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The Day of the Triffids (TV series)
Encyclopedia
This 1981 BBC adaptation was made in six half-hour (26 min) episodes, produced by David Maloney, directed by Ken Hannam
and written by Douglas Livingstone
, with original music by Christopher Gunning
. It premiered simultaneously in the UK and in Australia on ABC Television
. Australian director Ken Hannam (1929–2004) started his TV career at ABC Television
in the 1960s and went on to direct episodes of many notable British TV series including Dr. Finlay's Casebook
, Colditz
, Juliet Bravo
, the Jeremy Brett/Edward Hardwicke version of The Return of Sherlock Holmes
, The House of Eliott
and The Bill
.
), who by chance has retained his sight by virtue of being in hospital with his eyes bandaged, joins a small band of similarly lucky survivors. As British societal norms collapse and the human race turns against itself, the survivors must fend off attacks from roving bands of the blind.
They must also fight to stay one step ahead of the Triffid
s. These mobile carnivorous plants, armed with a lethal stinger, had hitherto been farmed for their oil. With the apparently coincidental collapse of social order, the Triffids run amok amongst the helpless human population, slaughtering and feeding on them. With man's natural advantage, sight, gone – the Triffids begin to establish themselves as the dominant life form in the country, possibly all over the world. The irony for Bill is that he was the first person in Britain to be stung by a Triffid, as a child (surviving because it was not fully developed) and was in the hospital due to another sting received on the Triffid farm where he worked. The relentless plants force the surviving humans to abandon their cities and live in isolated rural hamlets and on islands.
After the end of the production one was displayed for a while in the Natural History Museum
in London;
They were designed by Steve Drewett who worked there. Some inferior copies of the props later threw a cocktail party for Angus Deayton
during an episode of Alexei Sayle's Stuff
.
, corresponded to those specified in the book. Many of the locations used during filming can be located by studying the street names and other signs which appear in the show. For example, Jo’s family home appears to be 2 Heath Side, which is adjacent to Hampstead Heath
in London NW3. Additionally, Jo and Bill first meet in a stairwell on the Theseus Estate in London N1. Indeed, the couple run along Theseus Walk past the street sign, at the beginning of Episode 3. The street sign for Remington Street can also be seen in the scene in which Jo’s car stops at the beginning of the second episode.
(7 March 1984 - 11 April 1984), Satellite channel UK Gold screened the series in (2004/2005) and the Sci-Fi channel in 2006. BBC Four
have also screened the series in 2006 and 2009.
Ken Hannam
Ken Hannam was an Australian film and television director.-Career:Born in Melbourne, the eldest of three boys, Hannam lived in his youth in Sydney and was educated at Wollaroi College in New South Wales. He worked in Australian radio and television, then moved in 1968 to England...
and written by Douglas Livingstone
Douglas Livingstone
Douglas Livingstone may refer to* Douglas Livingstone , South African poet born in Malaya * Douglas Livingstone , English actor and writer for television*Doug Livingstone, Scottish footballer and manager...
, with original music by Christopher Gunning
Christopher Gunning
Christopher Gunning is a British composer of concert works and music for films and television....
. It premiered simultaneously in the UK and in Australia on ABC Television
ABC Television
ABC Television is a service of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation launched in 1956. As a public broadcasting broadcaster, the ABC provides four non-commercial channels within Australia, and a partially advertising-funded satellite channel overseas....
. Australian director Ken Hannam (1929–2004) started his TV career at ABC Television
ABC Television
ABC Television is a service of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation launched in 1956. As a public broadcasting broadcaster, the ABC provides four non-commercial channels within Australia, and a partially advertising-funded satellite channel overseas....
in the 1960s and went on to direct episodes of many notable British TV series including Dr. Finlay's Casebook
Dr. Finlay's Casebook (TV & radio)
Dr. Finlay's Casebook is a television series that was broadcast on the BBC from 1962 until 1971. Based on A. J. Cronin's novella entitled Country Doctor, the storylines centred on a general medical practice in the fictional Scottish town of Tannochbrae during the late 1920s...
, Colditz
Colditz (TV series)
Colditz is a British television series co-produced by the BBC and Universal Studios and screened between 1972 and 1974.The series deals with Allied prisoners of war imprisoned at the supposedly escape-proof Colditz Castle when designated Oflag IV-C during World War II, and their many attempts to...
, Juliet Bravo
Juliet Bravo
Juliet Bravo is a British television series, which ran on BBC1 between 1980 and 1985. The theme of the series concerned a female police inspector who took over control of a police station in the fictional town of Hartley in Lancashire.-Programme name:...
, the Jeremy Brett/Edward Hardwicke version of The Return of Sherlock Holmes
The Return of Sherlock Holmes
The Return of Sherlock Holmes is a collection of 13 Sherlock Holmes stories, originally published in 1903-1904, by Arthur Conan Doyle.-History:...
, The House of Eliott
The House of Eliott
The House of Eliott is a British television series produced and broadcast by the BBC in three series between 1991 and 1994. The series starred Stella Gonet and Louise Lombard as two sisters in 1920s London who establish a dressmaking business and eventually their own haute couture fashion house...
and The Bill
The Bill
The Bill is a police procedural television series that ran from October 1984 to August 2010. It focused on the lives and work of one shift of police officers, rather than on any particular aspect of police work...
.
Plot summary
The series takes place in late 20th century Britain. A spectacular meteorite shower unexpectedly renders most of humanity blind, leading to the breakdown of society literally overnight. Bill Masen (John DuttineJohn Duttine
John Arthur Duttine is an English actor noted for his roles on stage, films and television. He is well known for his role as Sgt George Miller in Heartbeat....
), who by chance has retained his sight by virtue of being in hospital with his eyes bandaged, joins a small band of similarly lucky survivors. As British societal norms collapse and the human race turns against itself, the survivors must fend off attacks from roving bands of the blind.
They must also fight to stay one step ahead of the Triffid
Triffid
The triffid is a tall, mobile, carnivorous, prolific and highly venomous fictional plant species—the titular antagonist in John Wyndham's 1951 novel The Day of the Triffids and Simon Clark's 2001 sequel The Night of the Triffids....
s. These mobile carnivorous plants, armed with a lethal stinger, had hitherto been farmed for their oil. With the apparently coincidental collapse of social order, the Triffids run amok amongst the helpless human population, slaughtering and feeding on them. With man's natural advantage, sight, gone – the Triffids begin to establish themselves as the dominant life form in the country, possibly all over the world. The irony for Bill is that he was the first person in Britain to be stung by a Triffid, as a child (surviving because it was not fully developed) and was in the hospital due to another sting received on the Triffid farm where he worked. The relentless plants force the surviving humans to abandon their cities and live in isolated rural hamlets and on islands.
The Triffid plants
A Triffid was operated by a man crouched inside, cooled by a fan installed in its neck; the 'clackers' were radio controlled. The gnarled bole, based on the ginseng root, was made of latex with a covering of sawdust and string while the neck was fibreglass and continued down to the floor, where it joined with the operator's seat. The plant was surmounted by a flexible rubber head, coated with clear gunge.After the end of the production one was displayed for a while in the Natural History Museum
Natural History Museum
The Natural History Museum is one of three large museums on Exhibition Road, South Kensington, London, England . Its main frontage is on Cromwell Road...
in London;
They were designed by Steve Drewett who worked there. Some inferior copies of the props later threw a cocktail party for Angus Deayton
Angus Deayton
Gordon Angus Deayton is an English actor, writer, musician, comedian and broadcaster. He is best known for his role as Victor Meldrew's long-suffering neighbour Patrick Trench in the comedy series One Foot in the Grave...
during an episode of Alexei Sayle's Stuff
Alexei Sayle's Stuff
Alexei Sayle's Stuff is a comedy sketch show which ran on BBC2 for a total of 18 episodes over 3 series from 1988 to 1991.-Cast:Alexei Sayle's Stuff stars stand-up comedian Alexei Sayle, with a recurring cast including Angus Deayton, Mark Williams, Arabella Weir, Tony Millan, Jan Ravens, Owen...
.
Filming Locations
Some of the locations used in the series, such as the University of London’s Senate HouseSenate House (University of London)
Senate House is the administrative centre of the University of London, situated in the heart of Bloomsbury, London between the School of Oriental and African Studies to the north, with the British Museum to the south...
, corresponded to those specified in the book. Many of the locations used during filming can be located by studying the street names and other signs which appear in the show. For example, Jo’s family home appears to be 2 Heath Side, which is adjacent to Hampstead Heath
Hampstead Heath
Hampstead Heath is a large, ancient London park, covering . This grassy public space sits astride a sandy ridge, one of the highest points in London, running from Hampstead to Highgate, which rests on a band of London clay...
in London NW3. Additionally, Jo and Bill first meet in a stairwell on the Theseus Estate in London N1. Indeed, the couple run along Theseus Walk past the street sign, at the beginning of Episode 3. The street sign for Remington Street can also be seen in the scene in which Jo’s car stops at the beginning of the second episode.
DVD releases
The series was released on DVD in the UK on 4 April 2005 and in Australia on 6 June 2005. A US DVD (through BBC Home Video) was released on 1 October 2007.Broadcast
The series was repeated on BBC1BBC One
BBC One is the flagship television channel of the British Broadcasting Corporation in the United Kingdom. It was launched on 2 November 1936 as the BBC Television Service, and was the world's first regular television service with a high level of image resolution...
(7 March 1984 - 11 April 1984), Satellite channel UK Gold screened the series in (2004/2005) and the Sci-Fi channel in 2006. BBC Four
BBC Four
BBC Four is a British television network operated by the British Broadcasting Corporation and available to digital television viewers on Freeview, IPTV, satellite and cable....
have also screened the series in 2006 and 2009.
See also
- The TriffidTriffidThe triffid is a tall, mobile, carnivorous, prolific and highly venomous fictional plant species—the titular antagonist in John Wyndham's 1951 novel The Day of the Triffids and Simon Clark's 2001 sequel The Night of the Triffids....
- The Day of the TriffidsThe Day of the TriffidsThe Day of the Triffids is a post-apocalyptic novel published in 1951 by the English science fiction author John Wyndham Parkes Lucas Beynon Harris, under the pen-name John Wyndham. Although Wyndham had already published other novels using other pen-name combinations drawn from his lengthy real...
, a Book by John WyndhamJohn WyndhamJohn Wyndham Parkes Lucas Beynon Harris was an English science fiction writer who usually used the pen name John Wyndham, although he also used other combinations of his names, such as John Beynon and Lucas Parkes...
(1951) - The Day of the Triffids (radio)The Day of the Triffids (radio)The Day of the Triffids was a 1957 and 1968 BBC radio drama adaptation of the science fiction novel by John Wyndham.-Cast and crew:Cast and crew for the 6 episode 1957 version include:*Bill Masen: Patrick Barr.*Josella Playton: Monica Grey....
, a BBC radio dramatization of Wyndham's book - The Day of the Triffids (1962 film)The Day of the Triffids (1962 film)The Day of the Triffids is a 1962 British film adaptation of the science fiction novel of the same name by John Wyndham. It was directed by Steve Sekely, and Howard Keel played the central character, Bill Masen. The movie was filmed in colour with monaural sound and ran for 93...
, a film adaptation of Wyndham's book - The Day of the Triffids (2009 TV series)The Day of the Triffids (2009 TV series)The Day of the Triffids is a BBC two-part television adaptation of John Wyndham's novel of the same name. The novel had previously been adapted by the BBC in a 1981 miniseries.-Part one:...
- The Night of the TriffidsThe Night of the TriffidsThe Night of the Triffids is a science fiction novel by Simon Clark published in 2001. It is a sequel to John Wyndham's The Day of the Triffids. Clark has been commended for his success at mimicking Wyndham's style, but most reviewers have not rated his creation as highly as the original 1951 work...
, a sequel to Wyndham's book by Simon ClarkSimon ClarkSimon Clark is a horror novel writer from Doncaster, England. One of his most notable works is the novel The Night of the Triffids.Clark has been nominated for the Bram Stoker Award for Best First Novel, World Fantasy Award for Best Novella and British Fantasy Award...
(2001)
External links
- The Day of the Triffids at Clivebanks.co.uk
- The Day of the Triffids at Action TV
- British Film Institute Screen Online (1981) series