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Ash Atalla, producer

Ash Atalla, producer, shares the eight tracks, book and luxury item he would take with him if cast away to a desert island. With Lauren Laverne.

Ash Atalla is a television producer whose first hit was the 成人快手 sitcom The Office, starring Ricky Gervais. He followed it up with the IT Crowd, People Just Do Nothing, Big Boys and Stath Lets Flats. His haul of awards from these programmes include six BAFTAs, four Royal Television Society awards, a Golden Globe and an Emmy.

Ash was born in Cairo and when he was six months old he contracted polio. He has been a wheelchair user all his life and believes the challenges he faced in his early life ignited his drive and ambition.

Ash graduated from the University of Bath with a degree in Business Administration and became a stockbroker for an investment bank. It was a fleeting career as he soon realised he wasn鈥檛 a natural when it came to numbers. His next stop was the 成人快手 where he eventually joined the comedy department.

Ash produced both series of The Office and, after leaving the 成人快手, moved on to the award-winning Channel 4 comedy series the IT Crowd and later the 成人快手鈥檚 People Just Do Nothing, the sitcom about a London pirate radio station.

He co-founded the production company Roughcut TV in 2007 and recently produced the six-part drama series Little Disasters, starring Jo Joyner and Diane Kruger.

Ash lives in London.

DISC ONE: Everything She Wants - Wham!
DISC TWO: Enta Omri (鈥淵ou Are My Life鈥�) - Umm Kulthum
DISC THREE: At Night - Shakedown
DISC FOUR: Against All Odds (Take a Look at Me Now) - Phil Collins
DISC FIVE: My Ever Changing Moods - The Style Council
DISC SIX: Handbags and Gladrags 鈥� Rod Stewart
DISC SEVEN: The Universal - Blur
DISC EIGHT: The Girl is Mine - Michael Jackson and Paul McCartney

BOOK CHOICE: Rewire Your Anxious Brain: Stop Overthinking, Find Calm, and Be Present by Nick Trenton
LUXURY ITEM: An Indian restaurant
CASTAWAY'S FAVOURITE: The Girl is Mine - Michael Jackson and Paul McCartney

Presenter Lauren Laverne
Producer Paula McGinley

Available now

59 minutes

Last on

Fri 18 Jul 2025 09:00
成人快手 Radio 4

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Music Played

  • Wham!

    Everything She Wants

    • Make It Big.
    • Columbia.
    • 2.

  • Umm Kulthum

    Enta Omri (You Are My Life)

  • Shakedown

    At Night

    • You Think You Know.
    • Naive.
    • 4.

  • Phil Collins

    Against All Odds (Take A Look At Me Now)

    • The Singles.
    • Rhino.
    • 3.

  • The Style Council

    My Ever Changing Moods

    • Cafe Bleu.
    • Polydor Records.
    • 6.

  • Rod Stewart

    Handbags and Gladrags

    • Celtic Collection (Your Songs From Me Exclusive).
    • Universal Music Group International.
    • 9.

  • Blur

    The Universal

    • Midlife: A Beginner's Guide to Blur.
    • Parlophone UK.
    • 11.

  • Michael Jackson & Paul McCartney

    The Girl Is Mine

    • Thriller.
    • Epic.
    • 4.

Broadcasts

  • Sun 13 Jul 2025 10:00
    成人快手 Radio 4
  • Fri 18 Jul 2025 09:00
    成人快手 Radio 4

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