Another account for the train lovers out there among you (you know who you are) is running on BBC2; 'Locomotion: Dan Snow's History of Railways' covers ground that has been chartered many a time. If you think you've seen Michael Portillo or Jeremy Clarkson present similar programmes in recent years and for the BBC, then you'd be right. Snow brings the same enthusiasm to this series as his colleagues did to theirs. A stock set of images has developed in thes genre; a look at the large-scale engineering, iconic shots of a steam trains rolling through the countryside and photos of the railway builders and the like. Snow re-created the labour of a Navvy and it wasn't easy; they'd usually live in appalling conditions and of the many that died, some were buried in unmarked graves. The presenter touched on the evolution of transport and this would have made for a far more interesting and original exposition; Snow mentioned how 'the need for speed' became more of a driving element in the human condition as travel by horse was replaced by transport by steam-powered locomotive. So while the material lacks the shock of the new, 'Locomotion' nevertheless appeals to the Train Spotter side of 'thetvreviewguy'. Made like a comfortable sleeper service, reliable and reassuring.
No comments:
Post a Comment