As Eton finds itself in the midst of another lockdown, the weekly podcasts produced by Eton College Radio have resumed and now include ‘Desert Island Divs’. This is a new creation, produced by Head of Divinity Ms Miller-Bridgland, and is available every Wednesday. ‘Div’, by the way, is Eton speak for a class, for example a ‘div’ of Year 12 historians. The Press Office asked Ms Miller-Bridgland about her new programme:
What might a typical edition of ‘Desert Island Divs’ consist of?
Each week I interview an Eton master to find out who they would most like to have taught. It is structured in the same way as the real deal, only I am interested in what type of student each interviewee would like in their division. I ask for a famous OE or icon from history, a book for the curriculum, one educational tool and a piece of music.
What was your inspiration for starting ‘Desert Island Divs’?
We were looking for some new programme ideas for this second iteration of Eton College Radio, and I had been listening to the BBC Radio 4 series Desert Island Discs over lockdown. Some of Alfred Ayer’s philosophy is on our Year 13 specification and I always get a little over-enthused by the fact he is an OE, I even named my dog Freddie after him! My spin-off was born contemplating what it would have been like to have taught him.
Who has been the most interesting ‘div’ choice so far?.
I was certainly intrigued by the genius backdoor entry of Snoopy by Dr Camilleri, but there are also some really controversial choices yet to be aired that made me think a lot!
If you were on ‘Desert Islands Divs’ who would you want to teach?
It’s a tough question, as it would be a challenge to choose between George Orwell (my home town is in Wigan and I love his work) or Prince William (just for the bragging rights).
