Charles Darwin’s struggle to complete and publish On the Origin of the Species (1859) is Amiel’s idea for a picnic. This picnic probably never happened, but Amiel thought it a pleasant way for Darwin to discuss his scientific observations.
The jolly picnic on the grounds of the Darwin home at Down House provides the opportunity to bring together various views of friends Darwin trusted: Rev. John Brodie Innes, who urged him not to blaspheme: Joseph Hooker and Thomas Huxley, who argued for science. Arching over all was Darwin’s wife Emma’s intractable belief in scripture.
Ironically, contemporary visitors to Down House are not permitted to picnic on the grounds of Down House.
Featured Image: Charles Darwin (Paul Bettany) reclining, Emma Darwin (Jennifer Connelly) in white, Joseph Hooker (Benedict Cumberbatch), and Rev. John Brodie Innes (Jeremy Northam) in the broad-brimmed hat.
See Jon Amiel. Creation (2009). Screenplay by Jon Amiel and John Collee based on Randal Keynes’ Annie’s Box: Charles Darwin, His Daughter and Human Evolution (2001); Randal Keynes. Annie’s Box: Charles Darwin, His Daughter, and Human Evolution. London: Fourth Estate, 2001.