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DaveinGermany 22-01-2012 11:33

Birdsong
 
Just been reading about this in a couple of the papers, think it may appeal to a few on here. (the Downton abbyists for one, or possibly those interested in WWI once you get past all the simpering Girly stuff ;))

Birdsong, BBC One, preview - Telegraph

BBC 1 Sunday 22nd Jan 9.00 PM

mobertol 23-01-2012 15:34

Re: Birdsong
 
Quote:

Originally Posted by DaveinGermany (Post 964078)
Just been reading about this in a couple of the papers, think it may appeal to a few on here. (the Downton abbyists for one, or possibly those interested in WWI once you get past all the simpering Girly stuff ;))

Birdsong, BBC One, preview - Telegraph

BBC 1 Sunday 22nd Jan 9.00 PM

Now DiG, since when is WWI simpering girly stuff?:confused:

War and love have always gone hand in hand. Think GI Brides, Dear John letters after quick weddings before "he" goes off to do his bit for King and Country... Part of the survival mechanism of the human race.;):)

Would love to see this 2-parter. Was talking to mum about it yesterday -by coincidence she had just started reading the book and is then going to let me borrow it as it's one I haven't read yet.

Has anyone seen it yet? Is it worth watching?

Gordon Booth 23-01-2012 17:14

Re: Birdsong
 
Quote:

Originally Posted by mobertol (Post 964369)

Has anyone seen it yet? Is it worth watching?

I thought the first part was very good-Eddie Redmayne can say more with one long smouldering stare than I managed to speak in many years of 'courting'.
Sadly, they have apparently missed out the third time period of the book(1978) because of time and budget so I'll have to read the book to find the ending, which I gather isn't happy!
The trench scenes looked quite real-filmed in a sunflower field in Hungary!(with some slight landscaping by bulldozers).

kestrelx 23-01-2012 17:29

Re: Birdsong
 
There are no Soldiers left alive now who fought in the 1st World War - all gone now - RIP! From that angle it's essential viewing, I don't know what they teach in schools now about it though?

ToffeeGuy 24-01-2012 23:19

Re: Birdsong
 
Quote:

Originally Posted by kestrelx (Post 964466)
There are no Soldiers left alive now who fought in the 1st World War - all gone now - RIP! From that angle it's essential viewing, I don't know what they teach in schools now about it though?

They are taught how a generation of young people were led to oblivion by upper class twits. It prepares them for life in modern Britain.

kestrelx 25-01-2012 00:28

Re: Birdsong
 
Quote:

Originally Posted by ToffeeGuy (Post 965001)
They are taught how a generation of young people were led to oblivion by upper class twits. It prepares them for life in modern Britain.

Do they teach them that the Keiser Wilhelm 2 (head of Germany) was the Grandson of Queen Victoria (Queen of United Kingdom)

Wilhelm II, German Emperor - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Pity she wasn't still alive before World War 1; she could have knocked some sense into him! ;) (this is a joke) and maybe averted the war! (this is sarcasm of course the world don't work like that?) :D

garinda 25-01-2012 04:53

Re: Birdsong
 
Quote:

Originally Posted by ToffeeGuy (Post 965001)
They are taught how a generation of young people were led to oblivion by upper class twits. It prepares them for life in modern Britain.

Don't be bitter.

There's always hope.

If you work really hard, you could try to climb the ladder, to achieve the next rung up on the twit scale.

garinda 25-01-2012 04:57

Re: Birdsong
 
Didn't rate the book.

Have read better, on the same subject.

Switched off the programme after half an hour.

mobertol 25-01-2012 09:00

Re: Birdsong
 
Quote:

Originally Posted by garinda (Post 965012)
Didn't rate the book.

Have read better, on the same subject.

Switched off the programme after half an hour.

Haven't spoken to mum about it yet -she should be a couple of days reading into the book and may have seen the BBC drama.

She is keeping the book for me to read - will gve it a try as it's on the "100 books to read" list and I'm still way behind you!:rolleyes::)

katex 25-01-2012 16:54

Re: Birdsong
 
Found this dramatisation painfully slow, lacking in any sort of story content, albeit the sets and costumes were up to the usual BBC standards.

I found Eddie Redmayne's 'smouldering stare' (thank you Gordon) overly long and quite scary ... still filled in the weak script, I suppose. If anybody looked at me like that, would think him a bit of a lurcher rather than a besotted admirer.

The death of the hero was reminiscent of a scene from Blackadder:

"That one's not breathing ... throw him on the dead pile"
"Ah, miracles ! He breatheth"
"Ok, back to the trenches .... (mutter) more paper work"

Have stretched it a little, but did make me laugh. Think this was far fetched though.

Nevertheless, will watch the concluding part.

Margaret Pilkington 25-01-2012 19:32

Re: Birdsong
 
I read the book having been told that it was wonderful.......I found it just this side of OK....nothing to write home about and I couldn't recommend it to anyone........so it will come as no surprise that I gave this program the 'swerve'.

Gordon Booth 25-01-2012 19:36

Re: Birdsong
 
It's surprising(and good) how we all see a programme differently.
I see what you mean about the 'smouldering stare', katex-'overly long and quite scary'.
I should think it could make a woman quite uncomfortable and if I'd been her husband I'd have shot him on the spot before anything happened.

mobertol 25-01-2012 20:04

Re: Birdsong
 
My mum said she'd enjoyed the first part of the drammatisation - is just getting into the book. Funny how different people see things differently -might just have to make up my own mind!

kestrelx 25-01-2012 22:58

Re: Birdsong
 
Never read the book, seen the publicity for it in all the shops, they spent a lot on advertising for it, with big window displays everywhere. The TV program was good I thought, I read they used to dig tunnels under no mans land this was the first drama that featured it.

BERNADETTE 25-01-2012 23:42

Re: Birdsong
 
I watched it and after a slow start quite enjoyed it. Will be watching the concluding part on Sunday evening.

kestrelx 30-01-2012 08:58

Re: Birdsong
 
Quote:

Originally Posted by BERNADETTE (Post 965257)
I watched it and after a slow start quite enjoyed it. Will be watching the concluding part on Sunday evening.

The Jam - Little Boy Soldiers + Lyrics - YouTube

With compliments :rolleyes::D

mobertol 30-01-2012 10:48

Re: Birdsong
 
Quote:

Originally Posted by kestrelx (Post 966258)

Enjoyed that-haven't heard that song in years -a real classic -love the closing two lines especially.

Went to see The Jam in about '78, great times. They came into the chippy we went to after the concert and we were all too shy to ask them for their autographs!:o:D

Gordon Booth 30-01-2012 10:55

Re: Birdsong
 
Overall I thought it was quite good.
It made me think how lucky the men of my generation and their families( and indeed our children's generation) have been to miss a world wide war- our fathers and grandfathers weren't so lucky.
How would we have handled it? Hard to imagine but probably just like they did.

mobertol 30-01-2012 10:59

Re: Birdsong
 
Quote:

Originally Posted by Gordon Booth (Post 966282)
Overall I thought it was quite good.
It made me think how lucky the men of my generation and their families( and indeed our children's generation) have been to miss a world wide war- our fathers and grandfathers weren't so lucky.
How would we have handled it? Hard to imagine but probably just like they did.

Wouldn't have had much choice Gordon, though I do think that as the generations progress we are becoming "softer". The sacrifices my Grandparents generation made, meant they wanted more and better things for us and somehow that has made us weaker. I'm convinced they were made of sterner stuff.

susie123 30-01-2012 11:07

Re: Birdsong
 
Quote:

Originally Posted by Gordon Booth (Post 966282)
Overall I thought it was quite good.
It made me think how lucky the men of my generation and their families( and indeed our children's generation) have been to miss a world wide war- our fathers and grandfathers weren't so lucky.
How would we have handled it? Hard to imagine but probably just like they did.

If it were truly a world wide war as opposed to conflicts like Afghanistan or Bosnia we'd probably all be annihilated in a few minutes.

garinda 30-01-2012 18:22

Re: Birdsong
 
Quote:

Originally Posted by mobertol (Post 966284)
Wouldn't have had much choice Gordon, though I do think that as the generations progress we are becoming "softer". The sacrifices my Grandparents generation made, meant they wanted more and better things for us and somehow that has made us weaker. I'm convinced they were made of sterner stuff.

True.

Same flesh and bones, but now mollycoddled bones.

'P'RADE 'TENNNNSION!'

'Scuse me, but who the frig iz you talkin' to?'

'You dissin' me?'

'Uz gotta show me some respect, before I does any left-right, left-right, marchy-marchy, geezer.'

mobertol 30-01-2012 21:22

Re: Birdsong
 
Quote:

Originally Posted by garinda (Post 966423)
True.

Same flesh and bones, but now mollycoddled bones.

'P'RADE 'TENNNNSION!'

'Scuse me, but who the frig iz you talkin' to?'

'You dissin' me?'

'Uz gotta show me some respect, before I does any left-right, left-right, marchy-marchy, geezer.'

Lol! :D

If it had to be re-run WW2 would be lost this time around..:eek:

The youngsters have far more swagger than any Sgt Major with his Swagger Stick:rolleyes:


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