The Thorn Birds: The Missing Years
Encyclopedia
The Thorn Birds: The Missing Years was a CBS
miniseries
that aired in 1996. It is a "midquel" to the original miniseries, The Thorn Birds
, that aired on ABC
in 1983.
The Missing Years tells the story of the 19 years that are unaccounted for between the birth of Dane, and Ralph's return to Australia in the original ABC miniseries.
The Missing Years was generally panned by critics and fans of the original miniseries for being unfaithful to the book. Adding to the dismay was the fact only one actor, Richard Chamberlain returned to reprise his role as Ralph de Bricassart from the original miniseries.
Father Ralph de Bricassart
(Richard Chamberlain
) has been using his church in Rome as a haven for Jewish war refugees. After Ralph uses some of Mary Carson's estate money to send a young orphan to America, the church "punishes" him by forcing him to return to Drogheda to guard the church's bequeathed property and to convince the Australian government to accept more refugees.
Father Ralph arrives in Australia unannounced and Luke is not too pleased to see him. Luke demands Meggie move with him immediately to a ramshackle cabin on the farm he purchased, just to get Meggie away from Ralph. When Meggie resists, Luke strikes her, causing her to miscarry.
Meggie decides she can never return to Luke, but Luke declares he only returned for Dane, who he thinks is his son. Meggie takes Luke to court for custody of Dane. The judge, a Protestant biased against Dane's desire to be a priest, awards custody to Luke, with Meggie refusing to ruin Ralph by announcing Dane is his and not Luke's son.
The rains finally come, and Ralph and Meggie do their best to round up the animals before the flood comes. Unable to make it back to Dorgheda in the downpour, the two find refuge in a small cabin, where a night of romance ensues.
Meggie's mother Fee, in a last ditch attempt to reclaim Dane, confronts Luke with the truth-Dane is not his son but the son of Father Ralph. Luke swears never to reveal this fact for fear of losing Meggie and his children to Ralph forever.
Luke confronts Ralph and starts a fight, declaring if Ralph can beat him he can have Dane. Ralph defeats Luke, and torn and bleeding, returns Dane to Meggie.
Dane, at age 17, shocks Meggie and Father Ralph with his desire to become a priest. In The Thorn Birds: The Missing Years Dane talks about little else at age 10.
In the original, Meggie's mother, Fee (played by Jean Simmons
) is a deliberate, slow-talking, aristocratic woman, while in the "Missing Years", Fee (played by Julia Blake) has become a rapid-talking gossip-bearer.
Luke turns from a drunken womaniser who hangs around his cronies all day to loner who lives by himself on a farm.
Father Ralph offers to leave the church and marry Meggie, something that he never implied in the original.
Meggie has two surviving brothers in the original: Jack and Bob, while in the "Missing Years" Frank and Jack are mentioned.
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
miniseries
Miniseries
A miniseries , in a serial storytelling medium, is a television show production which tells a story in a limited number of episodes. The exact number is open to interpretation; however, they are usually limited to fewer than a whole season. The term "miniseries" is generally a North American term...
that aired in 1996. It is a "midquel" to the original miniseries, The Thorn Birds
The Thorn Birds
The Thorn Birds is a 1977 best-selling novel by Colleen McCullough, an Australian author.In 1983 it was adapted as a television mini-series that, during its television run 27–30 March, became the United States' second highest rated mini-series of all time behind Roots; both series were produced by...
, that aired on ABC
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
in 1983.
The Missing Years tells the story of the 19 years that are unaccounted for between the birth of Dane, and Ralph's return to Australia in the original ABC miniseries.
The Missing Years was generally panned by critics and fans of the original miniseries for being unfaithful to the book. Adding to the dismay was the fact only one actor, Richard Chamberlain returned to reprise his role as Ralph de Bricassart from the original miniseries.
Plot
It's ten years after the birth of Dane, and Meghann "Meggie" O'Neill (Amanda Donohoe) is forced to run the Drogheda basically on her own, since all her brothers went off to fight in World War II. To make matters worse, a two year drought has struck the area. One day, Meggie's estranged husband Luke arrived on Drogheda and begs forgiveness. Meggie, lonely, in need of a man to run the ranch and a father for her children, reluctantly takes Luke back, and she becomes pregnant once again.Father Ralph de Bricassart
Father Ralph de Bricassart
Father Ralph de Bricassart is a fictional priest in The Thorn Birds, a 1977 best selling novel by Colleen McCullough, an Australian author. 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 1969...
(Richard Chamberlain
Richard Chamberlain
George Richard Chamberlain is an American actor of stage and screen who became a teen idol in the title role of the television show Dr. Kildare .-Early life:...
) has been using his church in Rome as a haven for Jewish war refugees. After Ralph uses some of Mary Carson's estate money to send a young orphan to America, the church "punishes" him by forcing him to return to Drogheda to guard the church's bequeathed property and to convince the Australian government to accept more refugees.
Father Ralph arrives in Australia unannounced and Luke is not too pleased to see him. Luke demands Meggie move with him immediately to a ramshackle cabin on the farm he purchased, just to get Meggie away from Ralph. When Meggie resists, Luke strikes her, causing her to miscarry.
Meggie decides she can never return to Luke, but Luke declares he only returned for Dane, who he thinks is his son. Meggie takes Luke to court for custody of Dane. The judge, a Protestant biased against Dane's desire to be a priest, awards custody to Luke, with Meggie refusing to ruin Ralph by announcing Dane is his and not Luke's son.
The rains finally come, and Ralph and Meggie do their best to round up the animals before the flood comes. Unable to make it back to Dorgheda in the downpour, the two find refuge in a small cabin, where a night of romance ensues.
Meggie's mother Fee, in a last ditch attempt to reclaim Dane, confronts Luke with the truth-Dane is not his son but the son of Father Ralph. Luke swears never to reveal this fact for fear of losing Meggie and his children to Ralph forever.
Luke confronts Ralph and starts a fight, declaring if Ralph can beat him he can have Dane. Ralph defeats Luke, and torn and bleeding, returns Dane to Meggie.
Inconsistencies
In the original The Thorn BirdsThe Thorn Birds
The Thorn Birds is a 1977 best-selling novel by Colleen McCullough, an Australian author.In 1983 it was adapted as a television mini-series that, during its television run 27–30 March, became the United States' second highest rated mini-series of all time behind Roots; both series were produced by...
Dane, at age 17, shocks Meggie and Father Ralph with his desire to become a priest. In The Thorn Birds: The Missing Years Dane talks about little else at age 10.
In the original, Meggie's mother, Fee (played by Jean Simmons
Jean Simmons
Jean Merilyn Simmons, OBE was an English actress. She appeared predominantly in motion pictures, beginning with films made in Great Britain during and after World War II – she was one of J...
) is a deliberate, slow-talking, aristocratic woman, while in the "Missing Years", Fee (played by Julia Blake) has become a rapid-talking gossip-bearer.
Luke turns from a drunken womaniser who hangs around his cronies all day to loner who lives by himself on a farm.
Father Ralph offers to leave the church and marry Meggie, something that he never implied in the original.
Meggie has two surviving brothers in the original: Jack and Bob, while in the "Missing Years" Frank and Jack are mentioned.