- The Abbey (documentary)
Infobox Film
name = The Abbey
image_size =
caption =
director =Jonathan Stedall
producer =Andrew Holmes
writer =
narrator =
starring =Alan Bennett
music =
cinematography = Mike Fox
editing = Pip Heywood
distributor =
released =
runtime = 180 minutes
country = England
language = English
budget =
gross =
preceded_by =
followed_by =
website =
amg_id =
imdb_id ="The Abbey" or "The Abbey with Alan Bennett" (1995) is a three-part
BBC TV documentary written and hosted by playwrightAlan Bennett and directed byJonathan Stedall . It is a personal tribute to, and tour of,Westminster Abbey .This film is the video equivalent of an erudite tourist visit and is structured as “a day in the life” of the Abbey. Bennett's presentation has been criticized as at times painfully slow, wry, and effete, but it includes a wealth of amusing and informative anecdotes, citations, and historical fact.
*Programme One, "A Royal Peculiar" (56 minutes) offers a thorough tour of the Abbey. Bennett watches the early morning rituals of the "Abbey family," the people who tune the organ, dust the statues, deliver the milk, attend the first service of the day, and provides a general introduction to the layout and history of the place. Later, mingling with the public tours, he visits some of the multitude of graves in the Abbey, including those of
Edward the Confessor ,Chaucer ,Mary Queen of Scots and the Tomb of the Unknown Warrior. He cites “the English liking for clubs" in the burial groupings, with architects in one corner, poets in another, and engineers in yet another. Westminster Abbey, as he observes, is "the Queen's Parish Church" -- a "royal peculiar," answerable not to theArchbishop of Canterbury and theChurch of England , but direct to the British sovereign.*Programme Two, "Whom Would You Like to Be Seen Dead With?" (53 minutes) Bennett's saunter through a day in the life of the Abbey continues with visits to those interred in the poet's corner, including
Sir Laurence Olivier ,Lord Byron , theBrontë sisters , andJane Austen . It is revealed that many notables have had several different resting places -- successive kings and queens would often re-arrange them according to their own preferences. Ongoing preservation efforts that maintain the building are examined. Bennett takes viewers high up in the north transept, as the head woodsmith and his crew battle dampness andwoodworm within the fabric of the building.*Programme Three, "A Mirror of England" (50 minutes) visits the spot where every British monarch has been crowned since 1066 A.D. Bennett observes the Abbey's quiet evening rituals after the tourists have left -- the boys' choir practice, a private tour given by the dean, and
compline , the last service of the day. Bennett explores the ceremonial role of the Abbey within theAnglican Church , the room where theKing James Version of theBible was translated, and some of the many sculptures that decorate the Abbey's tombs. He presents a rare view of the 13th century "Great Pavement" ("Cosmati pavement"), the beautiful mosaic flooring, usually covered, on which the Chair of State (King Edward's Chair ) stands at theCoronation . We learn that half of the Abbey day is spent preparing for Evensong, its main, daily service. Awaiting their moment, the Abbey'slay vicar s play darts upstairs while thechorister s practice their singing. Then, we find ourselves alone with Bennett in the dead of night pondering the observation made by 19th centuryDean Stanley , that Westminster Abbey is a "mirror of England." He concludes, "If we reflect that this unique place and its contents are what remains when greed, theft, violence, and occasional vindictiveness have done their work, but mitigated by an obstinate tradition of charity, tolerance, and magnanimity, then perhaps it is...or one may hope that it is...indeed a mirror of England.”Executive producer, John Drury; producer, Andrew Holmes; editor, Pip Heywood; director of photography, Mike Fox; sound, Keith Richardson. 180 minutes.
In 1996, the documentary was broadcast by
PBS in the US in a 90-minute version called “Westminster Abbey”.External links
* [http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9905E2DD1438F937A35752C1A960958260 "The New York Times" review of the US version]
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.