The End of the Line's Chris Gorell-Barnes and Charles Clover outside Number 10

The makers of The End of the Line met with Downing Street officials this morning to outline their campaign, as news of further successes inspired by the film came to light.

Earlier this week The End of the Line launched a campaign to ask China Tang, the restaurant at The Dorchester run by Sir David Tang, not to serve shark fin soup.

We can now report that Sir David has said the restaurant will not be serving the soup.

Conservationist Lord Antony Rufus-Issacs had said that when he ate at China Tang he was offered shark fin soup - which was not on the menu. Having been inspired by The End of the Line, Lord Antony wrote to Sir David to protest.

There followed an angry email exchange between the two which led to a story in Richard Kay’s column in the Daily Mail and the launch of our short-lived, but successful, campaign.

The other piece of good news this week was for bluefin tuna, following the Netherlands’ announcement yesterday that it was backing proposals by Monaco to add the Atlantic bluefin to Appendix I of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES).

This came after France and Britain supported the global trade ban on the fish, late last week.

More news on the outcome of The End of the Line’s visit to Downing Street will follow in the coming days and weeks.

• Bluefin tuna update, 23rd July: Germary has announced that it is supporting the addition of Atlantic bluefin tuna to Appendix I of CITES

The End of the Line team is always keen to see examples of publicity surrounding the film and our campaign.

So when we saw this series of images, supplied by New American Vision and Flag Marketing, taken on the streets of Los Angeles, we thought it would be good to share them.

See if you can spot the connection - this will be easier for those of you in the US and Canada, or those who have been following the film since it’s premiere at the Sundance Film Festival in January this year. This link will also offer a clue.

If you have seen anything similar - The End of the Line posters or branding - take a photo and send it to us, we’ll put the best ones on the site. Email them to . Continue reading ‘The End of the Line on the steets of Los Angeles’

News of The End of the Line is spreading far and wide.

Dutchmen Jos Wassink and Koos Termorshuizen are currently on a three-month cycling tour around the North Sea.

They stopped off in Dedham, Essex, to see Charles Clover on their way through England and wrote about it on their website Northseacycling. You can read their interview - Inconvenient Truth of fisheries - on the site.

All of this week’s coverage of The End of the Line comes from the United States and Canada - apart from one mention in The London Standard.

Charles Clover is interviewed about the film by Katherine Monk in Canada’s National Post. He tells her: “You people in Canada have already seen what happens to communities and the ecosystem when you fish out a given species.

“The reality of overfishing became obvious with the collapse of the northern cod stocks in Newfoundland. The Department of Fisheries and Oceans screwed up.

“They thought their job was taking care of the fishery, and not the fish. You have to take care of the fish first, because without the fish to catch, there is nothing for the people - and this was a bit of a revelation.” Continue reading ‘Canadian media dominates this week’s coverage of The End of the Line’

This may be a record. Our independent documentary film has run for four weeks in the West End of London, with four screenings a day, and continues to be picked up by London cinemas, including many which originally turned it down.

The End of the Line at the Screen on the Green, Islington, London

It is booked in cinemas around the country until the end of September.

As a writer and not a habitual film-maker, I had no idea how impressive that was, but Christopher Hird, our executive producer, tells me that nobody can remember another UK produced documentary having anything like this success.

Only An Inconvenient Truth had anything like this impact, and it had tens of millions of marketing money behind it that we have not.

What has astonished even us is the way the film has broken out of the usual circle of dedicated followers of the environmental cause and found its way into the consciousness of the public at large.

It has been taken up by the Sun, Hello and Heat magazine, as well as regional and local papers and the entire national press. Continue reading ‘An astonishing month for The End of the Line’

The buzz about the film continues apace, with more articles and reviews about The End of the Line, including coverage from the Washington Post, Reuters and The Guardian.

First up, a sign that the fishing industry is taking notice of The End of the Line, Young’s Seafood, part of the Findus Group, is welcoming the film.

James Turton, group director of sustainability and corporate affairs, says: “This is an impactful, well-made documentary and we welcome its intent to highlight the vital importance of protecting the world’s fish resources and its call for consumers to choose sustainable seafood.”

The Washington Post’s Kim O’Donnel writes about the film on the Mighty Appetite blog. She says: “Several years ago, at one of the first sustainable seafood press conferences I had attended, one of the panelists said something that remains etched in my memory: “The oceans belong to all of us, whether or not we eat fish.”

“EOTL doesn’t just hint at this sentiment; it screams and shouts and urges you to wake up and smell the plankton.” Continue reading ‘Fishing industry is taking notice of The End of the Line’

The End of the Line’s half an hour of fame on the Fourth Plinth in Trafalgar Square yesterday proved to be a great success.

It generated plenty of interest from the public, prompting many to attend the evening screening of the film at the Prince Charles Cinema.

Oliver Parsons-Baker on the Fourth Plinth in Trafalgar Square, promoting The End of the Line

As part of the One&Other project Oliver Parsons-Baker took his place on the Fourth Plinth at 10.30am dressed in a giant fish costume, which attracted many curious looks from passers by.

Members of the film team chatted to the public about the film, handing out MCS pocket fish guides and WWF sustainable fish recipe books. Continue reading ‘Fishy business on the Fourth Plinth in Trafalgar Square’

The End of the Line continues to make waves in the movie world - it has now been selected to be part of filmmaker Michael Moore’s exclusive Traverse City Film Festival.

Michael personally selects the film’s that will screen at the festival. He has seen The End of the Line, and apparently, he loves it.

The festival takes place between 28th July and 2nd August, in Traverse City, Michigan, and last year over 70 films were screened. The End of the Line is showing at the Lars Hockstad Auditorium on Wednesday 29th July at 3:00pm.

Back in the UK the film’s run at the Odeon, Panton Street, London has been extended for another seven days until Thursday 9th July, making it an amazing four consecutive weeks it will have been shown there.

This means that over the coming week The End of the Line will be screened over 35 times in London, with dates also being added at Notting Hill and Islington.

Panton Street Odeon will continue to show the film four times a day at 2:40pm, 4:45pm, 6:50pm and 8:55pm.

The other confirmed screenings are:

• Gate Picturehouse, Notting Hill on Friday 3rd, Tuesday 7th, Wednesday 8th and Thursday 9th July.
• Screen on the Green, Islington Friday 3rd, Sunday 5th, Wednesday 8th and Thursday 9th July.
• Prince Charles Cinema on Tuesday 7th July, with an introduction by Claire Lewis, Producer of The End of the Line.

For those who live outside London, do not despair - there are countrywide bookings coming up, please keep an eye on the website or email your post code to , so we can let you know when the film reaches your area.

The End of the Line will also be appearing in Trafalgar Square, on the Fourth Plinth, as part of the One&Other Project. See ‘The End of the Line to appear on Trafalgar Square’s Fourth Plinth‘ for details.

The empty Fourth Plinth at Trafalgar Square

The End of the Line is going to appear on the Fourth Plinth in Trafalgar Square!

Well, in reality Oliver Parsons-Baker, Senior Water Quality Advisor for Severn Trent Water, will stand on the Fourth Plinth on Tuesday 7th July, dress as a fish to promote the important issues contained in The End of the Line as part of the One&Other Project.

The project, in partnership with Sky Arts, is the brainchild of artist Antony Gormley, famed for his 20ft-high Angel of the North sculpture that overlooks the A1, near Newcastle.

He is asking 2,400 people to occupy the Fourth Plinth in Trafalgar Square for one hour each between 6th July and 14th October 2009. So far nearly 15,000 people have applied for one of the 2,400 hour long slots.

Oliver will be standing on the Fourth Plinth between 10am and 11am on Tuesday 7th July. He will spend the first 30 minutes publicising the work that Water Aid does, and the second half an hour dressed as a fish, promoting The End of the Line. Continue reading ‘The End of the Line to appear on Trafalgar Square’s Fourth Plinth’

All of the news on The End of the Line for the past week has been from outside the UK, coming from far afield as Australia and Japan.

Writing for the Food Detective column in The Australian, Michelle Rowe says: “A harrowing new documentary predicting the demise of seafood by 2048, and the imminent extinction of the endangered southern bluefin tuna, has seen international celebrities rally to protect the world’s fish supplies.”

Japanese blog Choices for Tomorrow, carries an article in both English and Japanese in their Changes around the world section. They will also be running an interview with Claire Lewis, Producer of The End of the Line, in the next issue.

The Philadelphia Examiner reports on Ted Danson’s support of the film. Debbie Jordan writes: “Watch the videos; check to see if there will be a screening of the film, “The End of the Line,” in your area; if not, ask your local theatres to get the film and show it; and check the website of Oceana.org for more information on how you can help save the fish, the planet, and the human race.”

While The Philadelphia Weekly’s review, by Matt Prigge, praises the look and feel of the film and he awards it a B-. “Director Rupert Murray (Unknown White Male) also did the lensing duties, and his film is a good deal more handsome and visually striking than your average doc.

“At times The End of the Line feels less like a documentary than a conspiracy thriller, which in a way it is . . . . the film smartly diagnoses the chief problems as overfishing and cheerful law-breaking.”

Nashville Scene blog also has a review of the film, which is running as part of the Belcourt Theatre’s Food on Film series. Carrington Fox says: “Murray lays out a chilling argument that seafood could be a thing of the past as early as 2048.

“As moviemaking, The End of the Line is Discovery Channel standard-issue bolstered by fine undersea footage - but its message of impending crisis will leave its hooks in you.”

The Passionate Foodie carries a very positive review of the film, which says: “You may not realise which fish are in danger and could thus be unwittingly contributing to their demise. More knowledge about this issue should be spread.

“To help disseminate the word, a new independent documentary, The End of The Line, has recently been released, explaining the dire problem of overfishing.”

Following the success of the UK and US releases of The End of the Line we want to know what you thought of the film and the campaign, so we are launching a reviews competition.

If you’ve seen the film, what did you think of it? Has it made you re-consider your attitude to seafood?

Were you aware of the vast problems caused by overfishing  - to both life in the ocean and the communities that depend on it - that are happening everyday around the world?

What did you think of the film as a piece of cinema? How did you feel about it as art? Did it work or not?

Did you believe the science, or do you feel it missed areas out? Has it made you want to get involved with the campaign?

We want to know what you thought - so please tell us, whether you loved it or hated it, whether it motivated you or left you cold.

We would like you to write a review of the film and send it to us. We will publish the best ones and offer an as-yet-undisclosed-but-related-to-the-film prize for the best three. Please include your name, location and contact details with your review and send them to .

If you want to know what the rest of the media thinks about The End of the Line, have a look at our reviews round-up.

There have been many articles and reviews featuring The End of the Line this week following the film’s release in the United States on 19th June.

Entertainment Weekly’s review of the film says: “Fishermen are no longer simply ”fishing.” They’re subjecting threatened species to the equivalent of carpet bombing, and this passionate ecological documentary, The End of the Line, spells out the problem in clear, urgent, prosaic terms.”

Twilight Greenaway, writing for The Ethicurean, suggests that the film missed one point that would help sustain life in the oceans - eating less fish. She went on to say: “Since seeing the film, the possibility of thriving oceans once again full of wild fish of all colours and sizes seems ever more compelling.

“With that image in my mind, giving up most seafood — seeing it as a rare treat, as Mark Bittman wrote recently in the New York Times — until then doesn’t felt like much of a sacrifice.” Continue reading ‘News and blogs round up for The End of the Line’

Following the success of the UK screenings on the 8th June and the film’s official cinema release, The Odeon, Panton Street, London, has confirmed that it is to show The End of the Line for a third consecutive week.  Members of the film team will be doing Q&A sessions at some screenings.

Claire Lewis, Producer of the End of the Line and Willie MacKenzie, from Greenpeace’s Oceans Campaign, will be hosting a Q&A at Panton Street Odeon on Friday 26th June.

Claire, along with Rupert Murray, Director of The End of the Line, will be doing another Q&A at the Prince Charles Cinema, Leicester Place, off Leicester Square, London, on Sunday 28th June. Continue reading ‘Latest screening and Q&A details for The End of the Line’

The End of the Line has still been receiving plenty of coverage following its UK release and in the run up to its US launch. Here we bring together the latest news and a few older pieces that slipped through the net.

The Guardian covers the film and the issue of fish stocks again. In the Environment section, Felicity Lawrence, writes: ”The supermarkets have increased their targets for sustainable fish, and The End of the Line’s film release has prompted a flurry of announcements – most notably from M&S and Pret a Manger – to move even faster . . . .

“There is reason to hope that fish stocks can still recover, but we need to keep asking for sustainable catches. Keep the pressure up.” Continue reading ‘The End of the Line coverage following the film’s UK release’

I write this while looking out over the sea at Cape Cod realising that it is here along this coast that we humans have done the most damage to fish stocks.

Cod is the history of this coast and its people. It is utterly beautiful here in Provincetown where The End of the Line is being screened as part of the their film festival.

Despite wind and rain - yes, like the UK - this is a community that was founded on fishing bounty. It now lives on tourism.

My co-speaker at the Q&A was Owen Nicols, a young man who was born and bred here in Provincetown. He is studying for a PHD in Fisheries Science and works at the local Oceans Institute.

Continue reading ‘Cape Cod - where humans have done the most damage to fish stocks’