The Fire on the Snow
Encyclopedia
The Fire on the Snow is a verse play by Douglas Stewart about the Terra Nova Expedition
to Antarctica by Robert Falcon Scott
. It premiered on ABC
radio on 6 June 1941 to great acclaim..
The original production was produced by Frank Clewlow
and was to have starred Peter Finch
as Scott, but he joined the army only four days before broadcast, so Frank Harvey
replaced him. Clewlow decided to employ a female actor, Ida Osbourne
, as narrator to contrast with the all-male cast. No copy of this original production exists.
The play has been performed on radio several times since, including a later production starring Peter Finch
for Frank Clelow and one directed by Tyrone Guthrie
for the BBC in 1951. It has also been adapted for stage, and an opera based on the play will have it's world premiere in 2012.
Terra Nova Expedition
The Terra Nova Expedition , officially the British Antarctic Expedition 1910, was led by Robert Falcon Scott with the objective of being the first to reach the geographical South Pole. Scott and four companions attained the pole on 17 January 1912, to find that a Norwegian team led by Roald...
to Antarctica by Robert Falcon Scott
Robert Falcon Scott
Captain Robert Falcon Scott, CVO was a Royal Navy officer and explorer who led two expeditions to the Antarctic regions: the Discovery Expedition, 1901–04, and the ill-fated Terra Nova Expedition, 1910–13...
. It premiered on ABC
Australian Broadcasting Corporation
The Australian Broadcasting Corporation, commonly referred to as "the ABC" , is Australia's national public broadcaster...
radio on 6 June 1941 to great acclaim..
The original production was produced by Frank Clewlow
Frank Clewlow
Frank Dawson Clewlow was an English actor-director who in 1936 became Federal Controller of Productions for the Australian Broadcasting Commission....
and was to have starred Peter Finch
Peter Finch
Peter Finch was a British-born Australian actor. He is best remembered for his role as "crazed" television anchorman Howard Beale in the film Network, which earned him a posthumous Academy Award for Best Actor, his fifth Best Actor award from the British Academy of Film and Television Arts, and a...
as Scott, but he joined the army only four days before broadcast, so Frank Harvey
Frank Harvey (Australian screenwriter)
Frank Harvey was an English-born actor, producer and writer best known for his work in Australia.-Biography:...
replaced him. Clewlow decided to employ a female actor, Ida Osbourne
Ida Elizabeth Osbourne
Ida Elizabeth Osbourne was an actor and broadcaster born in Brighton, Victoria, the only daughter of Mr and Mrs W. L. Osbourne and educated at Firbank Grammar School.-Career:...
, as narrator to contrast with the all-male cast. No copy of this original production exists.
The play has been performed on radio several times since, including a later production starring Peter Finch
Peter Finch
Peter Finch was a British-born Australian actor. He is best remembered for his role as "crazed" television anchorman Howard Beale in the film Network, which earned him a posthumous Academy Award for Best Actor, his fifth Best Actor award from the British Academy of Film and Television Arts, and a...
for Frank Clelow and one directed by Tyrone Guthrie
Tyrone Guthrie
Sir William Tyrone Guthrie was an English theatrical director instrumental in the founding of the Stratford Festival of Canada, the Guthrie Theater in Minneapolis, Minnesota and the Tyrone Guthrie Centre, at his family's home, Annaghmakerrig, in County Monaghan, Ireland.-Life and career:Guthrie...
for the BBC in 1951. It has also been adapted for stage, and an opera based on the play will have it's world premiere in 2012.
Original Radio Cast
- Frank HarveyFrank Harvey (Australian screenwriter)Frank Harvey was an English-born actor, producer and writer best known for his work in Australia.-Biography:...
as Robert Falcon ScottRobert Falcon ScottCaptain Robert Falcon Scott, CVO was a Royal Navy officer and explorer who led two expeditions to the Antarctic regions: the Discovery Expedition, 1901–04, and the ill-fated Terra Nova Expedition, 1910–13... - John TateJohn TateJohn Torrence Tate Jr. is an American mathematician, distinguished for many fundamental contributions in algebraic number theory, arithmetic geometry and related areas in algebraic geometry.-Biography:...
as Edward Adrian WilsonEdward Adrian WilsonEdward Adrian Wilson was a notable English polar explorer, physician, naturalist, painter and ornithologist.-Early life:... - Lou Vernon as Lawrence OatesLawrence OatesCaptain Lawrence Edward Grace Oates was an English Antarctic explorer, known for the manner of his death, when he walked from a tent into a blizzard, with the words "I am just going outside and may be some time"....
- Peter Bathurst as Henry Bowers
- John AldenJohn AldenJohn Alden is said to be the first person from the Mayflower to set foot on Plymouth Rock in 1620. He was a ship-carpenter by trade and a cooper for Mayflower, which was usually docked at Southampton. He was also one of the founders of Plymouth Colony and the seventh signer of the Mayflower Compact...
as Edgar EvansEdgar EvansPetty Officer Edgar Evans was a member of the Polar Party on Robert Falcon Scott's companions on his ill-fated Terra Nova Expedition to the South Pole in 1911–1912... - Ida Elizabeth OsbourneIda Elizabeth OsbourneIda Elizabeth Osbourne was an actor and broadcaster born in Brighton, Victoria, the only daughter of Mr and Mrs W. L. Osbourne and educated at Firbank Grammar School.-Career:...
as narrator
External Links
- Douglas Stewart's Australian theatre credits including productions of The Fire on the Snow at AusstageAusstageAusStage is an online database which records information about live performances in Australia. It provides records of productions from the beginnings of theatre in Australia up to today...