Last Word

Matthew Bannister presents Radio 4's obituary programme, analysing and reflecting on the lives of people who have recently died. Grand Ayatollah Mohammed Hussain Fadlallah was known as the spiritual force behind Hezbollah in Lebanon during the the1980s. He held strongly anti-Israeli views and the USA branded him a terrorist but he was revered as a liberal Shia cleric by thousands of his followers. We also hear about the lives of the explorer and composer David Fanshawe, Dr Clement A Finch, whose research into the role of iron in the body led to advances in treating anaemia, the artist Sigmar Polke, racehorse trainer Rosemary Lomax and the singer Ilene Woods.