HRH The Prince of Wales will be appearing on BBC Radio 3’s Private Passions this Christmas, to celebrate the programme producing over 1000 episodes. It will be available to listen to on BBC Sounds from Boxing Day onwards, and will be broadcast on Radio 3 on Sunday 30 December at midday.

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Prince Charles will speak to presenter and composer Michael Berkeley, who has hosted the programme for 23 years, about the role music has played throughout his life.

His musical choices include one of the pieces performed at his wedding to the Duchess of Cornwall, as well as the work he conducted with members of the Philharmonia Orchestra as part of his wife’s 60th birthday.

The Prince of Wales also discusses his musical memories of childhood, reflecting on attending concerts and the ballet with his grandmother, the Queen Mother. He goes on to discuss his time as a student at Cambridge University where he played the cello in the Trinity College Orchestra.

‘It’s a wonderfully varied programme,’ says Private Passions presenter Michael Berkeley. “It unveils someone who passionately loves music.’

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Read our longer feature about Michael Berkeley and Private Passions in the December issue of BBC Music Magazine

Authors

Freya ParrDigital Editor and Staff Writer, BBC Music Magazine

Freya Parr is BBC Music Magazine's Digital Editor and Staff Writer. She has also written for titles including the Guardian, Circus Journal, Frankie and Suitcase Magazine, and runs The Noiseletter, a fortnightly arts and culture publication. Freya's main areas of interest and research lie in 20th-century and contemporary music.