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Mad Dog audio commentaryMad Dog > |
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![]() The audio commentary track for Mad Dog was the first of the 'special features' to be recorded on the Survivors series three DVD studio day on 4 August 2005, as The Sound Company studio in central London. It had been hoped to reunite lead actor Denis Lill (Charles) with episode director Tristan de Vere Cole for the commentary, but the recording schedule on ITV serial The Royal (in which Lill has a recurring role) ultimately meant that he was unavailable. Lill was required to remain on stand-by on location in case he was required for filming, and was extremely disappointed not to be able to contribute in-person to the series three DVD set as he had been able to do the previous year, for series two (when he had provided an on-camera interview, discussing his return to the show as a leading character and the programme's relocation to Whitecross, and joined director Pennant Roberts for an audio commentary on Lights of London II).
As is usual in such cases, the resulting commentary track was recorded in a single continuous take. There was one very brief interruption, when the sound engineer picked up the sound of fingers tapping on a table-top, but aside from the few seconds' worth of 'pick-up' that this required, the commentary was an unbroken 50 minute conversation.
De Vere Cole was also more than willing to acknowledge those moments in the episode where, in retrospect, he felt disappointed by the finished results. These sequences included: the shot of the river water by which Fenton is repulsed (which he felt was not sufficient strong visually); and the scene in which Charles first escapes from Sanders and Jim (which he thought was not edited as convincingly as it should have been). Together the reflections of two creative talents from both sides of the camera provided a genuinely entertaining and informative insight into the making of Mad Dog. Overall it was clear by the commentary's conclusion that both the director and the episode's celebrated guest star were both particularly proud of their work on what both are aware is one of the best regarded episodes of Survivors' third series. Perhaps the most obvious candidate for an audio commentary, this contribution to the third series' 'special features' is further enhanced by the inclusion of English language subtitles - the first time that such a facility has been available on a Survivors DVD release. Read more about the inclusion of Mad Dog on the series three Survivors DVD release here. Mad Dog > Page last updated: |