Up at the crack of dawn this morning, to beat Bank Holiday
traffic and reach the West Midland Safari Park before the crowds
descend. Last time I went to a safari park (Knowsley with two young
nephews in the early 1990s) it didn't go well. The park seemed run
down, tired, full of rather unpleasant people coaxing animals to
their cars with unsuitable food. I've held a rather dim view of the
places ever since.
This, though, was very different: the result of considerable
investment in a large and beautiful Worcestershire park. Small
child was hugely excited (you mean we actually drive through the
lion enclosures?) We did, and loved the white lions in
particular.
The highlight of the trip though, was meeting Mark O'Shea,
celebrity herpetologist and curator of reptiles at the park. I
discovered Mark and his fabulous books when I was researching
Awakening and found them invaluable. I was tickled pink
earlier this year to discover he had read Awakening; and
more than a little nervous to discover his legions of fans around
the world are claiming the character Sean North is based on Mark
himself. To my relief, Mark liked the book, has remained tactfully
silent about any mistakes, and has taken the (purely coincidental)
similarities to the dark, swarthy hero in good part.
Taken behind the scenes in the Reptile House, small child was
thrilled to be handed a Reticulated Python. Mr B embarrassed us
both by asking if it was venomous. Honestly! Pythons are
constrictors, wrapping themselves around their prey and either
stopping it breathing or causing a fatal heart attack. Python came
my way, I weakly pointed out that I'm actually a bit nervous about
very big snakes; but though massively heavy, it was very well
behaved, even giving Mr B's private parts a friendly squeeze.
We hadn't travelled all that way, though, for a python, however
large and swanky, we'd come to see the world's most venomous land
snake - the taipan, and Mark has two, a male and a female. From
behind glass doors we watched him and another curator (always two
when handling venomous snakes) take up snake hooks and release
them.
The taipan plays a leading role in Awakening, but I'd
never seen one in real life before, relying entirely on still
photographs when I was writing the book. In terms of appearance, I
was pretty much spot on. The taipan is slender and graceful, with a
sweet, tiny head and gleaming scales of gunmetal and gold. What I
did not expect, and sadly failed to do justice to in the book, is
the sheer speed of the creatures. They dart and strike and twist
and spin, so fast even Mark struggled to keep hold of them. Many
people bitten by taipans, according to Mark, never even see the
snake that attacked them. Even behind the safety of glass windows,
I found myself a tiny bit afraid of them. So small, so pretty, so
very, very deadly.
So, million-dollar question - how closely does the real life
Mark O'Shea resemble the character that, despite my numerous
denials, his fans will keep insisting he inspired? Not so much,
actually. Their lifestyles might be very similar, their immense
technical knowledge and passion for their subject pretty much
identical, but in terms of character - no. Sean is rather measured,
deliberate in his actions, cynical in outlook, dry-humoured,
possibly even given to bouts of superiority. Mark is mercurial,
never stopping moving and speaking, warmer, friendlier,
exceptionally generous with his time and his knowledge. Mark, I
have to admit, is a whole lot nicer.
West Midland Safari Park is well worth a visit, if you're close
enough; and be sure to drop into a reptile encounter and give the
lovely Mark O'Shea the Bolton family's very best wishes.
