There is nothing on the television which really appeals to me right now so I have dug out an old favourite from sometime around 2006 - Tales from the Green Valley, link below.
It is a series of twelve half hour documentaries about life on a 17th century farm on the Welsh border. It follows a group of people as they try to recreate life as it was lived back then, one month at a time.
Episode 4 is the Christmas one, but they are all very good.
I loved watching Tales from the Green Valley when it was on television, it was so fascinating. I haven't got it on DVD although I do have Ruth, Peter and Alex(who wasn't part of the Green Valley Series) recreating a Tudor Christmas at Haddon Hall, in Derbsyhire:)
ReplyDeleteI haven't seen the Haddon Hall Christmas one, Rosie - so thank you for that, I will try to track it down. I also enjoy Ruth Mott and Harry Dodson and their (very) old series of programmes on the Victorian Kitchen, Kitchen Garden, etc. Gentle and enjoyable. More rain is cascading down again today, a good excuse for me to find them up and watch another episode.
DeleteYours and Rosie's suggestions, sound delightful.
ReplyDeleteWith luck, they are offered on Prime!
'Tis the Season for such watching. :-)
They are wonderful visually, but they are also fascinating historically, wow. I hope you manage to track them down, they really are worth the effort, if you like social history. Very easy on the eye, the brain, and perfect for the short dark days at this end of the year!
DeleteThis has to be my favourite of the series which went on to be a social history series based in different periods. Loved the Victorian Farm too. I have them all on DVD plus the books - definitely time to blow the dust off. Quite often when I get wet sleeve-ends from the washing up I determine I must make myself some lower arm covers like the ones Ruth used!!
ReplyDeleteDeeply practical. Alternatively, you could get someone else to do the washing up!
DeleteIt has been a delight, watching those programmes again, Jennie, exactly what I needed. I hope you are feeling a lot better today, and that K is , too.
Like Jennie I have all the DVDs and all the books and The Green Valley is the best. It's the only one actually filmed through the seasons. The wartime farm with "Christmas" filmed with all the trees in leaf is the poorest and Col used to moan all through at the machinery being wrong for wartime. I always re-watch Green valley in Winter - but haven't got round to it yet
ReplyDeleteI wouldn't know one bit of machinery from another, but for someone like Col, it must have been very irritating. The Green Valley is still as good today, as it was all those years ago, Sue. I thoroughly enjoyed it and I hope it works its magic for you, too.
DeleteIts raining here and blowing a gale outside so the perfect suggestion for watching this afternoon.
ReplyDeleteThe trees in Owl Wood are rocking around, no doubt there will be plenty of work needed to clear the fallen bits after the storm. Stay safe and hunkered down, Lorraine. I hope your power stays on!!
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ReplyDeleteThere were several series like that where people were put back in time so to speak. I remember one for Montana or Alaska where they really had to prepare for winter in the wilderness of the 1800s and some didn't make it. They were pulled from show.
ReplyDeleteGoodness, that sounds quite scary, Marcia. I must see if I can track that down. Tales from the Green Valley is more about life on a farm, through the seasons. Fascinating viewing.
DeleteThis looks like something I would enjoy. I've never heard of the series. I've just read and enjoyed your last post.
ReplyDeleteHello Henny, it really was a superb series. I don't often watch things over, but this one gets viewed every few years - and always with the same pleasure! I hope that you are feeling a bit happier about the table.
DeleteI am tired of television and wish I had some standby films to amuse me. The cold wind is howling here, too, and the rain doesn't seem to know when to stop.
ReplyDeleteIt is wild, the kind of night when I am so thankful to be in the dry and the warm, with a cup of tea and a stash of books to hand. I hope you manage to find something to entertain, or to interest you, for the rest of the evening, Valerie.
DeleteI will look for that series, I am sure I would like it. My favorite author, Anthony Trollope, wrote 47 novels set in Victorian times, which I am now familiar with.
ReplyDeleteOoops, I meant the series that a commentor shared about, the Ruth Mott series about the Victorian Kitchen, etc. I did note down the Tales from the Green Valley too, set in the 17th century.
ReplyDeleteRuth Mott was a cook in a 'big house' the Victorian Kitchen shows her trying to teach a young woman some of the hard work which was involved. Harry Dodds was a gardener of a similar vintage, he grows vegetables for them and shows how a wonderful walled garden would have been used. I hope you manage to track down the series, they are enjoyable and informative viewing, Terra.
DeleteI hadn't heard of the Green Valley but will be sure to watch it soon - i love these kind of programs and the presenters - they are so enthusiastic about the past.
ReplyDeleteI wanted to go to Haddon Hall this Christmas but it is now £29 per person so for three of us it would be almost £90 (I wanted to take my mum but as she is 92 she cannot stand too long on these timed tours) - no concessions either - but I think you get a mince pie! We are already booked to go to the lights festival at Dunham Massey so maybe I will save up to go to Haddon for next year.
These trips do have to be planned carefully, don't they - rest breaks, access, toilets, and the eye-watering costs, although I am sure it would probably be worth it for the visual delights, if not the mince pie. Tales from the Green Valley is gentle and informative, I have really enjoyed watching it all again, it is undemanding but interesting, perfect for this time of year.
DeleteA good old friend of mine is the Tales From the Green Valley series...love it...watch it every whip and trip! x
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