B.B. C. Series By A Historian

Press, Volume CX, Issue 32379, 19 August 1970, Page 3

B.B. C. Series By A Historian

The 8.8. C. series “Civilisation” which begins on Sunday is written and narrated by one man—the distinguished art historian Lord Clark

In 13 fifty-minute films, Lord Clark has charted his personal course through the ideas and events that have led Western Civilisation from the collapse of Greece and Rome to our own century. The choice of subject is his own, and he has himself referred to it as his autobiography. Lord Clark devoted two years to making “Civilisation," and his unique talents and learning have given the

series an authority rarely seen on the television screen.

The production team, headed by Michael Gill, travelled from the Hebrides to the Mediterranean and from Ravenna in the east to Virginia in the west. They were faced with daunting technical problems—planning tight filming schedules across several countries and many months; lighting great areas like the interior of Chartres Cathedral or the high ceiling of the Sistine Chapel; and getting all the meticulous preparatory research done on the paintings, drawings, sculpture, music and architecture.