Chris Barnard

Chris Barnard (1939-2015) is a celebrated Afrikaans novelist, journalist, reviewer, playwright and scriptwriter for radio, film and TV and a farmer.

Not to be confused with the renowned South African heart surgeon Christiaan Barnard (also referred to as Chris Barnard) in the press[1]

Biography

Born Christiaan Johan Barnard in Mataffin, Nelspruit, on July 15, 1939 and matriculated at Hoërskool Nelspruit in 1957. He then studied at the University of Pretoria, with Afrikaans-Nederlands and Art History as majors.

He was friends with many Afrikaans writers and a part of the literary movement known as "Die Sestigers" ("The writers of the Sixties")[2] and became a key figure in the later Afrikaanse Skrywersgilde ("Afrikaans Writers' Guild").

He married his first wife, Annette, in 1962, with whom he had three sons: Johan, Stephan and Tian. After divorcing her in 1978, he married the actress and film maker Katinka Heyns, with whom he had a fourth son, Simon. Barnard died of a heart attack on 28 December, 2015.

His writing career

A well-known and respected journalist for many years, Barnard was also a prolific, able and eclectic writer of , inter alia, Afrikaans novels, novellas, columns, youth novels, short stories, plays, radio dramas, film scripts and television dramas.

Besides many short stories, sketches and articles (a number published in the Chriskras series of four collections, appearing in 1972, 1976, 1985 and 1988 respectively), and Bartho by geleentheid van sy sestigste verjaardag (a compilation of tributes to Bartho Smit, edited by Barnard, 1984), he published thirteen other book-length prose works, that include such well-respected works as Man in die middel (1963), Dwaal (1964), Duiwel-in-die-bos (short stories, 1968), Mahala (1971), the Danda youth novels (1974, 1977), Moerland (1992), Boendoe (1999) and in 2008 Oulap se blou, another collection of short stories.

Contribution to SA theatre, film, media and/or performance

Barnard was also an influential writer of dramatic works, initially experimenting with theatre of the absurd in the early sixties, then went on to write a number of other plays radio, TV and film.

The stage plays

Barnard first made his name as playwright with the greatly admired absurdist piece called Pa, Maak vir my 'n Vlieër Pa ("Father, build me a kite, Father"), first published by Afrikaanse Pers Boekhandel in 1964 and first staged by CAPAB in 1969. The play was translated into English as Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow).

Other dramas:

Die Rebellie van Lafras Verwey (1971),

Iemand Om Voor Nag Te Sê ("Someone to say Good Night to" – 1973),

'n Man met Vakansie ("A Man on Vacation", 1977),

Taraboemdery (1977)

Bloed (1984)

Die Swanesang van Majoor Sommer ("The 1979), **.

Die Twaalfuurwals (2006)

Radio Dramas

Perhaps the best known is the critically acclaimed Die Rebellie van Lafras Verwey (“The Rebellion of Lafras Verwey” – 1971), which won a prestigious Belgian Radio award*. (It has often also been done most successfully on stage, beginning with PACT in 1975.)

The text was first published as Die Rebellie van Lafras Verwey by Tafelberg in 1971.

Other radio plays include:

'n Stasie in die Niet ("A station in the void", Tafelberg, 1970)

Op Pad na Acapulco ("On the Road to Acapulco", Tafelberg, 1975)

Iemand Om Voor Nag Te Sê ("Someone to say good-night to", Tafelberg, 1975)

Uitnodiging tot die Dans ("Invitation to the dance", 1984)

Blindemol ("Blind mole", 2007)

Television and Filmscripts

His film and television texts include:

Die Transvaalse Laeveld: kamee van 'n kontrei (documentary, 1975);

Piet-my-vrou (1982);

Nagspel (1982);

Die Storie van Klara Viljee (1992),

Paljas (1998);

Amalia (TV series, )

Nagspel, Piet-my-vrou, Die Storie van Klara Viljee and Paljas, are among the few published film and TV scripts available in Afrikaans.

Awards and honors

Barnard was the recipient of numerous literary and other awards. The drama related awards, include three for Die Rebellie van Lafras Verwey (the SABC/BRT Prize for radio dramas, 1970; the SA Academy Prize for radio dramas, 1973; and the Idem Prize for radio dramas, 1983)

Other awards include

1984 the Idem Prize for television dramas (Donkerhoek)

1987 the Idem Prize for radio dramas (Uitnodiging tot die Dans)

1991 the Hertzog Prize for drama (For his complete drama oeuvre)

2006 the ATKV Veertjie for his script for episode 13 of Amalia

2008 SA Akademie's Medal of Honour for Afrikaans Radio Dramas; Blindemol