The 1970s was a wonderful time for British tv, and for classic WW2 dramas like Colditz and Enemy At The Door, but for me Secret Army was the best of the lot. Although most of the episodes were fairly generic (Lifeline locates shot-down airmen, hides them from the Germans and smuggles them back to Britain) what really impressed me besides the excellent writing and acting, was the nuanced way in which the leading characters were portrayed.
For instance, we see Kessler on the one hand ordering the illegal torture of prisoners and pledging undying loyalty to The Fuhrer, and on the other treating his Belgian lover with kindness and respect. Also, our hero Albert Foiret is shown displaying great courage in adversity, while making no secret of the fact that he's partly doing it for the money and that the Candide restaurant comes first. Secret Army also highlights the divisions between the Luftwaffe and SS nazis, and between the Communists and Lifeline - it's subtle things like these that you don't see enough in tv drama anymore, where everything tends to be reduced to predictable stereotypes.
Although an undoubted classic, Secret Army wasn't always taken as seriously as it deserved, and this could be down to being mercilessly lampooned by 'Allo Allo', a popular though largely unfunny and best forgotten relic of 80s sitcom mediocrity.
For instance, we see Kessler on the one hand ordering the illegal torture of prisoners and pledging undying loyalty to The Fuhrer, and on the other treating his Belgian lover with kindness and respect. Also, our hero Albert Foiret is shown displaying great courage in adversity, while making no secret of the fact that he's partly doing it for the money and that the Candide restaurant comes first. Secret Army also highlights the divisions between the Luftwaffe and SS nazis, and between the Communists and Lifeline - it's subtle things like these that you don't see enough in tv drama anymore, where everything tends to be reduced to predictable stereotypes.
Although an undoubted classic, Secret Army wasn't always taken as seriously as it deserved, and this could be down to being mercilessly lampooned by 'Allo Allo', a popular though largely unfunny and best forgotten relic of 80s sitcom mediocrity.