Trawling the internet, researching libraries and databases, and occasionally from material sent to me, I discover things I did not know much about, or indeed at all! There can be more than one Discovery of the Day.
The BBC Genome project is a fascinating source of informatyion that is new to me about Rosemary Sutcliff’s contributions to BBC Radio and Television, and about versions of her books created for radio in particular.
In 1984 she was interviewed, for example, about “the lure of Roman and Celtic Britain for her and her readers”. Echoing points she recorded elsewhere on this site, of her youth she said: ‘I was brought up like a Spartan Youth; to take problems, troubles, pain lightly.’
I have always thought that The Eagle of the Ninth (published in 1954) was the first book of Rosemary Sutcliff’s to be turned into a serial on Children’s Hour on BBC Radio. But it wasn’t! It was Brother Dusty Feet (published in 1952) which was billed as ‘A Chronicle of the Road by Rosemary Sutcliff’ in the Radio Times. I learn this from a website I have come across which is new to me—the BBC Genome project, which contains the listings information which the BBC printed in Radio Times between 1923 and 2009. You can search the site for BBC programmes, people, dates and Radio Times editions.
Ian Spacek built a model of Rosemary Sutcliff’s historical novel The Eagle of the Ninth, showing heroes Marcus and Esca traveling through the wild and passing by the old ruin of a Roman outpost.
Latest collection of reviews in three words of Rosemary Sutcliff’s internationally-acclaimed historical novel for ‘children aged 8 to 88’ (her phrase), The Eagle of the Ninth (her ‘best beloved book’), set in Roman Britain. Interesting that very few words have been used more than once. (I’ve excluded names and places):
Ancient History, Bleak, Classic, Courageous, Dramatic, Engrossing, Enthralling, Evocative, Friendship, Gripping, Haunting, Heart-stirring, Honour, I-love-it, I-was-there, Imagery, Imagined, Inspirational, Inspires, Life-affirming, Makes-history-live, Nostalgic, Optimistic, Real History, Really-rather-good, Reborn, Resigned, Resolute, Restored, Spine-tingling, Tact, Thrilling, Understanding, Uplifting, Valiant, Vivid
Source: Brian Bilston on Twitter
ROSEMARY SUTCLIFF (1920-92) 