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The Great War (1914-1918) Forum

Remembered Today:

The Village, BBC1 9pm Easter Sunday


Kate Wills

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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.

Many of my ancestors were saggar makers in Sneyd Green and Burslem. You were a bottom knocker for part of the time as you learned the trade, usually apprenticed to your Dad it seems to me. B)

Keith

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what is the correct alignment of such stooks bearing in mind the ambient temperature, wind direction and of course humidity?

I remain

Respectfully Yours

Norman

Social Historian and good friend of Mary Beard

Do listen in future Norman, North/South!!!

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I didn't know that. Now I do. Thank you. :thumbsup: Did the Army requisition the bus to transport the men off in a charabanc then?

However, Norman, I'm surprised at you, referencing Wikipedia to back up your argument.

Serious thread? How very dare you...

<rustles broadsheet newspaper whilst harumphing in winged back leather chair>

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Folks - a reminder - though it may well end up there, this thread isn't in Skindles.....

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This thread has nothing to do with the Great War

Roger

Edit. My post crossed with Alan's. it should be moved now

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Sticklers united! Who spotted Jerusalem, before its time?

First performed at the Queen's Hall on 28th March 1916.

Actually, composer Hubert Parry was more attracted to Blake's words as a vehicle to register his support for the suffrage movement, than as a patriotic wartime hymn.

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I think the programme is very clearly about the Great War and this thread will raise a lot of questions on the subject given time. My last post on the thread it seems, have fun with it in Skindles then. :thumbsup:

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Watched both it & Foyle on the iPlayer. Both heaving with cliches.

By the by, it's filmed in Edale. Brother in law lived there about 20 years back. Still dismally bleak.

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Andy

The thread could have been about the Great War but unfortunately taken over

Roger

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Let's not give up just yet Andy and Roger - but please can we stay on topic and (reasonably) sensible - thanks

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A number of superfluous comments have been removed. I'm all for a bit of fun, but if you have nothing to say about the actual programme...

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Fair comment. I didn't wholly dislike it, and it is a corrective to the Downton School of History (sic)

Interesting sidelight in today's Tottygraph http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/tvandradio/9965488/The-Village-are-you-man-enough-for-a-horrible-history.html

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If ten thousand crackpots like us take exception to the flaws and inaccuracies, ten million numpties will love it.

Actually, I liked it.

But then I am a confirmed stone picker.

Phil (PJA)

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I rarely watch TV and have seen about three minutes of 'Downton' but I thought that I'd try to watch this one : I didn't think that it was bad at all. I'd be surprised if it adds much to anyone's knowledge of Britain in 1914. But 'The Village' is a TV drama not a serious documentary. Of course it's going to rely on cliches but think it should be appraised in a different way from a programme that claims to be 'factual'.

Personally it made me smile for all the reasons mentioned in the article that Steven had kindly highlighted below.I kept thinking of all the people with supper on a tray wanting a standard Sunday evening costume drama, and getting served up with a much more severe offering.

I am quite curious to consider what any of us expect from a drama which is set during the Great War and how we expect mainstream TV to deal with a subject that we feel so strongly about .

Regards

Michael Bully

Fair comment. I didn't wholly dislike it, and it is a corrective to the Downton School of History (sic)

Interesting sidelight in today's Tottygraph http://www.telegraph...le-history.html

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I watched as large parts were filmed in the next village Hayfield Derbyshire. Infact I know someone very well whose farm they used for filming.

Can only agree with the majority AWFUL and innacurate!

Soon as I set eyes on white PVC windows early on I knew it was in trouble !

Public baths in a small Derbyshire village in 1914 unlikely a town yes but a rural Derbyshire village ?

I got totally bored with it even whilst trying to spot the localities!

Hayfileld is a lovelly village however Arthur Lowe "Captain Mainwaring" lived there for many years.

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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.

None - the writer, Peter Moffatm did not believe you could fictionalise in film the front so it is all set in the Village

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This was a solid start as it set the scene for the seven Great War episodes that follow. GIven the amount of dross on British TV this is to be welcomed as a serious drama which has the potential to get near the brilliant Heimat. As for the type of window watchers, the bus nerds, Jerusalem was later etc etc get a life and don't waste your time and use the off button.

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For anyone taken with the scenery, it was filmed in and around the Derbyshire village of Hayfield. One or two scenes were actually on Chapel en le Frith market place and considering how close it is to a busy main road, the film crew did quite well to shut the road down for the scenes they wanted. I've only just watched it and have to say I was left somewhat disappointed. The female school teacher cum 'stolling around as if she owned the place' actress wound me up and hope the next episode proves more convincing.

Dave

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As the series is called The Village, I supposed everything was set there and we would see the war from the perspective of those left behind - with maybe a flashback or two for a wounded soldier, or shell shocked patient?

As you go on to say there are 7 Great War episodes to follow, there MUST be something there for us to get our teeth into?

Whoops, Granville posted whilst I composed. This is directed towards Alan Tucker's postings.

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Agreed.

We need more 'Horrible Histories' on the telly. My kids love them.

That everything is set in 'The Village' throughout the entire series is given as a huge clue in the title.

I'd have thought we'll be seeing the effects of people receiving 'that' telegram and their coping with life as widows bringing up their children alone, surviving sons growing up to be the main breadwinner before leaving school and all the social turmoil that ensued after the war. My impression was that we'd be looking at 43 hours in the whole series with just this six week block being about the WW1 period.

It promises to be a fascinating examination of English life in 'The Village' through the years as seen by the main character. Even if it delivers just half what it promises, I think it will still be worth watching.

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It really depends what you want from a tv drama. As a Roman historian, I could similarly criticize "I Claudius", generally regarded as a classic piece of tv drama and one of my all time favourites, because it focuses mainly on Livia poisoning most of her family and on various salacious stories put about by Roman historians (mostly senators who definitely had axes to grind when it came to discussing emperors). Much of what is shown is likely to be either untrue or a distortion of the truth, as the sources were biased to start with! But who cares, when the acting and drama are so fantastic?! Personally, I'm happy to be a "numptie" occasionally if I'm entertained. If I want chapter and verse on a subject I'll go find a good book or a documentary. :mellow:

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We seem to go around the same circles everytime anything on TV mentions the Great War. Like it or not, 'The Village' is drama not a documentry. For serious studies on historical themes we have BBC3, the History Channel and, periodically, the one which shows Catherine Cookson, TV films on a Sunday. There is also the 'off' button.

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Interesting article by Max Hastings below also containing an excellent photo of a rural bus/charabanc. I think that such so called "dramas" do attract adverse comment and frankly derision because in the main they are complete and utter rubbish. I suspect that a large proportion of the population accept what they see as being fact and in the case of the Great War I am doubtful that such people will have ever read anything factual about the conflict whatsoever in order to form a balanced understanding of just what happened during 1914-1918. It would appear from the media reports that this present "series" has been written as a deliberate counterbalance to the dreadful Downton Abbey, remember the bit in that where a soldier went missing then came back as a Canadian as the result of an head injury or Matthew (?) suddenly losing his paralysis and walking/dancing again, well this latest effort is just the same only at the other end of the historical spectrum.

Link

http://www.dailymail...richer-now.html

Regards

Norman

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Max Hastings is tipping out a stream of clichés of his own in an article which probably took someone of his ability about ten minutes to write. I don't think it matters significantly if some of the population choose not to read factual texts about the Great War because it just isn't that important to them, any more than I need to read up about pharmacology to go into Boots. Obviously it's better if what people do read is right, but for many people's daily purposes all they need is a flavour of history. Max Hastings clearly doesn't think it's worth applying his penetrating intelligence to the matter.

From having dipped into 'The Village' and whizzed through some of it because I don't need other people's misery at the moment, I'm surprised that there isn't more made of the role of chapel and church in the community.

Gwyn

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Guest exuser1

As a reenactor of many years there is a Yankee term for a certain type of re enactor Farbee , who normally starts with "Far be it from me ,but that tunic should have 27 stitches per inch for the early period ?"

Great War drama on TV seems to bring them out in droves ,if you don't enjoy it switch off ,but remember its a TV drama which hopes to recreate for TV the years of the 20th century as did Heimat , which had a few issues with kit and was full of actors with dialogue that was in no way 1920/30s but was superb drama , as was Das Boot .

Here on the forum people have said how much they enjoyed Ripper Street , which has some huge inaccuracies ,but is enjoyable drama with a historical setting ,so why not give The Village the same leeway .

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