Meeting the Bog Bodies

Page 4 of 10

• 1. Discovering the bog bodies
• 2. National Museum of Ireland
• 3. Examining the bodies
• 4. Dramatising the past
• 5. Filming the reconstruction
• 6. The bodies in context
• 7. Unlocking secrets of the Iron Age
• 8. Preserving Oldcroghan Man
• 9. Clonycavan Man
• 10. Find out more
• Print entire article

Dramatising the past

I know 'dramatic reconstructions' in history programmes are a source of debate, so I was interested when I found a scratchy old film made in June 1954 by the BBC called 'The Peat Bog Murder Mystery'.

It featured a reconstruction of the burial of an Iron Age man. Considering it was made over 50 years ago it's actually not that bad. At the end of the film the distinguished archaeologist Sir Mortimer Wheeler says: 'Reconstructions such as these do bring the past to life as nothing else can.'

'What I really want is to show the brutal reality of these Iron Age killings - and I know that some viewers are not going to like it'

I strongly feel that half-a-century later we still need these reconstructions to bring this story alive, but I'm equally emphatic that I do not want to dramatise events, for which we have no hard evidence.

There will be no druid ceremonies, dancing sequences or similar flights of fancy. What I really want is to show the brutal reality of these Iron Age killings - and I know that some viewers are not going to like it.

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Published: 2006-01-12