This weekly feature gives us a little insight into The Abbey staff, and our next Desert Island Disc ‘castaway’ is Dave Battimelli, Deputy Estates Manager.

Music

American Pie – Don McLean
My karaoke song. I could take the microphone around my imaginary crowd!

Walking on Sunshine – Katrina and the Waves
My dancing party piece

I Love to Boogie – T.Rex
My boyhood hero, Marc Bolan, taken so young

Music – John Miles
Just a great song by an underrated artist

Maggie May – Rod Stewart
My hero after the loss of Marc Bolan. I never got to see T.Rex live, but have been several times to see Rod

Songbird – Eva Cassidy
Relaxing song to listen whilst lying on the desert island beach

I Knew I Loved You – Savage Garden
Our song for our first dance at our wedding in 2015

I Have a Dream – Martin Luther King
The most moving speech. I watched this after reading my book selection below. Who would have thought that it would still be relevant nearly 60 years on.

Book

To Kill a Mockingbird
I read this for ‘O’ Level English Literature at Grammar School in 1973 (yes, that long ago!). It changed my outlook and attitude to a lot of things. Still a powerful book to this day.

Luxury Item
Salt and Pepper. I like to cook, and if it’s a case of eating strange stuff to survive, at least I could season it!