Children of the Stones

[bookzombie]

Those British people of a certain age may remember a childrens' TV series called <i>Children of the Stones</i>.


Filmed at Avebury, with its famous stone circle, it starred a pre-<i>Blakes 7</i> Gareth Thomas as Adam Brake, a scientist who arrives with his teenage son, Matthew, to investigate the magnetic properties of the stones.

In a convoluted story, Adam discovers that they have become stuck in a time loop and family by family the inhabitants are being drained of their free will by the psychic power collected by the circle, all this arranged by the self-styled squire, Hendrick, played by Iain Cutherbertson.

The series was one of my great childhood memories and even seeing at an adult (and being more aware of its weaknesses) it is eerily effective. One thing that also stands out now is the relationship between the two adult characters who, unusually in childrens' drama, have scenes apart from the children and actually act like adults.

Anyway, this is all ancient history and you may wonder why I bring this up now? Well, I recently discovered that the writers, Jeremy Burnham and Trevor Ray, actually wrote a book adaptation. I had no idea this existed and managed to trace a copy via Amazon Marketplace. Judging from that fact that most copies seemed to be ex-library copies (even the UK edition) I can only assume that the book had a small print run which mainly went to libraries. I was hoping that the book might add some depth to the story and clarify some of the confusion.

Alas, the book is the old-fashioned type of adaptation which pretty much transcribes the script onto the page. The book actually manages to make you realise how much the original series depended on three things to work: the setting, the eery and discordant choral soundtrack, and the way the characters are portrayed by the actors.

To take an example, in the series Matthew discovers that he has the power of being able to hold an object and find things out about the person it belongs to (a sort-of psychometry). Towards the end of the series, Matthew steals the headscarf belonging to his friend, Sandra, to try and see what happens when she and her mother go to see Hendrick. When Adam discovers it he teases Matthew a little, wrapping the scarf around Matthew's head and joking that it doesn't suit him. In the series this is played fairly humourously and says much about the warm relationship between Adam and Matthew. In the book it is described thus:

         When the the girls were gone Adam demanded an explanation. Why on earth should Matthew want to steal Sandra's scarf?
         Matthew protested, "I only borrowed it."
         "But it doesn't suit you."
         They both laughed, then Matthew, rather self-consciously, for it was a far-out idea that he had, told his father...

And so on.
Sorry, but this is just dead; it has none of the character that the television series has. Maybe I shouldn't be surprised by the quality of an adaptation, but the book is poor even by tie-in standards.
To be fair, the book does enhance a couple of things: you realise that Hendrick honestly thinks that what he is doing is the best thing for everyone, and his manservant, Link, comes across as much more the power behind the throne.

It was interesting to read the book; it was a reminder of how bad tie-ins can be. But best let any cherished memories you might have of the series be unspoiled.

Comments

[sdn.livejournal.com]

whew.

now i'll never have to watch it!

you should read the gathering by isobelle carmody if you like stories about newcomers to an ... odd ... community. it's great.