A Sense of History by Jim Broadbent
(1997). Dir. Eoin O’Callaghan.
Perf. Broadbent, Stephen Bill. BBC Radio 4 Extra, 22 January 2015. BBCiPlayer http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b04yf832
to 21 Feb. 2015.
Originally produced in 1992 as a television drama
directed by Mike Leigh, A Sense of
History unfolds as a virtual monologue in which the 23rd Earl of
Leete (Jim Broadbent) talks about his life and aspirations.
Tonally speaking, the play begins in celebratory mood,
reminiscent of Eighties BBC television series such as Aristocracy (1982), where
presenter Robert Lacey traced the growth
and enduring appeal of a class of people whose values might seem archaic, but
still constituted part of the fabric of British society. It is only as the action
unfolds that we
discover the Earl’s true purpose; to maintain his position at any cost, even if
that means resorting to extreme methods and preserving untenable political
positions. By the time this half-hour
drama ends, the tone is more akin to that of Robert Hamer’s immortal film Kind
Hearts and Coronets (1949), in
which Dennis Price moves gradually up the social scale by disposing of most of
his family members.
What makes A
Sense of History so savagely comic is the matter-of-fact tone in which it
is written. While the Earl is obviously
out to justify himself, he also believes that he can pursue no other course, as
circumstances always conspire against him.
He doesn’t think of himself as in any way extreme, either in terms of
his behavior or his political views, but rather considers himself a
representative of his class. If such is
the case, then perhaps the aristocracy are potentially more destructive than we
might first have assumed.
Broadbent obviously enjoys himself in the role,
speaking confidentially to listeners about his past and his future and taking
them into his confidence as he does so.
We have to be on our guard, otherwise we might be persuaded to empathize
with him – which is precisely what he wants us to do. The Earl is a dangerous
man, his soft voice
and urbane manner concealing a highly destructive personality.
