The Murder of the Honeybee

Wednesday 16 January 6.30pm
Where: Commonwealth Club, 25 Northumberland Avenue, WC2N 5AP

UK Premiere

The Netherlands 2011
Directors: researcher Manon Blaas, Hetty Nietsch
Producers: Wendel Hesen, Mascha Boogaard
Language: Dutch with English Subtitles

The critical level of bee mortality is a major threat to our food supply. Eighty percent of all plants on earth depend on pollination by bees for reproduction and evolution. Of all the countries in Europe, the Netherlands has the largest bee mortality rate.

This documentary investigates the possible link between the use of a new insecticide, Imidacloprid, and the rise of bee mortality. The link is denied by both the insecticide producers and the chief advisor to the Duch government; Wageningen University and Recearch Centre (WUG). And yet the use of this chemical is prohibited in France as it was found to be linked to the death of bee population.

Can the honeybees be saved?

Manon Blaas began her career in 1992 as an editor/reporter at TROS / Veronica Sport.

Two years later she became a documentary maker for EO Antenne of the Dutch National

Broadcasting. In 1995 she became an editor of Today on TROS (Dutch National

Broadcasting). She also presented and edited the science programme; Kukulkan on TROS.

Since 1999 she has worked as an investigative journalist and assistant editor for Zembla on

Vara (Dutch National Broadcasting).

She has won a number of awards including: Sound and Vision Award 2009 for Zembla ‘Dirty

Hospitals’, Tile 2009 for Zembla ‘The Qkoorts Epidemic’, The Loupe 2010 for Zembla ‘Dirty

Hospitals’ and the Pfizer Press Award 2012 for Zembla ‘Antibiotics alarm’).

Other nominations include: The Loupe 2009 for Zembla ‘Controversial Cancer Vaccine’ and

The Loupe 2011 for Zembla ‘The Murder on the Honeybee’.

Hetty Nietsch started her journalistic career in 1979 as a local reporter for Utrechts

Nieuwsblad. After that she worked for 12 years as a newspaper reporter for Trouw, a daily

national newspaper. She then made a switch to public television and became a researcher for

a popular human interest talk show in The Netherlands.

Following working as reporter for a Dutch current affairs programme Nova, she became an

investigative journalist for Zembla, producing current affairs documentaries for ten years.

Her nominations for awards include: The Loupe 2007 for Zembla ‘Murder, Homicide,

Community Service’, The Loupe 2009 for Zembla ‘Controversial Cancer Vaccine’ and The

Loupe 2011 for Zembla ‘The Murder on the Honeybee’.

She has made other documentaries including: ‘Valentijn’, about the little boy Valentijn, who

wants to become a girl - camera crews followed Valentijn for nine years – she now is a

famous model in The Netherlands. And ‘Aids – Impossible to Flee’, about HIV/AIDS in the

1980s in the airline industry.

Q&A

Followed by a Q&A discussion with director Hetty Nietsch and researcher Manon Blaas.

Bookings

£5 or £4 - concs, except Cotton for my Shroud: £8 (£7 concs) and includes the reception. Cash only on the door.

Further information

Dutch Trailer

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