC SEVEN: Electrical Storm - U2
DISC EIGHT: Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It) - µþ±ð²â´Ç²Ô³¦Ã©

BOOK CHOICE: Teach Yourself Tap Dancing by Derek Hartley
LUXURY ITEM: A mask, snorkel and fins
CASTAWAY'S FAVOURITE: High and Dry - Radiohead

Presenter: Lauren Laverne
Producer: Paula McGinley

Desert Island Discs has cast many wildlife experts and broadcasters away including Dr George McGavin, Professor Carl Jones, Sir David Attenborough and Dr Jane Goodall. You can hear their programmes if you search through Âé¶¹Éç Sounds or our own Desert Island Discs website.

Available now

57 minutes

Last on

Friday 09:00

Music Played

  • John Denver

    Take Me Home, Country Roads

    • The John Denver Collection, Vol 1: Take Me Home Country Roads.
    • Windstar Records.
    • 1.
  • Peat & Diesel

    Brandy in the Airidh

    • Light My Byre.
    • Wee Studio.
    • 2.
  • The Jimi Hendrix Experience

    Purple Haze

    • Fire: The Jimi Hendrix Collection.
    • Legacy Recordings.
    • 1.
  • Nirvana

    Heart-Shaped Box

    • In Utero (20th Anniversary Deluxe Edition).
    • Geffen.
    • 3.
  • Radiohead

    High And Dry

    • The Bends.
    • XL Recordings.
    • 3.
  • The Strokes

    Last Nite

    • Is This It.
    • RCA Records Label.
    • 7.
  • U2

    Electrical Storm

    • Electrical Storm.
    • UMC (Universal Music Catalogue).
    • 4.
  • µþ±ð²â´Ç²Ô³¦Ã©

    Single Ladies (Put A Ring On It)

    • I AM...SASHA FIERCE.
    • Music World Music/Columbia.
    • 1.

Broadcasts

  • Sun 30 Nov 2025 10:00
  • Friday 09:00

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