The Durrells is a much-loved ITV series – now available to stream on Netflix – loosely based on the autobiographical books of Gerald Durrell, about the few years his family spent living on the Greek island of Corfu. But how much of the story is true – and who were the real Durrells?
Who was Louisa Durrell?
As the matriarch of the household, Louisa Durrell was responsible for her family's move to Corfu, as depicted in The Durrells. Having been raised in India to parents who were colonials in the years of the British Raj, Louisa met Lawrence Samuel Durrell, an English engineer also born in India. They travelled across the country, having three sons and two daughters – one, a daughter named Margery, died from diphtheria in infancy.
When her husband died of a brain tumour in 1928, she was just 42 and decided to move her family to Bournemouth, Dorset, back in England. It was in 1935 that she moved her family to Corfu, with her son Lawrence and his new wife Nancy.
In his Corfu trilogy, Gerald portrayed his mother as an eccentric but loving and well-meaning leader of the household. She had a fondness for animals, adopting a number of strays, something that inevitably influenced and shaped Gerald's later career.
Who was Gerald Durrell?
Gerald Durrell was a British naturalist and writer – and the brains behind the TV show The Durrells, which was based on his semi-autobiographical books.
When he turned 21, he received an inheritance from his father that he used to fund animal-collecting trips to the British Cameroons and British Guiana. He wrote an account of his trip to the Cameroons, titled The Overloaded Ark, which sold well and allowed him to continue writing accounts of his other expeditions. His 1956 book My Family and Other Animals became a bestseller and he became a household name.
In the late 1950s, Gerald Durrell decided to found his own zoo on the island of Jersey in the Channel Islands. He planned Jersey Zoo to be an institution for the study of animals and captive breeding, rather than an entertainment arena for the public. This was a concept that was not widely considered in zoological circles at the time, making Gerald significantly ahead of his time.
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In 1984, he founded the Durrell Conservation Academy, which trains conservationists in captive breeding and has shaped the careers of many significant figures in the world of animal conservation.
Who was Larry Durrell?
Lawrence Durrell was a novelist and writer, whose most famous works are The Alexandria Quartet and The Avignon Quintet, the middle of which was nominated for the 1982 Booker Prize. He was one of the most celebrated writers in England during his long career. The Alexandria Quartet blends romance, philosophy and politics.
Lawrence encouraged Gerald to read widely, which undoubtedly played a part in Gerald's later literary ventures.
After chancing upon a copy of Henry Miller's 1934 novel The Tropic of Cancer, Lawrence wrote to the novelist, expressing admiration for the novel. This letter led to a friendship that lasted many years, and Miller visited the Durrells in Corfu in 1939.
His time in Corfu had a lasting impact on his writing, featuring vivid descriptions of its landscape in his memoir Prospero's Cell.
Who was Margo Durrell?
Having been humorously represented in Gerald's novels, Margaret "Margo" Durrell opened a guesthouse in Bournemouth – eventually writing a memoir, Whatever Happened to Margo? – about her experiences. The manuscript was supposedly written in the 1960s but was only discovered and published decades later in 1995.
When the rest of the family returned to England in 1939 to escape the outbreak of World War II, Margo decided to stay in Corfu, sharing a small cottage with local friends. She met her first husband Jack Breeze (the chief flight engineer of an Imperial Airways flying boat) there, who convinced her of the dangers of staying on Corfu, so she left the island to rejoin her family the following year. She named her first child Gerry, presumably after her brother.
With Breeze, she moved around Africa during the war years, before moving back to Bournemouth to have their second son. Back in Bournemouth, newly divorced, she purchased the house across the street from her mother and turned it into a boarding house. Gerald Durrell's early collction for his zoo was initially housed in the back garden. Her guesthouse was often filled with unusual residents, including struggling artists and travellers.
Who was Leslie Durrell?
Remembered in Gerald Durrell's books for his love of guns and shooting, Leslie was rejected by the Royal Air Force due to issues with his hearing, so he spent the war living in Bournemouth living with his mother and working in an aircraft factory. He continued a relationship with his family's Greek maid from Corfu, who gave birth to their son. Maria was forced to raise their son on her own after Leslie abandoned her, emigrating to Kenya with his new partner from Bournemouth.
A lot less is known about Leslie Durrell, who lived in the shadow of his brothers. He wrote a children's book, Where the Rivers Meet, which remains unpublished.
Who was Theo Stephanides?
Theo Stephanides was a Greek-British doctor and polymath, who – as in the TV show – was the friend and mentor of Gerald Durrell. He was portrayed in a number of books tied to the Durrell family, including My Family and Other Animals by Gerald Durrell, Prospero's Cell by Lawrence Durrell and The Colossus of Maroussi, by Henry Miller, who Stephanides met in Corfu with Larry Durrell.
Is The Durrells a true story?
Short answer – yes. The Durrells is based on Gerald Durrells's Corfu Trilogy, which offers a humorous and idealised take on his family's experiences living in Corfu.
Where is The Durrells filmed?
The ITV show was largely filmed in the village of Danilia, a preserved traditional village on Corfu island in Greece.
What happened to the Durrells after they left Corfu?
The Durrells returned to England before the outbreak of the Second World War in June 1939. After the war, Louisa spent periods living with her daughter Margaret (Margo), who had a boarding house in Bournemouth, and her son Gerald at his home at the Jersey Zoo.
Top image: The Durrells (credit: ITV)
