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OutlineSeries OutlineThe phone may have been cut off and the television repossessed, but Marigold and her daughters, Star and Dolphin, have a good flat with the housing trust – not to mention candles, cards and a birthday cake. It's Marigold's 33rd birthday – a time for celebration. Marigold decides to celebrate her birthday with another tattoo; a Celtic cross will look fantastic on her elbow. Dol goes with her and lives the pain of the needle, knowing that her sister Star, who thinks that tattoos make her mother 'look like a circus freak', will be appalled. But it's Marigold's birthday. Much to Dol's unease, her mum prepares to go out. Laced with vodka, and with her new tattoo covered in a bandage, Marigold teeters down the road in her high heels and disappears into the night. 'What if she never comes back?' whispers Dol to Star: as the first light of morning creeps through the thin curtains, the doubt becomes a real possibility. The fragile security in which the girls live starts to crumble. Programme 1: Outline'The Illustrated Mum' raises awareness about a person's capability for love and forgiveness, even in the face of hardship and instability. Centring around the life of young girl Dolphin, it is a remarkable coming of age story, filled with pathos and humour, which won Jacqueline Wilson the 1999 'Guardian' Prize for children's fiction. This drama is very closely based on the book narrative. At its core is an intimate exploration of what happens when children are forced to take on all the roles that parents are usually expected to deliver – nurturing, emotional and financial support, feeding, clothing, compassion and discipline. Deep down Dolphin knows the truth about her mother, Marigold: she suffers from a mental illness that makes her different from all the others mums at school. But it's just that difference, the magic and wonder that Marigold brings to life, which makes her really special. If only Dol's big sister, Star, still believed in Marigold – then nothing would ever have to change… What happens to Dolphin is extraordinary and requires great courage, but the experience of a parent who doesn't live up to a child's expectations is something that many children can relate to. In varying degrees, most children will be forced to confront the fears and realities of a parent who fails them – either by accident, design, or, in Marigold's case, by the unpredictable chemistry of her inner being and the outside world. Curriculum RelevanceKey Stage 2, 3Ages 10-14, Scotland: 5-14, English Language: Writing4Learning's dramatisation of the award-winning book by Jacqueline Wilson offers 10-14 year olds the chance to read for enjoyment and information, as well as deepening learners' understanding of themselves and others. It also offers useful material for media studies and may be used to provide opportunities for:
BackgroundTattooingThe tattoos found on Egyptian and Nubian mummies suggest that the art of tattooing was practiced around 2000 BC. As the Egyptian empire grew, so did the use of tattoos. The Ancient Greeks used tattooing for communication among spies; the Romans used tattoos to mark criminals and slaves, and in 1500 BC, Polynesians starting using tattoos to mark tribal communities, families and rank. The Ainu people of western Asia also used tattooing to show social status. The Ainu are known to have introduced tattooing to Japan where it became a religious and ceremonial rite. As with the Romans, tattoos were also used to mark criminals in Japan. Tattooing also has a long history in Europe; the Danes, Norse, and Saxons tattooed family crests on their bodies. During the eighth century, however, Pope Hadrian banned tattooing as barbaric. Roughly four centuries later, Captain Cook returned from Tahiti with news of an operation called 'tattawing'. The word tattoo, therefore, comes from the Tahitian word 'tatau', meaning 'to mark something'. Tattoos grew in popularity in England when English sailors began making trips to the Orient, but they became particularly fashionable when King Edward VII (1841-1910) expressed a liking for them. What stopped tattooing from becoming more widespread was the slow and sometimes painful procedure involved - each puncture of the skin was done by hand. It wasn't until 1891, when the Irish American Samuel O'Riley designed the first electric tattooing machine, that the tattoo became popular again. Based on Edison's electric pen that pierced paper with a needle, O'Riley's machine meant that anyone could get a reasonably priced tattoo. By making the process easier, the tattoo became common and the upper classes shunned it. By the turn of the century, tattooing had lost a great deal of credibility. Tattooists worked in the sleazier sections of town, while heavily tattooed people travelled with circuses and freak shows. ActivitiesMake a journal to keep for the duration of this work. Use it for some of these activities and make a note of any interesting words or ideas for your own personal writing. 1 Author study
Find out about the writer of 'The Illustrated Mum'. Using information from these websites, write a short biography of Jacqueline Wilson. Remember to add how she feels about writing and any top writing tips that she has.
www.kidsatrandomhouse.co.uk/jacquelinewilson 2 Marigold's diary Add a diary entry in your journal. After watching The Illustrated Mum Part 1, write your entry from Marigold's point of view, describing what it was like when she met Dol in the playground and was then shunned by the other mothers. 3 Collage Create a collage of family life for Dol, Star, and Marigold using newspaper extracts, bits of text, pictures or artwork. Build up a picture of what family life is like for them and the kind of relationships they have. Show some of the social elements of the story and the visual aspects of setting. 4 The book and the adaptation Read the first chapter of 'The Illustrated Mum' and complete the grid below. Identify some of the main characteristics of the opening part of the story; some of these are listed below, although you may decide to add a few more.
Keep this worksheet in a safe place, so that you can also add your thoughts on Parts 2, 3 and 4 of the television drama as you watch them. When your notes are complete, discuss the similarities and differences that you have noticed between the book and the drama, and your opinions of these. LinksThis web page contains links to other websites that are neither controlled nor maintained by Channel 4 Television. Channel 4 Television is not responsible for the content of these sites and does not necessarily endorse the material on them. |
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