Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

Conan Doyle aficionados upset

Christopher Hall (Aristocrats), producer of the BBC's upcoming miniseries based on Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's The Lost World, told the SFX Network Web site that the series will be faithful to the book. The only major change will be the addition of a female character to provide romance, SFX reported. "We plan to start shooting some time in the new year and are at present looking at New Zealand as our major location," Hall told the site. Tony Mulholland will write the script for the two-part miniseries, which is slated to air on British television around Christmas 2001.

20 February 2001
Erin Harford reported in Wesport newspaper "The News" that..

"Filming is in full swing on the Lost World set in Charleston's Nile valley.
The BBC dinosaur movie started six weeks of filming on the West Coast on Saturday and has had brilliant sunshine since.
Lead female actress, Irish woman Elaine Cassidy said she flew into New Zealand, along with actors Peter Falk, Bob Hoskins, and James Fox, on Wednesday and came to Buller on Thursday.
Cassidy, who acted in the movie Felicia's Journey, said scenes were being filmed yesterday in the village and there were animals everywhere.
"I got to hold a tarantula, I hate spiders and a double could have done it but I made myself. Now I love them," she said.
Actors have been struggling with the heat , and BBC producer Christopher Hall was also hoping for relief in the weather.
"We would like some mist to make it look more like the Amazon," Mr Hall said.
He was otherwise pleased with how filming is going.
"This is mone of the most beautiful places on earth. If you come 26,000 miles to make a film you expect it to be beautiful," he said.
Mr Hall said the actors had some trouble learning the traditional Amazonian language used in some scenes.
"Yesterday Mr Hoskins had several pages of dialogue in the Indian language. We have a language expert helping everyone with their lines," he said.
Today there were about 25 extras on site. About two thirds are from the West Coast with another third coming from Christchurch. A visiting Chilean soccer team from Christchurch was also being used.
The extras at the village set had to look like Amazonian Indians but Mr hall said extras in the later scenes would be a more mixed race. Filming in New Zealand would continue for another two months before the crew moved back to London to shoot the final scenes.
The whole of Westport has been wrapped up in the Hollywood fever. Several warehouses are being used for set construction and at St Canice's School children have been making clay pots and plates for village scenes"

The cast.

Peter Falk
James Fox
Bob Hoskins
Matthew Rhys
Elaine Cassidy

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