The Coral Island

The Coral Island: A Tale of the Pacific Ocean (1858) is a novel written by Scottish author R. M. Ballantyne. One of the first works of juvenile fiction to feature exclusively juvenile heroes, the story relates the adventures of three boys marooned on a South Pacific island, the only survivors of a shipwreck.

A typical Robinsonade – a genre of fiction inspired by Daniel Defoe's Robinson Crusoe – and one of the most popular of its type, the book first went on sale in late 1857 and has never been out of print. Among the novel's major themes are the civilising effect of Christianity, 19th-century British imperialism in the South Pacific, and the importance of hierarchy and leadership. It was the inspiration for William Golding's dystopian novel Lord of the Flies (1954), which inverted the morality of The Coral Island; in Ballantyne's story the children encounter evil, but in Lord of the Flies evil is within them.

In the early 20th century, the novel was considered a classic for primary school children of Britain, and in the United States it was a staple of high-school suggested reading lists; modern critics, however, consider the book's worldview to be dated and imperialist. Although less popular today, The Coral Island was adapted into a four-part children's television drama broadcast by ITV in 2000.

The Coral

The Coral are an English band formed in 1996 in Hoylake on the Wirral Peninsula in England. The band first emerged during the early 2000s (decade) and found success with their debut album The Coral (2002) and follow up Magic and Medicine (2003). Their self-titled debut album was nominated for the 2002 Mercury Music Prize and later voted the fourth best album of the year by NME Magazine.

In 2008 guitarist Bill Ryder-Jones left the band, however The Coral continued as a five-piece. Their sixth album Butterfly House was released in 2010.

History

1996–2004: Early years and breakthrough

In 1996, schoolfriends Ian Skelly and Paul Duffy began jamming together in the basement of Flat Foot Sams pub in Hoylake. Over the following months they were joined by Bill Ryder-Jones on lead guitar, Ian's older brother James Skelly on vocals and main songwriting duties, and then Lee Southall on rhythm guitar. The band were known briefly as Hive before choosing the name The Coral, and the line-up was completed with the addition of Nick Power, who joined as keyboard player in 1998.

The Coral (album)

The Coral is the eponymous debut album by The Coral, and was released 29 July 2002 in the United Kingdom on the Deltasonic label, where it debuted at number 5 in the charts, and on 3 March 2003 in the United States on Columbia Records (see 2002 in music). It was also nominated for the Mercury Music Prize.

Track listing

Personnel

Chart performance

Release history

Miscellanea

Coral island

A coral island is a type of island formed from coral detritus and associated organic material. They occur in tropical and sub-tropical areas, typically as part of coral reefs which have grown to cover a far larger area under the sea.

Formation

Islands develop from coral reefs through one of two processes, uplift and accretion.

In uplift, part or all of the coral reef becomes Land as a result of the earth's crust rising above sea level.

In accretion, rocks and sand are layered on top of coral reefs during cyclonic storms, and the gradual accumulation of other solid material through the action of wind and waves leads to the development of the island. The process is later enhanced with the remains of plant life which grows on the island.

Where coral islands form from atoll reefs, the result is an island or string of islands in a roughly circular form, surrounding a shallow lagoon.

Distribution

Most of the world's coral islands are in the Pacific Ocean. The American territories of Jarvis, Baker and Howland Islands are clear examples of coral islands. Also, some of the islands belonging to Kiribati are considered coral islands. The Maldives also consist of coral islands.

Coral Island (TV series)

Coral Island is a children's television series, adapted from the 19th-century novel The Coral Island by Scottish author R. M. Ballantyne. The series of 9 episodes was a joint production of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation and Thames Television. It was filmed on location in the western Samoan village of Salamumu and then on the Whitsunday Islands off the Queensland coast in 1981.

The series was first broadcast in Australia on ABC-TV on the 6 January 1983.

Plot

The story, set in 1840, centers on 3 boys from England and their struggle for survival when they are shipwrecked on a remote Pacific island. Jack (played by Scott McGregor), Peterkin (played by Nicholas Bond-Owen) and Ralph (played by Richard Gibson) must learn to survive on their own on the island, despite their very different characters and backgrounds. After befriending two natives on the island, they are rescued by an English missionary team, and both the boys and the two natives return to England.