Samuel Beckett: silence to silence

A beautifully presented bio-documentary on Irish born poet, writer, dramatist Samuel Beckett featuring selected extracts from his works and filmed on location in Dublin and France. Born on Good Friday, 13 April 1906 in Dublin, second son to a sport loving father and an affectionate but sometimes severe church-going mother, Samuel Beckett, like Oscar Wilde before him, attended Trinity College where he studied modern languages and showed an interest in literature and the arts. After several attempts at teaching, Beckett finally chose to write poetry. The program follows Beckett’s life discussing and interpreting his writings including “Molloy” (1951) and “Murphy” (1953) among others, his relationships with his family and his French partner, Suzanne Deschevaux-Dumesnil and the major influences that brought about the various changes in his creative and artistic career. David Warrilow narrates a variety of texts to images of atmospheric beauty and melancholy and actors Billie Whitelaw, Jack McGowran and Patrick Magee all appear in selected extracts from Beckett’s plays including “Waiting for Godot” (1955) and “Endgame” (1956). Samuel Beckett was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1969 “for his writing, which - in new forms for the novel and drama - in the destitution of modern man acquires its elevation”. He died in Paris on 22 December 1989. Narrated by Tony Doyle and commentary by Declan Kiberd.