Secret Army - The Complete BBC Series 2 [DVD] [1977]

Drawing its cast from such BBC classics as "Colditz" and "I, Claudius" to name but two, and set in Wartime Belgium; "Secret Army" tells the story of an underground organisation dedicated to helping crashed Allied airmen return to Britain - and the German forces equally dedicated to stopping them! Remarkably it does so in a way that avoids the worst stereotypes. The putative heroes in Lifeline are not all sweetness and light - Albert Foiret (Bernard Hepton), owner of the Cafe Candide often used as the central meeting place by the evasion line, is not above killing in cold blood if his (or Lifeline's) interests are threatened. He is carrying on an affair with one of his waitresses, Monique (Angela Richards) whilst his crippled wife is bedbound upstairs, and Monique wishes her dead. Nor are the Germans potrayed entirely as the evil monsters of most war flicks. Major Brandt (Michael Culver)in charge of the Luftwaffe's forces comes across as an honourable, decent man who tries to treat his captives well whilst still getting them to part with the information he needs. Even the resident Gestapo Officer (Clifford Rose) has an human side - although it rarely slips past his "official" facade. The storylines were kept realistic, with Lifeline and the German forces probably coming in with a score draw. Once the initial episodes have set the scene, all of the key characters are allowed to richly develop, and the tension towards the end of the series as the net closes in on the evaders is masterfully portrayed, as is the historically accurate dislike between the German military forces and their Gestapo colleagues. "Secret Army" is a classic drama series from the BBC school of wobbly sets and solid acting. It is a crying shame that the series is most commonly remembered as the basis for "'Allo 'Allo".

I first saw the series, as a child, in the 1970s when originally broadcast. Then, I could not really comprehend my mother's fascination with the series. Now, some 25 years later, fully appraised of my own family's wartime role in Luxembourg (where on a much smaller scale Allied airmen were sent down the line, in circumstances of great danger to both the handlers, safe-houses and airmen themselves), and having heard many stories of bravery, cruelty and betrayal, not dissimilar to those depicted in the series, I can fully appreciate what happened during those horrendous years of terror.

My mother found the series compelling and accurate: she was, during the war, a teenager living on a farm in Luxembourg (the farm being one of the safe houses) and her future brother-in-law one of the handlers who risked his life in the Resistance, and later became a hotelier, rather like Albert! The village churchyard has two R.A.F. headstones to this day: 2 young men who were, unfortunately, not so fortunate. We still lay wreaths every November.

The series is a fine fictional, but based on true accounts, record of a remarkable achievement by Belgian (and Luxembourgeoise) individuals of great courage in the face of adversity and all of us who enjoy our freedom now owe them a debt of gratitude.

The acting is superb, the storylines accurate, chilling and compelling, and this will count as one of the finest of the BBC's productions of the 1970s.

I was far from home, working in Indianapolis, IN, when I discovered a tiny public station run by a small local college. They aired an episode of SECRET ARMY every Saturday at 7:00 PM. I was hooked halfway through the first episode. This series had everything: nerve wracking suspense, unexpected turns and twists in the plots, reaistic dialogue, and a memorable lineup of characters played very ably by outstanding actors. I envy you Brits for having the DVD series available! The other big plus to this series is that it showed how life really was under Nazi rule. While several German soldiers are played sympathetically, the series does show that the Nazi machine was ruthless and efficient, and it was run by men who were ruthless and efficient. If you have secondary level children, this is a great educational tool to show them the way it was under nazi occupation.

I found this series rivetting, thought-provoking, and at times troubling. But it really brought home to me how much was at stake when Hitler was making war, and how so much was given by ordinary people who rose to do extraordinary things in order to save the world from naziism. I wish the series were not so under-appreciated by the BBC itself. It deserves praise for being so well done and remaining such a memorable television experience.