Klondike (miniseries) Klondike is a three-part mini-series by the
Discovery Channel that was broadcast on January 20-22, 2014.
It was the network's first-ever scripted miniseries and was directed by Simon Cellan Jones and
executive produced by Ridley Scott.
Klondike stars Richard Madden and Augustus Prew as two adventurers who travel to the
Yukon, Canada, in the late 1890s during the Klondike Gold Rush.
Plot The story centers on the friendship of two
adventurers, Bill Haskell and Byron Epstein, as they travel Northwest during the Klondike
Gold Rush.
Along the way they "must navigate harsh conditions, unpredictable weather and desperate, dangerous
characters", yet supported by mill owner Belinda Mulrooney and aspiring writer Jack London.
Cast Richard Madden as Bill Haskell
Abbie Cornish as Belinda Mulrooney Marton Csokas as Superintendent Sam Steele
Ian Hart as Soapy Smith Greg Lawson as Goodman
Conor Leslie as Sabine Tim Blake Nelson as Joe Meeker
Augustus Prew as Byron Epstein Johnny Simmons as Jack London
Tim Roth as The Count Sam Shepard as Father Judge
Brian Markinson as Cavendesh Ron Selmour as Sundown
Colin Cunningham as Still Water Production
Klondike was green-lit by the Discovery Channel in December 2012.
The network believed the miniseries would complement their other offerings, such as
the reality series Gold Rush and Jungle Gold.
Executive producer Dolores Gavin stated, "Our audience loves the idea of the frontier spirit.
That whole thing about man versus nature, man versus man, man versus self—those are
themes we talk about everyday on Discovery.
There was really no difference when we started talking about this project because there were
those similarities."
It is the network's first-ever scripted miniseries, and contains six parts.
Set in the late 1890s, it is based upon Charlotte Gray's book Gold Diggers: Striking It Rich
in the Klondike and follows a variety of individuals as they flood into the Klondike in search
of gold.
Ridley Scott is serving as executive producer, and said "Klondike was the last great gold
rush; one which triggered a flood of prospectors ill-equipped, emotionally or otherwise, for
the extreme and grueling conditions of the remote Yukon wilderness.
The personal adventures are as epic as the landscape, where ambition, greed, sex and
murder, as well as their extraordinary efforts to literally strike it rich, are all chronicled
by a young Jack London himself."
Paul Scheuring, Josh Goldin and Rachel Abramowitz are penning the script.
Production began in March 2013 in Alberta, with Simon Cellan Jones directing.
It was expected to take 54 days to shoot six hours of footage.
Some of filming took place in April on Fortress Mountain in Kananaskis Country, where the
cast contended with "frigid" conditions.
A set was created on the CL Ranch (west of Calgary) to represent Dawson City.
There, the crew experienced warm weather, which created problems as the actors were
forced to wear many layers of clothing and pretend they were cold.
Richard Madden was cast as adventurer Bill Haskell.
He agreed to join the miniseries because he was impressed by its script; he also enjoyed
Discovery's reality series Gold Rush.
The actor explained to Entertainment Weekly in August 2013, "It’s epic, and 'epic' is
a word I use rarely to describe something.
It’s a story that’s not really been told.
situations are so extreme physically and emotionally.
I’ve done lots of different and I’ve never been so excited."
For the role, Madden had to learn mountaineering in Alberta and at one point was required to
jump into river rapids with a grade of 4.
He made sure to research his real-life counterpart in books and biographies.
He had to contend with high altitudes and wind machines, and noted that the adverse
conditions helped him get into character.
Ratings