Shakespeare's Restless World, the series of 15 minute programmes that Neil MacGregor is presenting on Radio Four at the moment, isn't a disappointment. (After A History Of The World In 100 Objects most things would have been.) Each Shakespeare programme has a different theme - religion, conquest, Ireland, science or Plague - explored by reference to an object - a ceremonial cup, an apprentice's cap, a model ship, a flag or a poster. You come away from each one dazzled by Shakespeare's ability to take the kind of thoughts it exhausts the rest of us merely to think and render them as verse. You listen to each one with fresh admiration for how he managed to take the news of his day and turn it into the wisdom of the ages. You listen to each one wondering why radio programmes seem to have more substance than time while TV programmes seem to have more time than substance.
"wondering why radio programmes seem to have more substance than time while TV programmes seem to have more time than substance."
ReplyDeleteOf course, TV scheduling rarely allows for 15 minute (or less) programmes... So any substance is s t r e t c h e d to fit 28 minutes of time.
The best length for a documentary is in the title of the series 40 Minutes. I have made few 90-100 minute ones, and it really, really hard to fill that with content. Caitlin Moran once said one of my feature length programmes was a brilliant 50 minute film. So right. I wanted to apologise personally.
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