The Sci-Fi channel were showing all six episodes of the 1980s drama “The Day of the Triffids” this evening. I only chanced across it as they were getting to the end of episode 2, but realised that the next four episodes would neatly fill in the time til I had to go out at 8.15 and so settled down to watch. I vaguely remember it from the first time round and used to love John Wyndham’s stuff as a kid, so was mildly excited by the prospect.
It turned out not to be a classic series, but was nonetheless enjoyable. The acting seemed dated, John DuttineÂ’s false beard was distracting and the Triffids themselves were not quite good enough to be scary or bad enough to be amusing. There was certainly a feeling that the budget of the programme could not quite stretch far enough, and so the same Triffids were being used over and over again and there were never quite enough of them to be menacing. The idea of walking plants with poisonous stings is possibly one better left to the imagination anyway, as once it is visualised itÂ’s just going to look a bit silly. Though maybe with modern special effects this could be achieved more effectively.
My favourite bit was when the sighted survivors were gathered in London and the self-elected leader told them that old fashioned values would have to be left behind and all the sighted men would have to have at least three wives each. It then cut to a middle aged extra who pulled a face at the bloke next to him as if to say “Brilliant! That worked out well!”. That was the only think he had to do in the whole series, but he did it perfectly. He perfectly encapsulated what would happen to any normal bloke in these circumstances, if civilisation was destroyed and nearly everyone was blind and the majority of humanity would be dead in weeks and then you found out that you would not only be allowed, but expected to shag loads of women, you would pull a face that said, “Brilliant! That worked out well.”
Hats off to the bloke who pulled that face. I think you should have had more to do in the series.
So it passed the time and at least reminded me of what a brilliant idea this was for a book. I have always been fascinated by that idea of being the last person left alive in the world. I had an idea for a short story a few years ago, where a man wakes up to an empty bed and sees that his wife has emptied her wardrobe and then he checks his kids’ rooms and they are gone too. He finds a note on the kitchen table that says, “We couldn’t take it any more. We had to leave. We couldn’t stand to be with you any more.” He is sad about this, but as he goes about his day it slowly dawns on him that it is not just his family who have gone. There is nobody left in his town: no person or living creature of any kind. He searches the country and the world for any sign of life, but comes to realise that the note was actually from everything that existed, that all animals and insects and birds and fish and humans have managed to organise their secret escape from the planet without him even realising, because they couldn’t bear to share the world with him any more. He has to face up to his own incredible unpopularity, finding it hard to believe there wasn’t a single soul on Earth who couldn’t tolerate him, having to come to terms with the idea that everyone would prefer to leave their home planet in order to escape him. Finally after searching for years he manages to find one ant, who has also been left behind, who presumably, all the other creatures hated as well. It makes him feel better to realise he wasn’t the only one and at least he has company now. But it turns out the man and the ant don’t get on very well and go and live on different continents.
It’s not a bad idea, but Stewart told me he’d read something quite similar, so I never wrote it. And to be honest you’re better off reading “Day of the Triffids” which is a great book. Or “Chocky” which was always my favourite. Though “Midwitch Cuckoos” is pretty smart too. Well done John Wyndham.
