From the sun-kissed scenery of Corfu to the epic spats between the family members, there’s plenty to love about The Durrells.
But it’s the menagerie of animals collected by the youngest Durrell, Gerry, which really enthrals viewers the most. From Roger the dog, to Frank the sloth and Pelican and Pelican’t, more than 100 different animals have featured in the hit show based on the memoirs of zoologist Gerald Durrell.
But have you ever wondered just how the producers got a pelican to walk on a lead, a dog to ride a donkey or a sloth to wake up for a scene?
As the fourth and final series starts on Sunday, TANITH CAREY reveals the fascinating behind-the-scenes secrets of The Durrells’ animal stars . . .
ROGER THE RESCUE IS A TOP DOG IN ACTING
Since the first series four years ago, Roger the lurcher has barely left the side of wannabe zookeeper Gerry, played by 16-year-old Milo Parker. In real life, Roger is actually a female called Mossup.
From the sun-kissed scenery of Corfu to the epic spats between the family members, there’s plenty to love about The Durrells
Since the first series four years ago, Roger the lurcher has barely left the side of wannabe zookeeper Gerry, played by 16-year-old Milo Parker. In real life, Roger is actually a female called Mossup
However, the ten-year-old has been on the show so long she answers to both names.
She’s owned by the show’s animals co-ordinator Liz Thornton and her partner Alan Thomson, of Warwickshire-based A1 animals.
The last series saw Gerry take in a sloth from a travelling circus.
‘Frank’ is played by a female called Talita, who was re-homed from an animal centre in Guyana four years ago.
When she was cast in The Durrells, the plan was for Gerry to hold Talita in his arms. But she weighs over two stone and the actor who played Gerry was too slight, so Keeley Hawes, who plays Durrell matriarch Louisa, stepped in instead.
The last series saw Gerry take in a sloth from a travelling circus
Rather than ship her to Greece, Talita’s scenes were filmed at Ealing Studios. ‘She was a star on the set,’ says her keeper Barbara Marquez, 54. ‘If anyone wanted to know where an actor was, they’d usually be found with her.’
However, despite her allure, not much acting was involved.
‘Really all Talita had to do was to behave like a sloth, hang around off branches and eat.
‘At one point, she fell asleep during her scene.’
Talita lives at Heythrop Zoological Gardens, and is hired out by agency Amazing Animals. Her TV appearances have included This Morning, where she had her mind read by a modern-day Dr Doolittle.
Her first role as a puppy was on Casualty, and other appearances include The Crown and even touring with the Royal Shakespeare Company. But her most heart-tugging role was as Baxter, the neglected dog in a Blue Cross advert who wandered the streets singing ‘I will survive’.
Liz, 50, has had Mossup since she was seven weeks old when they rescued her from a Blackpool puppy mill.
‘All dogs are clever but the difference is whether or not they take to filming and enjoy being on a set, which Mossup does,’ she says.
‘She knows when she’s working because she gets more treats!’
Mossup is such a good actress that she has been given several key storylines — including being accidentally shot by Gerry’s gun-mad brother Leslie.
Her quick reaction times meant Alan was able to get her to jump up instantly as if she had been hit with an air pellet. With her back leg ‘out of action’, another challenge was to train Mossup to walk on her front paws with her back legs on a wooden trolley.
Liz says: ‘It took ten minutes every day for a week to get her used to it.’ Mossup has her own thermal ‘cool’ coat which she wears between takes, to make sure she doesn’t get too hot in the Corfu sunshine, and a portable air conditioning unit.
As with any star, Mossup’s wages are a closely guarded secret, but top animal actors have been known to get around £1,000 a day, while those not at the centre of the plot would get around £450, with extra fees for special tricks.
OTTER THAT'S UTTERLY CUTE
One of the stand-out stars of the show has been Rudi the otter, who is reputed to be Britain’s only tame otter working in film and TV.
Indeed, he is so rare that when the plot involved Gerry trying to launch a breeding programme, Rudi had to take on the roles of both himself and his girlfriend — magically producing babies after the programme makers weaved in some nature footage.
Rudi lives with his owner, 82-year-old actress Daphne Neville in Gloucestershire. He was adopted from a wildlife park in Derbyshire after his mother rejected him.
One of the stand-out stars of the show has been Rudi the otter, who is reputed to be Britain’s only tame otter working in film and TV
Now 13, he is Daphne’s tenth otter in 40 years after she first took one in as part of her campaign to clear Britian’s polluted waterways, which helped drive otters almost to extinction in this country.
Rudi is an Asian short-clawed otter, which tend to be friendlier than our native breed.
‘Otters are magical,’ says Daphne. ‘Rudi jumps into my arms, sits on my shoulder and nuzzles me like a cat. I look after him as if he were my child but I also treat him like a fellow actor. He’s very good at knowing what’s expected of him.’
To save him the journey to Greece, Rudi’s scenes were shot at a river by Daphne’s home.
Producers made it look like Corfu by using sandbags to raise the water levels and bringing in reeds to make the vegetation look more Greek. Rudi has also appeared in dozens of nature programmes, and last year he also sat on Daphne’s shoulder as she cooked on Come Dine with Me.
SEAGULL WITH A BAD ATTITUDE
Other birds on the show include a grumpy seagull called Alecko, whose real name is Steven Seagull after the actor, Steven Seagal.
He was given to trainer Anthony Bloom, 59, to care for 15
