I enjoyed the series as entertainment but became too irritated by the historical inaccuracy. Not so much of the war itself but of the social relationships between the officers and their men. In episode one they portray the Australian officer as a bolshie individualist - some of his men might have been - but Australian officers were schooled in exactly the same way as their English counterparts and had attitudes to match.
There is no way that officers would have taken the lip offered by their men as shown in the series. Such men would have been tied to artillery wheels for their impertinence. Nurses were given the rank of lieutenant and would not have fraternized openly with other-ranks - although there would have been some secretive liaisons behind the matron's back for sure. Capital punishment courts martial was a formal procedure and not awarded in the field as portrayed in episode 2. The Northern Irish army chaplain would not have taken kindly to being addressed in the manner of a Catholic Priest. Not on the Somme. And as a major he would not have accepted back-chat from a private either. *As a small side note on this, the Ulster volunteer contingent had actually named a part of the front line the Pope's Nose, so as to encourage themselves in the assault.
And the private with the Mohican helmet? in 1916? are you serious? He would have been up on a charge for not wearing his regulation helmet straight.
As for the Germans marching towards the bridge in formation order. Argghh. I can understand them being ambushed whilst on the march - and I think this is what actually happened - they were caught in a railway cutting or such like.
So no. Not brilliant. Entertaining, yes. Maybe even a little sinister if it is insinuating lost values.
There is no way that officers would have taken the lip offered by their men as shown in the series. Such men would have been tied to artillery wheels for their impertinence. Nurses were given the rank of lieutenant and would not have fraternized openly with other-ranks - although there would have been some secretive liaisons behind the matron's back for sure. Capital punishment courts martial was a formal procedure and not awarded in the field as portrayed in episode 2. The Northern Irish army chaplain would not have taken kindly to being addressed in the manner of a Catholic Priest. Not on the Somme. And as a major he would not have accepted back-chat from a private either. *As a small side note on this, the Ulster volunteer contingent had actually named a part of the front line the Pope's Nose, so as to encourage themselves in the assault.
And the private with the Mohican helmet? in 1916? are you serious? He would have been up on a charge for not wearing his regulation helmet straight.
As for the Germans marching towards the bridge in formation order. Argghh. I can understand them being ambushed whilst on the march - and I think this is what actually happened - they were caught in a railway cutting or such like.
So no. Not brilliant. Entertaining, yes. Maybe even a little sinister if it is insinuating lost values.