General Chat

There is one particular historian, LF Salzman, who has books available to read free on-line, who I find particularly magical. He can inject little bits of real life into what he writes.

It is just a shame that some makers of television programmes don't have his knack. I won't usually watch docu-dramas but, last night I watched a programme about Richard ll which, in my opinion, had far too much drama in it.

I wonder what people think life was like in the past if they do watch these programmes unquestioningly.Really, life was just like now, get up,eat,work,eat,go to bed with a bit of entertainment here and there.

Just as most of us didn't bounce about on the moon and take LSD in the sixties, I am pretty sure most people didn't have a red up poker up their bottom most days, the was not filled with a woman wailing or plainsong any more than Motorhead fills the air today

Sharron - very descriptive.

"Compare the elusive brevity of life & the patient pertinacity of death".

Oh, how I agree with you, about historical docu-dramas being over dramatized. and, in quite a few cases, historically inaccurate.

I watched a couple of episodes of 'Ripper Street' - and was quite (historically) confused. It didn't help that the lead actor is rubbish.
'Peaky Blinders' was to over-dramatized for me, too.
A lot of docu-dramas also appear to be filmed in some sort of half-light, so every scene looked like some old, dirty painting, in need of a good clean :-(

Agree too! I get particularly bugged by some of the 'dark age' ones, covering anything from Romano-Britain, Saxons, Celts, throw in the Arthurian legends too. The portrayal of a 'mystic' island filled with strange rituals and elusive Druids. It wasn't any more mystical than today, just emptier and harder to get around.

I am sorry,Dermot. I don't understand what you mean. Could you explain,please?

Quotation marks please Dermot, ;-)

though I suppose the difference of one word makes it not quite a quote, not quite your own?
https://tinyurl.com/yd9ahej5