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A contemporary spin on an English classic - Radio Times, October 2006 |
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John Naughton discovers that the new Robin Hood is a thoroughly modern outlaw.
"If you go down to the
woods today, you're
sure of a big surprise.
BBC1's £8million
adaptation of Robin
Hood, the newest version of
England's most enduring folk tale,
is aiming for the high ground of
Saturday-night primetime, and is
taking no prisoners as it attempts
to make the story relevant for a
younger generation.
"We have a shrine at our
production office of all things
Robin Hood," explains writer Dominic Minghella. "There's
loads of stuff there: DVDs,
cartoons, books, comics. We
immersed ourselves in everything,
then went to another room and
said, 'Right, what's our version?'"
What has emerged is a more
robust and ambiguous Robin
Hood; one that satisfies its younger
audience with swordplay and
stunts while offering something
slightly more cerebral, even -
whisper it - political, for adults.
Central to its chances of
successfully filling the Doctor Who
slot on Saturday nights will be how
audiences take to the relatively
unknown Jonas Armstrong as
Robin.
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Armstrong is unlikely
to be the show's only
potential heart-throb
given that Richard
Armitage - source of
many female palpitations since his
appearance as mill owner John
Thornton in North and South -
will be playing the villainous
Guy of Gisborne, the Sheriff
of Nottingham's sidekick.
As chief dispenser of
the Sheriff's rough justice,
Armitage is conscious of
the programme's need to
strike the right balance
between acceptable
teatime fright (à la
Doctor Who's "Are you
my mummy?") and over-the-top violence. Scenes
that reflect the new
series' willingness to pull
fewer punches include
the Sheriff cutting out his victims'
tongues, while Gisborne is seen
killing a man in front of his son.
The backdrop to this bloodshed
is that Robin Hood has recently
returned from the Crusades where
he was a bodyguard to Richard
the Lionheart.
Recent excursions to fight in
the Middle East also feature in
Minghella's explanation of why
now is the right time for
a new Robin Hood.
"I think as a country we've been
apathetic for a long time, but that's
starting to change," he argues. "Wars
are always galvanising, and I think
people now want to see heroes who
are trying to do something. Robin
fits in with this new mood."
Minghella points out that while
some of his updates to the story might
outrage die-hard fans, the most controversial - to drop Friar Tuck
- was also the most conventional.
"It's simply that we had too many
characters," he replies, clearly weary
of countering claims that the decision
was motivated by a PC reluctance to
titter at the tubby. "If we're
commissioned for a second series,
we'd definitely consider adding him."
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Similarly, the decision to change
Maid Marian to simply Marian
makes practical sense according
to Lucy Griffiths, the 19-year-old
novice who plays her. "Marian's
meant to be 21," she smiles, "and in
those days that would be considered
quite old to still be a maid."
Meanwhile, veteran
enfant terrible Keith
Allen is revelling in
the possibility of
becoming a hate
figure for a new generation in the
guise of the Sheriff of Nottingham.
"It's part of the religious axis of
entertainment to keep families
together," Allen muses. "I think it's
wonderful that parents of young
children will be at home watching
Robin Hood before going to the pub."
Robin Hood
is set fair to make a bold
reinterpretation of a story that has
been changing constantly ever since
the ballad Robin Hood and the Monk
made its first appearance in 1450.
"I think you do need a guy in the
woods who's brilliant at archery and
who's interested in redistributive
justice, plus a bad guy in the castle
who's collecting too many taxes,"
Minghella speculates. "But, beyond
that, it can be whatever you want."
**
Now take a look at our full Robin Hood guide.
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