The zoo in Emmen has been around for 90 years. This afternoon the first episode of the three-part series was broadcast on RTV Drenthe. The series is about the past, present and future of animals and people; from Noorder Dierenpark to Wildlands.
One of the creators of the series, Jaap Alkema, talks in the radio program Coffee and chat more about the series on Radio Drenthe. The makers have delved into the rich history of the zoo.
“More or less in chronological order,” says Alkema. “So the first episode is mainly about the Noorder Zoo from the past.” Archive images have been used as an example. Not only from the Drenthe Archives, but also from the Rensen family. “Beautiful images emerged,” says Alkema. The park was owned by the family from 1970 to 1995.
The archive images are the guiding principle of this first episode. The images are supplemented with conversations with former park employees about that period. “Fortunately, there are still some people alive who were employed by Willem Oosting, the founder of the zoo, after the war.”
Little has been recorded of the park’s early period. But, Alkema says, what is there is beautiful. They were of very poor size, but it will be clearly visible on television. “These were images that needed to be considerably enhanced,” he says. “But it was definitely worth it.”
We look back on the time when founder Oosting was at the helm. But also at the time when the Rensen family took over the zoo. According to Alkema, things then looked very different. “Animal welfare became a lot better, there were more spacious enclosures, fewer or almost no bars anymore,” he says. And the classification of different parts of the world came: “I think the whole of the Northern Netherlands has been there.”
Not everything from the archive could be used. For example, about the piece of education that was provided. Alkema: “Some things are really no longer possible.” Actually, the main focus of the entire first episode is Willem Duys, he says. Aleid Rensen appeared regularly in his talk show in the 1970s.
Her performances at Duys made Rensen a well-known Dutch person, which brought a large audience to the Emmer Zoo. The images are beautiful according to Alkema: “You don’t know what you see.”
The main issue in the second episode is the birth of elephants, but the death of a number of elephants is also discussed. “That was world news,” Alkema explains. “Tears will roll down your cheeks next Tuesday.”
The last episode of the series can be seen on RTV Drenthe on November 11. It is about the move of the park to the west side of the city. And about how Wildlands came to be.