What do we know about the real-life Durrells and their adventures in Corfu?

But who were the real-life family – and how close to life is this drama? How did they end up on the island, and what happened to them in later life?

How did the Durrells end up in Corfu?

Louisa Durrell, her husband and their four kids were all born in India during the British Raj. Travelling engineer Mr Durrell died in 1928, so Louisa took the three youngest (Leslie, Margo and Gerald) to England where they tried to get by on a widow's pension. Eldest son Lawrence had already been sent to a boarding school in England to be educated, something he definitely wasn't happy about.

By 1935 Lawrence was living in Corfu with his first wife Nancy (although in the TV series Larry is single and unmarried). That was the year his mother, sister and brothers arrived to join him on the island.

What really happened to the Durrells in Corfu?

Gerald began to collect and keep local wildlife as pets, spurring a life-long interest in nature and conservation. He was home-schooled and allowed to run wild. The young boy also found a friend and mentor in the Greek doctor, scientist, poet and philosopher Theodore Stephanides.

The two explored the island together, accompanied by Theodore's young daughter Alexia (who doesn't appear in the series).

Though Larry and his wife initially lived with the whole family at their house at Kontokali, in early 1936 the young couple moved to a tiny fishing village on their own. Larry later struck up a friendship with the writer Henry Miller, who came to visit in 1939.

Larry's first novel, Pied Piper of Lovers, was published in 1935. He drew on his experiences growing up in British India, his loss of a parent, and his difficult time fitting in when sent to school in England. The novel then moves on to his discovery of sexuality and his character's burgeoning love life.

The semi-autobiographical novel had a disappointing reception, receiving tepid reviews and a small print run. It was not republished in Lawrence's lifetime.

What happened when World War II started?

The Durrells arrived in 1935 and remained in Corfu until 1939, when the outbreak of World War II forced most of the family to return to England for safety. By series three we are already at 1937, but – aside from brief mentions of Hitler – the shadow of world war has not yet begun to loom in the Durrell family consciousness.

"We're still sort of a bit blissfully ignorant, I guess you could say," Callum Woodhouse, who plays Leslie, tells RadioTimes.com.

When war did arrive, Louisa left the island with Gerry and Leslie as well as the young live-in maid.

However, Larry and his wife stayed and had to escape with their baby daughter to Egypt after the fall of Greece. The entire country was occupied by the Axis Powers by June 1941.

Margo also declared Corfu her true home, sharing a cottage with some local friends. She began a love affair with an RAF pilot, moved with him to South Africa and married him in 1940. The two stayed there for the duration of the war, then moved to Bournemouth, had two kids and divorced.

What happened to Gerry, Larry, Leslie and Margo?

Gerald Durrell (1925-1995): Young Gerry grew up to be a popular naturalist, conservationist and author. After returning to England he worked at an aquarium and a pet store, and though he was called up for military duty in 1943, he was excused on medical grounds.

After the war he joined Whipsnade Zoo as a junior keeper, and then embarked on a number of excursions around the world to bring back unusual animals to the UK.

But his focus on conservation was out of step with zoos at the time, so he worked on redefining the role of the zoo.

Gerry founded the Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust, which is now directed by his second wife, Lee McGeorge Durrell, following his death in 1995.

Gerald with a cheetah at London Zoo in 1954

He is now best remembered for his bestselling Corfu Trilogy, starting with My Family and Other Animals and then followed by Birds, Beasts and Relatives and The Garden of the Gods.

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Lawrence Durrell (1912-1990): Named after his father Lawrence Samuel Durrell, Larry became a diplomat and writer who married four times and lived around the world. His most famous work is The Alexandria Quartet (a series of novels set in Egypt).

Like Gerald he also wrote about his time on Corfu, though his lyrical novel Prospero's Cell has been less remembered. Larry's account actually doesn't mention his mother or any siblings except for Leslie, though his first wife is featured.

Larry eventually settled in Sommières, France, where he passed away in November 1990.

Lawrence Durrell in 1987

Margaret Durrell (1920-2007): Margo Durrell ran a boarding house in Bournemouth after her divorce, in the city where her mother Louisa also lived until her death in 1964.

Acknowledging people's curiosity, she wrote an account titled "Whatever Happened to Margo?" which told the story of her eclectic guests, her love affair with a trombonist, and the occasional visits from Gerry and his "travelling menagerie" of animals.

In fact, Gerry's collection of animals were initially housed in the back garden and garage before they found new premises.

Leslie Durrell (1918-1983): Louisa's second oldest child never sought the public spotlight. After the family's return from Corfu to England, he spent the war working in an RAF factory and had a son with the family's Corfiot maid Maria Kondos, who came with them back to England.

His business ventures were unsuccessful (including an attempt to run a farm in Kenya) and he later worked as a hotel concierge. Leslie died in 1983.