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Remembered Today:

Somme Film reviewed


Desmond7

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I'm going through my old papers again. I spotted this contemporary film review of the famous 'Battle of the Somme' film.

It was written by the editor of the Ballymena Observer on September 8, 1916. He has just returned from a visit to the North of England where he saw the 'picture'.

Each week, the editor penned a column written in what was known as 'Ballymena Scotch' - a dialect which was and still is spoken by many people in this area.

He used his column - in which he wrote under the name 'Bab McKeen' - to poke fun at the authorities, impart his wisdom and during 14-18 to explain the circumstances of the war in language the people found entertaining and understandable.

Of course he pretended to be just the poor, put down dogsbody about the Observer office and regularly poked fun at himself. OK scene's set ... Scots and Irish types will probably be able to work through this no bother. But all the rest of you unfortunates may need some translating ... but it's worth it.

I hae jist yin thing mair tae mention an' then I hae dun. Some o' you'll has heerd o' the great pixture o' the Battle o' the Somme an' as it was exhibited here I went tae see it.

I was a wonnerfu' spectacle and am no sure yet whether I enjoyed it or no.

It cost a heap o' money, am sure, tae put it thonner but they says it's pyin' for the enterprise like iverything else aboot the war, whaur life's o nae accoont.

They show a' kind o' guns an' ammunition. The guns ir bleezin' awa, as they wur for aboot a week afore the big push commenced. Then the last oor, an' minute, as' the lads ir seen risin' oot o' the trench, mountin' the parapet, an' gettin' ower.

A' but twa's that's hit, an fa' back kilt afore yer een, while the ithers heid aff across no-maun's land tae the German trenches.

Then, oot o' them comes streamin' German prisoners, some wi' their hawns up some wounded, an' heaps o' orr ain wounded an' ithers carried by the stretcher bearers tae the doctor's dug oot for treatment. There disnae luck to be much room in it for yin oot o' ivery ten needs bandagin'.

You see the men stripped, gettin' touched up wi' idodine, bandaged an sent aff tae mak room for ithers, an sae on.

The enemy ir treated the same as oor ain men an' Tommy hands Fritz a cigarette tae smoke while he's waiting his turn. Deid men an deid horses ir lyin' aboot iverywhaur, an the hale place as far as the een can see is spotted wi' the black lumps o' the slaughtered.

Yin o the maist touchin' things in the picture, a regimental dog lyin' deid beside a soldier.

Efther the battle the guns were brought forrit tae tak' up new positions an' then you see big carriages wi' six horses wendin' their wye through an' amang the deid men lyin' in a' kind o' positions. The last scene shows the British buryin' the bodies o' the Germans.

Tommies diggin' graves an' ithers carryin' the deid forrit on stretchers an' dumpin' them in a heap afore yer very een.

AND HERE'S THE IMPORTANT PART .. HIS ASSESSMENT

The hale exhibition was a trail o' yin's nerves, an' a heap o' folk, I noticed, werenae able tae staun' it.

It mak's no metter noo in England or Scotland, whaur iverbody has tae join, but as a recruitin' picture I wudnae think it wud be a big success but croods ir gaun tae see it.

Am wunnerin' whit some o oor ain folk what his lost kin in the battle will think o' it?

His last few paragraphs are an obvious reference to the non-implementation in Ireland where numbers of voluntary recruits had shown a marked slump. I'b be interested in hearing comments. Did his fears 'pan' out? Perhaps this gives a better impression of how the 'man in the street' actually viewed this now legendary piece of 'documentary' at the time.

Des

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Des,

That's a great piece of social history.

There was a similar character to 'Bab McKeen' featured in the "Hawick Express" called "Betty Whutson".

This was "her" comments on the start of the annual Remembrance day:

‘Whaever was responsible for suggestin’ th’ Remembrance Day deserves tae bei publicly thankit. It’s a grand idea, an’ aw was awfu’ pleased tae hear how well it was cairried oot in oor ain toon, for it’s mair than can be said for some bigger toons, tae their shame. Singin’ aboot th’ Reid Rag at a time like that, as aw sei bei th’ papers some ignorant, impeedint folk did at Dundee was disgracfu’ - they should a’ hae got th’ jail. When th’ bells rang at eleeven o’clock last Friday everything was sae quiet it was waesome, an’ set yin thinkin’ o’ mony a puir sodger lad that did his bit an’ never leev’d tae come back tae th’ country hei defendit sae weel. Aye, there wad bei mony a yin greetin’ last Friday at th’ thocht o’t, but it’s th’ least we can dae tae keep them in mind, an’ it’s a thing that shouldna be allowed tae slip oot o’mind. Aw’m glad tae sei be th’ paper that th’ heid yins at th’ schules are no forgettin’ tae train th’ bairns tae keep up th’ day. They’ll no ken for mony a day a’ that it meant tae their faithers an’ brothers, an’ what they owe tae them, but th’ teachers mann gie them a lesson on th’ meanin’ o’ th’ war, an’ ma best wush for th’ young yins comin’ forrit is that they’ll never need tae gang an’ fecht in anither war.’

For the unfortunates who can't translate the text, the last line is:

"And my best wish for the young people coming forward is that they'll never need to go and fight in another war"

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Guid yin yersel' big yin. :D

And .. on a more serious note, some of these 'Uncle Remus' style cottage philosophers n the old newspapers used their 'just coddin' language to make some very important points. Loved the one about the Red Flag!

Ony mair o' them?

Des

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Each week, the editor penned a column written in what was known as 'Ballymena Scotch' - a dialect which was and still is spoken by many people in this area.

Never knew ther was such a strong Scottish dialect in Ireland, Des - this man sounds just like a Glaswegian! Or the journalist form Hawick!

Marina

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Des,

My favourite "Betty Whutson" quote is the following:

"She" best summed up what the real cost of the Great War was to the Hawick district:

‘Wei used tae hear a lot o’ th’ kind o’ uncoguid folk declarin’ that th’ war was muckle needed tae purify th’ country an’ improve th’ morals o’ th’ people. For masel’, aw never could sei how a brutalisin’ war could dae anything o’ th’ kind: an’ aw’m thinki’ that it’ll bei generally admitted now that if things were bad afore, they’re a hunder times worse now.’

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They talked the talk of the common people - fireside philosophers certainly, but I know from talking to 'old folk' just how popular 'Bab McKeen' (and I'm sure 'yer wimmin' ) actually were. When they made statements about the council, the poor law guardians or anyone else .. people listened and talked about it.

I'll respond to your last with this wee snippet about munitions workers in a northern town during the war ... this is good fun.

"In this place maist o' the lads 'at wud be listed in ither toons, weer bress badges tae show 'at they're workin' for the war. An' some o' them's workin' saw hard an sae lang, they're like lievin' corpses.

"There's a heap o' made money, but it's hard earned in thon toon; an' whether it was the closin' o' the public-hooses, or the guidness o' the folk, I didna see either man nor woman the worse o' drink the hale time I was in it.

"I was there on a Sunday, but I dinna think it's o' much acoont in the wye o' the churchgoin'.

"Them 'at were at munitions the ither six days o' the week preferred a bit o' ootance when they cud get it."

For Marina: I, of course, have a highly cultured accent and only laspse intae the vernacular in periods of great stress! :D

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preferred a bit o' ootance when they cud get it.

Amen to that! :P

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