Michael Wood's Story of England [DVD]

This high quality six-part BBC series is world away from the average modern history `infotainment' programme. Historian Michael Wood, more normally seen in some exotic foreign location, brings enthusiasm and expertise to the subject and makes several thousand years of past events accessible to a wide audience.
This series is involving and informative, but it's not dumbed down or endlessly repetitive. There's no running and shouting in false excitement which plagues some archaeological digs, no tedious/preposterous dramatic reconstructions. Just plenty of info and insight, examined and shared by a congenial, knowledgeable host.

Wood aimed to tell the story of England as seen from the perspective of the common man, not simply the usual list of kings and queens and dates, which can feel sterile and separate from the reality of actual life. He chose Kibworth in Leciestershire because it is so well represented in various written archives: by fluke, a collection of three hamlets happen to be recorded in all manner of old documents giving a unique insight into the life and times of families 500 and more years ago. The paperwork was kept safe in an Oxford College archive, stashed within the library's stone walls where fire couldn't threaten this collection of revealing details about daily life.
Kibworth is also geographically slap-bang in the middle of the country, and was thus affected by almost every major turning point in British history, be it invaders from the south, east or north, or plague and pestilence. In many ways Kibworth could be `any village', and it serves extremely well to represent the typical development of English society over two millennium and more. Although Kibworth forms the centrepiece of the programmes, Wood wanders further afield as well, and as required to demonstrate any significant points of history where the Kibworth records have a gap in them. This is a mature investigation, not one hide-bound by nonsensical TV formalities...

The series involved an enormous commitment from the production team and took many months to research and film. The result is not only rewarding in depth as well as breadth, but also an intriguing reflection of a modern village throughout an average year. Part of what makes each programme very rewarding to watch is the involvement and enthusiasm of the local people, who played an enormous part in this project. They dug some 50 or 60 archaeological pits, supervised by historians and experts (including Carenza Lewis; always nice to see her on camera!), and found all manner of artefacts from pre-historic through Roman and Anglo-Saxon periods, past the Middle Ages and up to the late Georgian. One of the interesting on-camera experts was a bike-riding dude who knew his pot sherds backwards; someone would show him a fragment of battered ceramic and he could almost say whose workshop it had come from, 1500 years ago!

The series is divided into six periods from Romans to Normans; Domesday to Magna Carta; Great Famine and Black Death; Peasant's Revolt to Tudors, and then through the Industrial Revolution and two Word Wars. So we experience life in village England as revealed by the Roman villa and Norman castle, or the activities of viking settlers (including how place-names evolved from their language); from the effects of the 100 years war to the beginning of an education system and how it affected locals, all the way past the suffragettes, and Luftwaffe bombing in WW2.
High points for me included the Gar Tree, a local gathering / speaking point. Also, some of the best moments come when Wood examines actual documents from hundreds of years ago, poring over crumbling, yellowed pages, using his handy magnifying glass and translating from old English, rejoicing when a familiar family name pulls the thread of a story together. Proper historical research - as it occurs, on camera!
Low points? Hardly any... although I suspected that the `discovery' of a Norman `castle' at Kibworth was maybe a little more wishful thinking than an actual reality.

The filming is more intimate and relaxed than in a typical history series; Wood narrates each segments and does a goodly number of turns to camera while bounding around the landscape (wearing his trademark blue scarf, we noted), but his is far from the only voice we hear. Actually, some of the vox pop interviews get a bit repetitive, as does the footage of local folk in the pub. However, when local villagers speak the recorded words of their predecessors, it brings a very personal touch to details of what work they owed their landlord, or how many people they'd laid to rest in a period of plague. There are some extremely poignant, human moments.
I've just one big gripe about the DVD release: it could have been so much longer than just the original six 60 minute programmes. There must be tonnes of unused footage, and it would have been ideal to re-edit the episodes to give greater detail - or simply create a couple of extra bonus programmes for us enthusiasts.
The nature of the filming is rather more restrained than on, say, Michael Wood's Indian history series. It's less flamboyant and a little humdrum at times. However, the English countryside still provides some breath-taking moments, admirably captured by the crew.

If you ever felt really frustrated that Time Team only touches the tip of the iceberg (and that most TV archaeology progs end just as they start to get interesting), then the Story of England should prove thoroughly rewarding. I've enjoyed every episode and my understanding of how English culture and customs has grown considerably.

8/10

We are all familiar with the superb historical BBC productions put together by Mr Wood and this i believe is his ninth BBC production and amazingly his research concentrates on a single small Leciestershire village.

The research undertaken obviously with a great deal of help was simply staggering and all the information was factually accurate taken mostly from archival documentation.

To be able to compile each episode concentrating on one defining point in Englands history and then bringing together totally accurate documentation to make the past spring to life and also captivate the audience is the work of a master.

Combining together the past two thousand years of history of one little village in the heart of England and not for one instance throughout the entire production throw in a piece of evidence or hearsay that cannot be backed up by solid historical fact is testimony to Michael's brilliance as a historian.

Ive enjoyed all his productions for the past thirty and more years but this "Story of England" has left me spellbound with its sheer quality of research and narrative.

It was obvious why he chose Kibworth simply because the historical documentation and architectural background available for this small community is amongst the most complete in the whole of England with documentation going back to the late 13C and almost every century afterwards.

The medieval field systems right through the centuries have the names of their owners ploughed through every grain of soil for antiquity, we know them all in Kibworth and also those unfortunates who left their vacant plots of land unattended during the Great Plague and Black Death.

That episode on agriculture with known names of families who owned each strip of land and how much tithes they had to pay as well as those who became prosperous by the purchase of extra land and adjoining strips was for me the highlite of this production.

It was Michael's addictive enthusiasm that made a remote hedged field in the middle of Englands countryside come to life.

We almost began to know them personally these poorly paid labourers who struggled to make an existence in times of plenty and famine, their names are real and they have not died unrecognised like so many before and after them.

For those that remember the episode of the fallen tree that had survived for centuries marking the field boundaries and meeting place for villagers and mentioned in the Kibworth chronicles, and then lo and behold the last remaining remnant horribly scared with age and saved by a knowlegable resident is pure Michael Wood magic.

He obviously knew the tree fragment existed but the look of amazement when the proud owner showed it to him was infectious.

I am sure many of us will have learnt about the Agricultural Revolution with Turnip Townsend and such like in school but the information Micheal was coming up with was breathtaking and showing us the ancient documents based at Oxford relating to Kibworth throughout the centuries right through the Great Plague, Agricultural Revolution, Industrial Revolution up to the present was for those interested in history of this period awe inspiring.

Kibworth bacame involved in Englands defining moment with the English Civil War between King Charles 1 and Cromwells Parliamentarians with the deciding battle of Naesby almost on the villages doorstep.

For a battle lasting a little over 180 minutes Naesby meant the end of the Royalist struggle and British political history would never be the same again, Parliament was now sovereign and all decisions effecting the United Kingdom came from Parliament and not the Crown.

Yes Kibworth has seen it all over the centuries and its location in central Englands Leicestershire countryside has put it at the centre of most of Englands past struggles.

I must apologise if i am becoming too repatative in my praise for this remarkable series but when praise is due it must be given.

I just cannot remember when a series as well researched and presented as this one came on to the BBC, and it will be some time to come before anyone equalls this series for interest and production value.

Every episode was beautifully researched and involving the entire community right down from the school children to their parents was pretty special and made the history more interesting and personal.

One felt that it could have been their own community that was being dug up by archaeologists with the almost unique discovery of a particular type of Saxon pottery for that area of Leciestershire being a highlite of that particular episode.

This series had a bit of everything with history dating from Roman artifacts right through the Saxon Dark Ages and Norman Motte and Bailley Castle and throughout every century.

Michael Wood must be heartedly commended for producing what was alongside David Dimblebys "Seven Ages of Britain" one of the finest historical series shown on the BBC for many many years.

With all the disappointing rubbish now available on digital television at least the BBc can be relied upon to give us top quality entertainment.

Granted this kind of television is not to everyones likeing but for the many viewers who love history programmes and series involving research Michael Wood can be relied upon to give us quality television the kind that justifies our expensive tv licence.

There are few people the BBc can trust to produce amazing television.

David Attenbourough, David Dimbleby and most certainly Michael Wood are amongst those who apparently can do no wrong.

I defie anybody to show worthy criticism of any production produced by the above gentlemen.

They are all household names who without question can guarantee a prime slot on national television with every series they have produced.

Having one television series on the BBC to your name is quite something but these men have given us guaranteed quality over many years.

The only problem now is how can Michael Wood surpass this stroke of genius ? I think he may have a big problem on his hands.

A wonderful series, especially for the layperson. I like history but don't really have that much knowledge. Michael Wood manages to instill his usual enthusiasm and give a detailed, gripping account of England basing most of his findings on the records of a small town in the Midlands. I couldn't recommend this highly enough. Good for viewing after viewing after viewing.