Dramatised documentary in seven parts: ‘Voyage of Charles Darwin’

Press, 28 April 1980, Page 15

Dramatised documentary in seven parts: ‘Voyage of Charles Darwin’

On board H.M.S. Beagle Charles Darwin formed his ideas on the origin of species that, some 20 years later, were to provoke an intellectual revolution. Darwin’s own account of his scientific expedition to South America is the basis of a seven-part dramatised documentary series, “The Voyage of Charles Darwin,” which begins on TV2 itohight. The year is 1831 and young Charles (he was just 22 years old at the time) is selected as a naturalist aboard H.M.S. Beagle, about to venture forth on a survey Voyage around the world-. His choice as one of the •‘working crew” later provedjto be one of the most important decisions ever made in the history iof natural science. , , The series stars Malcolm Stoddard in' 'the title', role; and Andrew Burt as Captain Robert Fitzroy.

■When Darwin began his famous journey round the world he was a rathe-r brash and not particularly - intellectual young man. In his own words: “I was considered a verv ordinary boy, rather below the common standard in intellect.”

The voyage of H.M.S. Beagle lasted five years, and Darwin considered it by far the most important event in his life.

The relationship between Darwin and the captain underwent many changes during the voyage. Fitzroy was a little older than the .naturalist, but -whereas the latter was of a tolerant, enquiring, out-going disposition, the captain was an aristocrat by birth, sometimes morose, and not given to questioning the accepted religious and political climate of the time.

: In many ways their personalities mirrored the great rift in Victorian life, which

reached a climax at the famous Oxford debate after the publication of Darwin’s “The Origin of Species.” Although it took the naturalist another 20 years to work out his great theory of natural selection, his conclusions were largely based on the collections and observations he made during the five-year voyage with Fitzroy.' For the television series, a replica of the “Beagle set sail from Cornwall in June, 1977, on an eight-month journey right the way round South America, and then on to the Galapagos Islands. At the same time, two 8.8. C. film units — one for drama and one for natural historv — set out by air. The plan was for them to re-trace Darwin’s journeys bv land and sea, meeting the ship at pre-arranged points around the- South American coastline. . Considering that wind, tide, animal behaviour and officialdom are unaccustomed to tight filming schedules, it was something of a miracle that the shooting was completed in time. Christopher Railing, whose “The Search for the Nile” and “The Fight Against Slavery” were made in a similar style, believes that this kind of geographical authenticity is important: “I believe that programmes of this kind gain a great deal in historical validity if the audience know that whenever' possible they are looking at the actual locations where events took place.

“For instance, we restaged a J9th-century-style carnival in the same streets of Salvador where Darwin first witnessed it: we filmed in the very rooms which he occupied at Christ’s College, Cambridge; and on the beach where he first stepped ashore in the Galapagos Islands. In fact there were

very few places that have changed so much that we couldn’t use them.

“In addition, the two leading actors, Stoddard and Burt, bear a striking resemblance to the characters they portray. “To re-live so much of these men’s lives where the events actually took place proved an extraordinary experience, not' only for the actors but for the whole production team.” In the same way, the script is closely based on Darwin’s own letters and journals. Darwin not only kept a diary on the “Beagie,” but in later life he wrote his autobiography.

'“The series is ‘documentary’ in the sense that all the events shown actually took place; but since so much of the dialogue had to be invented, it would be a mistake to claim that we did anything more, in television terms, than to try to stick to the best tradition of the serious historical novel,” said Railing. “The Voyage of Charles Darwin” was written by Robert Reid, designed by Colin Shaw, photographed by David Whitson and produced by Christopher Rai-! ling. Martyn Friend directed the ' series, the music for which Was ' composed by Wilfred Josephs.