Do you remember your best antique or vintage treasure? Can you tell the story about hunting it down and how wonderful you felt?
When I was younger I thought I wanted to be an archaeologist. I found things such as shards of old pottery as well as long forgotten toys and spoons, and I thought it was very exciting. I did not study it in college and took another path, but I always like to come across another special old item. Which is why I am a fan of Detectorists, a British comedy series first broadcast in 2014. It was written and directed by Mackenzie Crook, who also plays Andy, a member of the Danebury Metal Detecting Club in the fictitious town of Danebury in Suffolk. Andy’s friend Lance (Toby Jones) and a smallish ensemble of characters will delight you with this tender, slow-paced gentle comedic dig into metal detecting in England. They like to tell people mostly in a kind way that they are not metal detectors, they use metal detectors to search for metal objects in the earth, they are called detectorists.
The show begins with this softly written and performed song (as if to a lover) by singer and actor Johnny Flynn who makes a cameo appearance in one of the episodes. Here is a link to that song. The lyrics are :
The Danebury Medal Detecting Club in The Scout Hall
Most of the world has buried treasure left behind that may never be found. We traveled to England and were in awe of the very old sites and architecture, but did not pay much attention to the amazing things that we might have been walking over. Take for example, King Richard III’s burial was discovered in a car park in Leicester in England. This story was on NPR.
Please look for Detectorists on streaming services. It’s also available to purchase. Or use your library or its inter-library loan to get the 3 seasons of it. Binge Worthy!
This show has touched the hearts of many people for it is a soothing tonic from the hectic world we are living in. And now, as Terry would say on his walkie talkie, “Over and Out.”
2 comments
It is a wonderful show, I agree. I have to mention however, the lyric goes: Will you search through the LOAMY earth, not lonely. Loam as in soil, very common type in England. It inspired my brother in law to invest in a detector and we spent a muddy day after Christmas one year, trudging through a field in northern England. We found old horse shoes and bits of broken farm equipment. No Viking treasure…….
Oopsie! My Bad! Glad those keen eyes spotted my flubb up. I will correct this now. I wish you could have found viking treasure. Hope you two will go out more times to increase your odds.I am glad to know someone else is a fan of detectorists!