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The Great War (1914-1918) Forum

Remembered Today:

The Village, BBC1 9pm Easter Sunday


Kate Wills

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Looking to see if there is anything that might prove worth watching tonight. Might give this a go:

Peter Moffat (who brought us Silk and Criminal Justice) has written this tale of life in a Derbyshire village in the years during and after the First World War. John Simm plays a stubborn, struggling farmer who bullies his children; Maxine Peake is his long-suffering wife.

It’s 1914 and their young son Bert (hero of the tale) is full of excitement as the first ever bus service rolls into his village to deliver a pretty Methodist teacher full of progressive ideas to challenge the posh folk at the Big House, where Bert’s brother works.

There are nice snapshots of rural life – Bert rushing from school to work in his father’s fields, or learning to swim in a hillside pool. Moffat makes us feel the grind and bitterness of poverty and the story reels us slowly in, but the dour mood sits like a raincloud.

It all feels like a calculated slap in the face to a certain ITV period hit. Every scene strains so hard to be un-Downton, to crush Julian Fellowes’ rose-tinted spectacles underfoot, that it makes you wonder if, on a Sunday night, a bit of costumed glamour might not be preferable to a history lesson. But, by the end, Moffat leaves us wanting more.

About this programme

1/6. New series. Epic drama charting the life and turbulent times of an English village across the past century, as seen through the eyes of one resident as he lives from boyhood to extreme old age. The first series spans 1914 to 1920. Twelve-year-old Bert Middleton splits his days between working on the family farm, attending school and having secret swimming lessons with his older brother Joe. But the Middletons are living in poverty - the farm is a constant struggle for dad John, who has turned to drink, and mum Grace, who has made many sacrifices in her battle to hold the family together and put food on the table. Maxine Peake, John Simm, Juliet Stevenson and Nico Mirallegro star, with Bill Jones and David Ryall as young and old Bert respectively.

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Kate

When I first heard about it, I thought I'd be watching, but the BBC's insistance of trailing it ad nauseum with the same clips and snatch of music has put me right off, I might watch on catch up, but whereas I'd have given it an episode or 2 before judging it, I'll be lucky to give it 10mins.

Sam

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I was put off when the actor who plays Joe said in a Breakfast preview, "it was terrible all the young men going off to war and none came back".

More myth-making.

Ken

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Looks like no cliche will sleep tonight.

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Classic Monty Python! but by `eck life were reet hard in them days, mind you a damn good flogging never did any `arm. Roll on first world war and then t`lads can get proper blown up, mind you getting blown up were reet character building in them days, people don`t know their born today

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Sam Arkwright

Bottom row first on t`right

Just before I joined t`army age 9

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Good spotting lad, me and rest of young lads in t`photo were thrown out of school age 9 or under and most went into t`army where we started as gun cleaners, when I say gun cleaners is like as not what really `appened was that older lads tied us little `uns to long poles and thrust us down barrels of t`guns to clean muck out. It were a `ard life but we enjoyed it well those of us that lived to see 10th birthday and it prepared us for next episode when we marched 350 miles in us socks to Dover and swam t`channel to fight Kaiser Bill

Life were pure misery but we enjoyed it

Sam Arkwright

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You're a misery, Norman ... but I like you ...

Dull but worthy, I'd say.

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I think I would have preferred Foyles War

Michelle

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Father to 12 year old son: 'Go on, tell your mother what you were doing'

Father to Mother, 'He were stone pickin' ........' Howls of laughter from James and I, and a euphemism which shall be forever used from now on :)

A good start I feel, am really looking forward to next week, and how much of 'The War' is actually shown.

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Really enjoyed that, Im off for a quick 'stone pick' :whistle:

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Thought it was decently acted and looked good, will definitely give it another look. :thumbsup: Was it cliched? Possibly, but isn't life one giant cliche?!

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I think I must be well off in preferring books to TV drama. These days they don't even show any good movies, nearly all of the ones they do now involve this new fangled colour system, and it really messes them up.

Keith

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Couldn't that kid get his head out of the way so I could see into the hole in the bath-house roof?

Had no-one the decency to tell John Simm to sit up straight and hold his spoon properly when eating? I mean look how they thrashed the lad for writing incorrectly.

As for cliches - 'stone picking' - who would have thought?

Maxi

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It were reet authentic and it were good to see long-forgotten street games like throwing stones at dogs and chasing after charabancs. Note that in them days we kept us clothes on when doing you know what with young lasses in t`fields, it were primitive form of birth control and also stopped stubble making us itch. Hearing aid not working too well but did I hear old chap at beginning say he noticed young lass getting off new-fangled bus a hundred years ago when he were twelve?. By the way Keith you were reet everything in them days were in black and white.

Sam A

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We ended up watching Foyle's War. Wrong war, right choice by the looks of the comments.

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I suppose the brother will go west on 1st July 1916. The Dad didnt beat the Mum so that's one cliche avoided.

Michelle

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Dull, slow, cliched, dull, predictable, dull. . . . .

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Watched Foyles War and believe it or not we have a machine which was able to record Village so we were able to watch that immediately afterwards.

Kevin

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"Dull but worthy, I'd say".

What me or this latest classic

I couldn't possibly comment, Norman.

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Going to be awkward here, but it's a shame they used a mock up of a Charabanc rather than an original, especially as there's a chap with a stunning collection of Edwardian busses not far from where it was filmed who does hire them out.

Aside from bus authenticity, did seem rather 'oooo t'were bad in't old days' forced down your throat

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Seemed like a pile of tat to me. "Epic"? Epically bad. Cliché-ridden, with every single half-baked topical reference possible thrown in, bar wife-beating. Watching Peter Moffat perform in court must have been an appalling experience if he treated his briefs like his scripts.

Simon

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Aye they were `ard times but we enjoyed us selves as best we could and luckily Uncle Ernie had gone up in t`world and had good job as a “Saggermakers Bottom Knocker” which paid two shilling a week and we went to `is `ouse for us holidays. Here is Ernie with his wife Martha and the twins George and Albert outside their luxury villa in Bolton, see it weren’t all gloom.

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`appy days!

Sam Arkwright

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I must stop googling, I must stop googling, I must stop googling:

Kath,

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