The Railway Children (TV film)
Encyclopedia
The Railway Children is a 2000
drama
television film based on the novel
by E. Nesbit
. It was broadcast for the first time in the United Kingdom
on 23 April 2000.
), a senior civil servant, is arrested on a charge of treason and found guilty, they are forced to move with their mother to "Three Chimneys", a cold and rundown cottage
in the country near a railway.
Whilst Mother (Jenny Agutter
) tries to make a meagre living writing stories and poems she hopes magazines and newspapers will publish, the children seek amusement by watching the trains on the nearby railway line (the fictional Great Northern and Southern Railway) and waving to the passengers. They become friendly with Perks, the cheerful station porter
, but feel the wrath of the Stationmaster when Peter is caught trying to steal coal to heat the house.
They become friends with the Old Gentleman (whose name is never revealed) who regularly takes the 9:15 down train. They ask him to assist them with food and medicine when Mother falls ill. He is happy to do so, although Mother is angry and embarrassed.
The children save the lives of passengers on a train by alerting them of a landslide
; they give shelter to a Russian dissident, Mr Szczepansky, and help to unite him with his family. They rescue Jim, the grandson of the Old Gentleman, who is injured whilst participating in a paper chase
.
Bobbie eventually discovers the truth of her father's absence, despite Mother's efforts to shield them from it, and appeals to the Old Gentleman for his help. A Director of the railway company with influential friends, he is able to help prove their father's innocence. The family is reunited.
A friendship and possible future romance between Jim and Bobbie is hinted at.
The area of England to which the family move is not specified, but the railway scenes were filmed on the Bluebell Line.
2000 in television
The year 2000 in television involved some significant events.Below is a list of television-related events in 2000.For the American TV schedule, see: 2000-01 United States network television schedule.-Event:-Debuts:-1940s:...
drama
Drama
Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance. The term comes from a Greek word meaning "action" , which is derived from "to do","to act" . The enactment of drama in theatre, performed by actors on a stage before an audience, presupposes collaborative modes of production and a...
television film based on the novel
The Railway Children
The Railway Children is a children's book by Edith Nesbit, originally serialised in The London Magazine during 1905 and first published in book form in 1906...
by E. Nesbit
E. Nesbit
Edith Nesbit was an English author and poet whose children's works were published under the name of E. Nesbit. She wrote or collaborated on over 60 books of fiction for children, several of which have been adapted for film and television...
. It was broadcast for the first time in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
on 23 April 2000.
Plot
Roberta (Bobbie), Peter and Phyllis live a comfortable and carefree upper middle-class life in London with their parents. But when their father (Michael KitchenMichael Kitchen
Michael Kitchen is an English actor and television producer, best known for his starring role as DCS Foyle in the British TV series Foyle's War.-Early life:...
), a senior civil servant, is arrested on a charge of treason and found guilty, they are forced to move with their mother to "Three Chimneys", a cold and rundown cottage
Cottage
__toc__In modern usage, a cottage is usually a modest, often cozy dwelling, typically in a rural or semi-rural location. However there are cottage-style dwellings in cities, and in places such as Canada the term exists with no connotations of size at all...
in the country near a railway.
Whilst Mother (Jenny Agutter
Jenny Agutter
Jennifer Ann "Jenny" Agutter is an English film and television actress. She began her career as a child actress in the mid 1960s, starring in the BBC television series The Railway Children and the film adaptation of the same book, before moving on to adult roles and relocating to Hollywood.She...
) tries to make a meagre living writing stories and poems she hopes magazines and newspapers will publish, the children seek amusement by watching the trains on the nearby railway line (the fictional Great Northern and Southern Railway) and waving to the passengers. They become friendly with Perks, the cheerful station porter
Porter (carrier)
A porter, also called a bearer, is a person who shifts objects for others.-Historical meaning:Human adaptability and flexibility early led to the use of humans for shifting gear...
, but feel the wrath of the Stationmaster when Peter is caught trying to steal coal to heat the house.
They become friends with the Old Gentleman (whose name is never revealed) who regularly takes the 9:15 down train. They ask him to assist them with food and medicine when Mother falls ill. He is happy to do so, although Mother is angry and embarrassed.
The children save the lives of passengers on a train by alerting them of a landslide
Landslide
A landslide or landslip is a geological phenomenon which includes a wide range of ground movement, such as rockfalls, deep failure of slopes and shallow debris flows, which can occur in offshore, coastal and onshore environments...
; they give shelter to a Russian dissident, Mr Szczepansky, and help to unite him with his family. They rescue Jim, the grandson of the Old Gentleman, who is injured whilst participating in a paper chase
Paper Chase (game)
Paper Chase is a racing game played outdoors with any number of players. At the start of the game, one person is designated the 'hare' and everyone else in the group are the 'hounds'...
.
Bobbie eventually discovers the truth of her father's absence, despite Mother's efforts to shield them from it, and appeals to the Old Gentleman for his help. A Director of the railway company with influential friends, he is able to help prove their father's innocence. The family is reunited.
A friendship and possible future romance between Jim and Bobbie is hinted at.
The area of England to which the family move is not specified, but the railway scenes were filmed on the Bluebell Line.