[originaltext] (I — Interviewer; D — David)I: Which area, of all the ones that

(I — Interviewer; D — David)
I: Which area, of all the ones that you’ve visited, is your favorite, David?
D: Oh, I find that almost impossible to answer really. Urn you know, different places for different things. The South Seas are a pretty divine sort of place to be, you know, I mean Fiji, the islands east of there; the people are so charming and amazing. Er, and then I’m very fond of South East Asia because it’s got such wonderful past; it’s got so many temples buried in jungles and so on. And the Galapagos Islands with fantastic birds and reptiles. I don’t know, it’s very difficult.
I: I wonder what makes you come back to England?
D: Well, as a matter of fact, of course that’s the trick, isn’t it? I mean you, almost anything, I think, change like happiness is, er, no change produces happiness in many ways. l mean, it seems to me that happiness has something to do with changing. The happiest times are when you’re always just about to do something, when you’ve just moved from this to that, er, if you then actually get’into a situation and it doesn’t change, after a bit, er, the happiness part begins to wear off and l don’t know whether that’s a limitation in human beings but I think it’s true. But in fact, you don’t actually have the option; you don’t have the option really, do yon? Because actually life is always changing, people around you are changing, you’re getting older, emotional things change, and so on.
I: Before all this you were on the management side of the BBC, in fact, for eight years. How did this part of your nature, didn’t you feel very frustrated because you really wanted to be a creative artist?
D: Well, I think that’s what I was saying about change really. I think urn, new things, new challenges, that’s a corny phrase for you, but nonetheless, they are very important and if someone, if you care about making television programs, or if you care about making radio programs, and someone says to you "Oh, by the way, old boy, er, we’ve got, er, a new network here and there’s twelve million quid or twenty million quid or whatever it is, we’re not quite sure actually what to use it for, but perhaps you could think up a few programs if you’d like to go away and spend it."
I: I’m sure no one can resist the temptation.
D: Of course, er, you have to be a very funny sort of broadcaster if you don’t say "Well, thanks very much, I’ll start tomorrow." And if after two years they say "Oh, by the way, old boy, because of the technical characteristics of the network you’re running, you will be the first color network in Europe, so we want you to think how perhaps color should be used." Well, you again have to be a very funny television producer to say "I’m not interested."
I: I’m still interested in what you say about change. Do you feel that anybody has the power to create this change within their lives, um or do you think that some people can’t help being absolutely bogged down in whatever their particular path is?
D: Well, what I mean is that, that, er, there are two elements in that. Of course the world changes around you and therefore you are changed, 1 mean you get older, so you change; you meet different people, so you change; you produce children and they change you and they grow up and they leave and yet again you’re changed. So that you are changed by the forces around you.
I: Yeah, I think I see what you mean. And what’s the other element?
D: You also have it within yourself to bring about change, er and you, you set yourself targets. It seems to me, that "Oh, I wish I could do this; I wish I could own my house; or I wish I could play the piano; or 1 wish 1 could grow geraniums; or, or whatever." And, and the change that comes and brings the joy and the satisfaction is that you actually do those things and you achieve those things. And, of course, if there were actually only so few that you never wanted to change anything then, I think, you’ll be... a great deal will be missing from your life, a great deal of pleasure.
I: Yes. Thank you. Thank you very much, David.