The Thorn Birds

The Thorn Birds
Directed by	Daryl Duke
Written by	Colleen McCullough (novel) Carmen Culver Lee Stanley
Starring	Richard Chamberlain Rachel Ward Barbara Stanwyck Christopher Plummer Jean Simmons Bryan Brown Philip Anglim Sydney Penny
Music by	Henry Mancini
Cinematography	Bill Butler
Editing by	Robert F. Shugrue David Saxon Carroll Timothy O'Meara
Release date(s)	1983 (USA)
Running time	467min.
Country	United States
Language	English
Budget	$ ???

The Thorn Birds is a television mini-series broadcast on ABC between 27 and 30 March 1983. It starred Richard Chamberlain, Rachel Ward, Barbara Stanwyck, Christopher Plummer, Bryan Brown, Mare Winningham, Philip Anglim and Jean Simmons. It was directed by Daryl Duke and based on a novel by Colleen McCullough.

Set primarily on Drogheda, a fictional sheep station in the Australian outback, the story focuses on the Cleary family and spans the years 1920 to 1962.

Plot summary

Father Ralph de Bricassart (Richard Chamberlain) is a young, capable and ambitious Irish priest who, as punishment for insubordination, has been relegated to a remote parish in the town of Gillanbone, New South Wales, Australia. Ralph has befriended Mary Carson (Barbara Stanwyck), a wealthy elderly Irish immigrant who owns Drogheda, a vast sheep station in the Australian Outback. Ralph charms Mary hoping that a hefty enough bequest from her to the Catholic church might liberate him from his exile.

Ralph is young, charming, politic, and strikingly handsome - "a beautiful man". Mary, who doesn't bother to conceal her desire for him, often goes to great lengths to see if he can be induced to break his vows. Mary is a controlling, calculating, shrewd, and strong-willed woman used to getting her own way. She describes herself as a vibrant young woman trapped in an old woman's body. She becomes angry when she realizes that she can never have Ralph and begins to plot his destruction. One by one, Mary offers temptations to Ralph probing him for weakness. Ralph blandly shrugs off these attentions and continues his visits. After many attempts Mary finally deduces that Ralph's weaknesses are hubris and ambition.

Mary informs Father de Bricassart that her brother Paddy Cleary (Richard Kiley) and his family are coming from New Zealand to help run Drogheda. Paddy is a simple but kind labourer. His wife Fee (Jean Simmons) is a beautiful but emotionless and distant woman. Ralph becomes fond of all the Clearys but soon finds himself particularly drawn to the beautiful but forlorn and neglected little Meggie (Sydney Penny). Meggie, the only daughter in a family of sons, makes Ralph the center of her life. Frank, the hot tempered oldest boy, has a rocky relationship with Paddy but is doted on and spoiled by his mother. The two seem to share a special bond in a family that seems otherwise devoid of affection.

Paddy and Frank vie for Fee's attention, and Frank resents the many pregnancies Paddy makes her endure. One day Fee, now in her forties, reveals she is again pregnant prompting a violent quarrel between the two. An inebriated Paddy blurts out the truth about Frank - he is not Paddy's son. Long ago, Fee had been the adored only daughter of a wealthy and prominent citizen. She had fallen in love with an older married politician and had become pregnant. Frank was already eighteen months old when her mortified father married her off to Paddy to quietly get rid of her. Because he resembles her lost love Fee has always adored Frank and been indifferent to the husband and other children that were thrust upon her. To the sorrow of Meggie and Fee, Frank runs away to become a boxer. Fee later gives birth to a baby named Hal, but shows little interest in him. Shortly afterward, Hal dies.

With Frank gone and Hal dead, Meggie clings to Ralph more than ever. This goes unnoticed by many as Ralph has now been her mentor for several years. As she ripens into womanhood (and now played by Rachel Ward) however, others begin to question their close relationship, including Ralph and Meggie themselves. Mary Carson also has noticed their changing relationship and with motives of jealousy mingled with Machiavellian cruelty, she devises a plan to separate Ralph from Meggie by tempting him with his heart's desire - a high place in the Church hierarchy. Although her will of record leaves the bulk of her estate to Paddy, she quietly writes a new one, making the Roman Catholic Church the main beneficiary and Ralph the executor.

In the new will, the vast nature of Mary's wealth is exposed for the first time. Drogheda is not the center of Mary's fortune as Ralph and Paddy have long believed but is merely a "hobby", a diversion from her true financial interests. Mary's wealth is derived from a vast multi-national financial empire worth over thirteen million pounds (about AU$200 million in modern terms). The sheer size of Mary's bequest will insure Ralph's rapid rise in the church. She also sees to it that Ralph will be the first one to see the new will allowing him an opportunity to destroy it. She also provides for her disinherited brother, promising him and all his descendants a home on Drogheda as long as they wish.

At Mary's 75th birthday party Ralph goes to great lengths to avoid Meggie, now seventeen and dressed in a beautiful rose-pink evening gown. Later he explains that others might not see his attention as innocent. After Ralph rebuffs a final sexual advance from Mary, she curses Ralph for not returning her affection. She tells him that though she knows that she surely will be damned for ruining a priest, she believes that destroying Ralph will be worth the cost. Mary dies that night, possibly by suicide. Ralph and Mary's lawyer reads the new will. In a private letter attached to the will, Mary taunts Ralph telling him that although he has a choice whether to take the money or allow the Clearys to have their rightful inheritance she is certain that he is destined to choose his own ambitions first even though he knows that it will destroy him and Meggie in the end.

The lawyer urges Ralph to destroy the will but to no avail. Just as Mary predicted, Ralph chooses his own ambitions over Meggie. The dark side of Mary's seemingly benevolent bequest allowing the Clearys to remain on Drogheda also becomes apparent. Since Drogheda will now be the property of the church and Ralph will be its executor, Mary has insured that Meggie will be forever dependent upon Ralph. Also Mary knew that if she were to throw Meggie and her family out on the street and "strip them of everything," Father Ralph would have immediately torn up the will & never would have told a soul, ruining Mary's plans.

The bequest of thirteen million pounds works its expected magic and Ralph soon leaves to begin his rapid advance in the Church. Before he leaves, Meggie confesses her love for him. Ralph tell her that he loves her too, he "always will," but that he can't marry her and be a husband to her because of his duties as a priest. He thinks it better for him to leave Drogheda and Meggie so he will not have to suffer the pain of seeing Meggie marry someone else and watch her change into something that he "can never have." The Clearys also discover that Frank has been convicted of murder after killing someone in a fight, and he must now spend the rest of his life in prison.

Paddy and his son Stuart are killed. This causes Meggie's much distress since she and "Stewie" were close (Stewie was the only relative, other than her mother and late-Aunt Mary, aware of the feelings Ralph and Meggie have for each other). Paddy dies when a tree hit by lightning and set ablaze, falls on him killing him. Stewie is gored by a wild boar shortly after he finds his father's body. Ralph is on his way to Drogheda to tend to the fire that devastated the station and when he arrives he is unaware of Paddy and Stu's deaths. Ralph remains at Drogheda to conduct the funerals and then leaves for Rome.

Three years later, a new station hand named Luke O'Neill (Bryan Brown) begins to court Meggie. Although his motives are more mercenary than romantic, she marries him because he looks a little bit like Ralph. She soon realizes her mistake. After a brief honeymoon, Luke, a skinflint who regards women as sex objects and prefers the company of men, finds Meggie a live-in job with a kindly couple, the Muellers, and leaves to join a gang of itinerant sugarcane cutters in North Queensland. He is gone most of the time and rarely sees his new wife. Although Luke tells Meggie he's saving money to buy a homestead he quickly becomes obsessed with the competitive toil of cane-cutting and has no real intention of ever giving it up. Hoping to change Luke's ambition and settle him down, Meggie purposely becomes pregnant and bears Luke a red-haired daughter named Justine. Luke however seems more annoyed than enamoured by his new family and mostly remains away at the cain fields.

Father Ralph comes back to see Meggie only to learn she is married and moved away. Devastated, Father Ralph visits Meggie during her difficult labor. He has come to say goodbye as he is leaving Australia for Rome. He sees Meggie's unhappiness for himself and pities her. Meggie recovers slowly from the childbirth and Justine proves to be a fractious baby so the Muellers send Meggie to an isolated island resort for a rest. While in Rome Ralph comes under the tutelage of the world wise Archbishop di Contini-Verchese (Christopher Plummer), who, like Mary Carson, soon deduces Ralph's weaknesses and his desire for Meggie. The Archbishop tells Ralph that he must face his temptations or he will always be controlled by them. Father Ralph returns to Australia, learns of Meggie's whereabouts from Anne Mueller, and joins her for several days. There, finally, the lovers consummate their passion, and Ralph realizes that despite his ambition to be the perfect priest, his desire for Meggie makes him a man like other men. Ralph loves Meggie, even more than God now, but still returns to the Church again choosing his own ambitions over Meggie. A short time later Meggie realizes that she has become pregnant with Ralph's child (Ralph does not know "his Meggie" is pregnant with his future son). The next chance she gets she tells Luke what she really thinks of him and leaves Queensland to return to Drogheda.

Back home, she gives birth to a beautiful baby boy whom she names Dane. Fee, who has had experience in such matters, realizes that Dane is Ralph's son. She knew the moment she came home because that is why she "came home." Meggie got what she wanted and "did not need Luke anymore." The relationship between Meggie and Fee takes a turn for the worse as Meggie warns Fee never to reveal to anyone the truth about Dane's father, or she will be as merciless and neglectful to Fee as she had been to Meggie. Justine grows into an independent, keenly intelligent girl who loves her brother dearly. However Meggie neglects Justine just as Fee neglected Meggie, for the same reason.

Dane grows up and decides, to Meggie's dismay, to become a priest. Fee tells Meggie that what she stole from God she must now give back. Justine decides to become an actress and leaves Australia to seek her dream in England. Ralph, now a Cardinal, becomes a mentor to Dane, but somehow fails to recognize that the young man is his own son. Dane is also unaware of their true relationship. Justine begins a relationship with Rainer "Rain" Moerling Harheim (Ken Howard), a handsome and charming West German politician. Justine however is unable to return Rain's obvious affection for her because of the deep scars left by her mother's neglect. Rain remains patient with Justine for several years but he eventually becomes frustrated with her inability to love and determines to leave her.

Dane and Justine vacation in Greece. Dane convinces Justine that she should allow Rain into her heart. A short time later Dane drowns while trying to rescue two swimmers. His body is flown back to Drogheda, where Ralph conducts the funeral. In a moment of anger, Meggie tells Ralph the truth about Dane. He breaks down and asks for forgiveness, but in anger Meggie damns him and leaves Ralph to his own devices. Fee and Meggie make peace after Fee finally admits she had neglected her daughter and finding out that Justine feels the need to stay at Drogheda. Meggie finally admits to Justine that she did purposely neglect her, although admitting that she loved her as well. In a rare scene which does not utilize a music score, Justine breaks down when she admits she had been replaced in her mother's affection by Dane. The mother and daughter make peace. Justine, now the sole surviving grandchild of Fee and Paddy Cleary, finally accepts the advances of Rain. The movie ends as Justine and Rain fly off to begin their lives together, while Meggie goes to check on an ailing Ralph in the garden. The two make peace, Ralph finally realizing all he has sacrificed, but overjoyed that yet again Meggie has forgiven him for everything though he is pained to learn that Dane was his son. He dies in her arms.

The title refers to a mythical bird that searches for thorn trees from the day it is hatched. When it finds the perfect thorn it impales itself, singing the most beautiful song ever heard as it dies.

List of Characters

• Meghann "Meggie" Cleary — The central character, the only daughter in a large family of sons. The novel takes her from early childhood to old age.
• Father Ralph de Bricassart — Meggie's true love, a handsome and ambitious Irish-Australian Catholic priest.
• Padraic "Paddy" Cleary — Meggie's father, a kind and simple labouring Irish immigrant.
• Fiona "Fee" Armstrong Cleary — Paddy's wife and Meggie's mother, an aristocratic woman who has come down in the world.
• Francis "Frank" Armstrong Cleary — Meggie's hot tempered eldest brother, Fee's illegitimate first son. A favourite with Meggie and Fee both.
• Mary Elizabeth Cleary Carson — Paddy's immensely wealthy older sister; Father Ralph's benefactor; owner of Drogheda.
• Luke O'Neill — Meggie's husband during an unhappy three-year marriage; father of Justine.
• Dane O'Neill — Son of Meggie and Ralph, Meggie's pride and joy, a "purer version" of Ralph.
• Justine O'Neill — Daughter of Meggie and Luke, an intelligent and independent girl. At the end, she is the only surviving grandchild of Paddy and Fee Cleary.
• Luddie and Anne Mueller — Meggie's employers during her marriage to Luke. They become lifelong friends.
• Bob & Jack Cleary — Meggie's older brothers. They both resemble Paddy in temperament and live out their days, unmarried, on Drogheda.
• Stuart "Stewie" Cleary — A quiet, kindly boy who resembles his mother and is close to Meggie in age. He dies when he's in his teens.
• Harold "Hal" Cleary — Meggie's cherished baby brother. He dies when he's a young child.
• Rainer "Rain" Moerling Harheim — Friend of Ralph and eventually Dane. Member of the West German Parliament and eventual husband of Justine.
• Archbishop (later Cardinal) di Contini-Verchese — Ralph's mentor and friend, also friend to Dane and Rainer.
• Mrs. Smith, Judy, Cat, and Minnie — Drogheda's housekeeper and maids.
• Angus MacQueen, Sarah MacQueen, & Alastair MacQueen - Sheep stations owners and members of Gillanbone society.
• Pete - a station hand at Drogheda who helps raise the Cleary boys and who witnesses Mary's revised will.

Cast

Filming

• Although the mini-series is set in Australia it was filmed in the United States. The outback scenes were filmed in southern California and the Queensland scenes were filmed on the Hawaiian island of Kauai. The Drogheda main house was a set built on the Big Sky Ranch in Simi Valley, California.

• The mountainous terrain of the southern California "outback" filming location does not resemble western New South Wales, which is predominantly level to gently rolling.

• The mini-series included "the most dangerous bus in Australia". Since filming took place in the US an American bus was used. In Australia, where there is Right-hand drive, it would set down its passengers in the middle of the road.

• In the miniseries, Drogheda, Mary Carson's sheep station, is said to have been named after the Irish town of Drogheda, by a former resident of that town. However, its name is mispronounced by all characters as "Drog-ee-da". In fact, the g should be silent and the e short. A former resident would pronounce it as Draw-hed-ah or Dro-hed-ah (with a soft o as in "drop").

• A "midquel" was produced in 1996, by CBS entitled The Thorn Birds: The Missing Years which tells the story of the 19 years unaccounted for in the original miniseries

• New York Jets offensive tackle D'Brickashaw Ferguson was named after the character Ralph de Bricassart.

• Rachel Ward, who was born in 1957, plays the mother of a daughter played by 1959 born actress Mare Winningham, and a son played by 1953 born actor Philip Anglim.

• Rachel Ward met her husband Bryan Brown on the set while filming the series. Brown plays Luke O'Neill who marries Ward's character, Meggie Cleary.

• Actor Bryan Brown, was actually the only Australian born cast member hired in a major role. This is not too unusual since although the series takes place in Australia, Luke O'Neill and Meggie's children were the only major characters who were Australian born. Father Ralph, Mary Carson, and Paddy Cleary were all Irish born. Fee and most of the Cleary children were born in New Zealand.

• During casting, actress Jane Seymour was considered for the role of Meggie Cleary and the role of Mary Carson was originally offered to Audrey Hepburn.

Differences between the book and movie

• In the book, Frank eventually returns from prison with Ralph's aid; in the miniseries he dies in prison.
• In the book, Meggie tells Ralph of his fatherhood to force him to help her find Dane's body; in the movie she doesn't tell him until after Dane is buried on Drogheda.
• In the book, Justine does not go to Greece with Dane at all; in the movie, she is in the country, but is not on the beach with him because Rain appeared.
• In the book, Meggie and Luke are engaged after a sexual encounter; in the movie they decide to get married at the borehead.
• In the book, there are several Cleary sons, Frank, Bob, Jack, Hughie, Stu, Hal, Jims, and Patsy; in the movie there is only Frank, Bob, Jack, Stu, and Hal.
• In the book, Ralph has a brother who is horse breeder in Ireland; in the movie Ralph states that he is the last in his family.
• In the book, Meggie is seen turning four and her first childhood memories; in the movie, Meggie does not appear until she is ten.
• In the book, Luke has an affair with Miss Carmichael and dances with her, but gives Meggie the impression that he felt that Miss Carmichael is boring; in the movie, Luke won't even dance with her.

External links

• Encyclopedia of Television