Beyond the Frame 27/
Touching tales from photographers on a Desert Island, news of the Lee Miller biopic, and announcing the winner of our Shipping Forecast competition.
Castaway
I once lived in a Samoan “Fale” for a time. It’s the closest I’ve ever come to being cast away upon a Desert Island.
A simple wooden and bamboo hut beneath the shade of palm trees, a single step from the edge of the lagoon. Coconuts for breakfast, papaya for lunch, fresh fish for supper…
Without the attention-sapping distractions of smart phones or television, before Facebook and Netflix, time became elastic. I swam, I read, I caught fish, I picked fruit, I ate, I slept, I got a tattoo.
Thinking back to that journey around the South Pacific, I am also reminded of the time I helped catch, prepare and deliver lobster for the King of Tonga.
But that’s a “meandering” story — not sanctioned by The Editor and not the one I came here to share today. Another time, perhaps.
Back to the plot
The romantic prospect of a simple life, padding barefoot along untrodden sands, expertly fashioning a rustic but robust shelter, can probably only ever exist in our imagination. The reality, of course, would be far less satisfying. Terrifying, probably.
But I encourage optimistic day dreaming so as we’re enjoying the rose-tinted, imagined version of life upon a desert island, here’s something to enhance our flights of fancy.
Desert Island Discs
After last week’s dive into the joys of the Shipping Forecast, this is another much-loved British radio institution.
First broadcast over 80 years ago, Desert Island Discs is a weekly interview series where the guest is asked to imagine that they have been cast away upon a Desert Island.
Interviewees are invited to choose eight audio recordings, a book and a luxury item to take along to their fictional island.
As guests reflect upon their life stories, each song provides a point of reference, a soundtrack for pivotal moments. Childhood challenges, educational successes and failures, love, adventures and misadventures, relationships, aspirations, heartache, triumph, loss… the full gamut of the human experience is laid bare.
It is an idea of simple genius. Music is so evocative and the personal choices open the door to tender, intimate and heartfelt reflections.
Tom Hanks, for example, known as a charming but always composed interviewee, broke down in tears during his castaway experience.
Hanks spoke of his search for “the vocabulary of loneliness”. Here’s a short excerpt from Tom Hanks’ conversation with the incomparable Kirsty Young.
Personal music choices are always revealing. With surprising ease they can shake loose the barriers that we erect for our protection.
Celebrities, artists, politicians, musicians, comedians, scientists, sports stars… the list seems almost endless, the conversations always fascinating.
Many famous photographers have been cast away upon the desert island. I’ve picked just two of my favourite episodes to recommend but there are many more I might have chosen.
I’ve included some of the photographs discussed, so you can appreciate them as you listen along (click for full-size version).
Fay Godwin
“Determinedly unromantic, her dispassionate lens has created a truthfully evocative picture of Britain at the end of the 20th Century.”
I greatly admire Fay Godwin’s approach to photography; never staged and only ever using available light.
“It’s not your fault if I look like a cross between an egg and a bloodhound.” — Philip Larkin
The British Library website hosts an archive of Fay Godwin’s portraits and landscape photographs, including many examples of her colour work.
Vanley Burke
“His desire from the start was to document history from the inside, as it happened.”
Vanley Burke’s pictures share the stories of an under-represented community and I remember his Desert Island Discs interview for the short section where he explains how he questioned the value and the true ownership of his work.
Most memorably, this comment, which I aspire to live up to:
Lauren Laverne: “When do you know it’s time to put the camera down?”
Vanley Burke: “It’s never time to put the camera down. It’s only when you can no longer pick it up.”
Photographers who have appeared on Desert Island Discs (with links to the relevant episode):
I really hope you find time (or make time) to listen to at least one or two episodes of Desert Island Discs.
A more diverse collection of interviewees would be hard to find and the intimacy of a radio interview makes them all the more special.
Desert Island Discs is available as a podcast and a staggering 2,478 episodes (at time of writing) can be heard on the BBC Sounds website.
Competition Winner - The Shipping Forecast
I’m delighted to announce that the Random Winner Generator bounced Philippa Ramsden’s name to the top of the pile.
Philippa shared a touching tribute to her father, relating the story of his voyage to Rockall. I highly recommend it.
A signed and personally dedicated copy of The Shipping Forecast is heading in Philippa’s direction.
Here’s a short flick-through of Mark Power’s splendid photo book, lovingly-printed and beautifully bound, so you can see what you might have won. 😬
You can order your own copy of The Shipping Forecast here.
Lee - The Lee Miller Story
The Lee Miller biopic, “Lee” is now showing in cinemas in many countries.
The film’s promotional poster, featuring a scarily intense Kate Winslet might be forgiven for leaving potential viewers a little unsettled.
One BlueSky user found an example in the wild, which seemed to have frightened him into hiding behind nearby brambles.
Unfortunately, the film won’t be showing in Switzerland before October so if you have seen it and would like to share a short review, I’d be interested to know what you thought.
The reviews have been mixed, ranging from “Lee is beautiful, daring, and elusive, as all great art should be” to “Unlike the real-life woman, Lee settles on being ordinary when it could have been extraordinary.”
Confusingly, the Guardian awarded it two stars in one review (a year before the film was released) and four stars in a more recent review. 😕
Right, I have to look up flights to Tonga now. Perhaps I’ll see you there. Third palm tree on the left. Bring a radio. 🌴😊
Just wanted to say how beautifully you write! These emails are superb; engaging, informative and educational. I know they must take hours to prepare, so a big thank from me. I so look forward to them.
"Lee" was a great biopic - I took my wife with me. She sees my work as a documentary photographer for TV and film and thought it would be dull as dish water for her... she LOVED it! I'm not going to spoil it for you but it was a nice twist the way it was filmed - her son not knowing her work until after her death might be a clue. It wasn't trite or soppy - great performance by Kate Winslet. I now want to see the documentary that was on BBC iPlayer but it's no longer available there!