Tales From the Green Valley

[watervole]

I came across 'Tales from the Green Valley' via another member of the English Civil War Society.  It was filmed before 'The Victorian Farm' and others in that series, but essentially, it is the first of the series.

It's set just over 20 years before the English Civil War started, and at least two of the people involved were members of the ECWS. (Stuart Peachy of Stuart Press, and Ruth Goodman the social historian)

The full series is available on YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dRj1YYnsBGk

It's an enjoyable watch and the picture quality is better in the later episodes.

Alasdair Peachy, the little boy climbing pear trees and helping out with small jobs on occasion, is now a leading light of the Norfolk Trained Bands...

 

Comments

[ranunculus]

I enjoyed the Victorian Farm series. It did give a taste of the era. Kudos to the folks who actually went out and tried to do all that hard work. As a stagehand, and to some extent a farmhand, I've found that it takes about 3 months to really get fit enough to do tasks like that with any ease.

[galadhir]

Oh, hurray! I liked that one better than the Victorian farm series and didn't think I would get to see it again. I'm off to bookmark it on Youtube now (or whatever else it is you do on YouTube.) Thank you!

[watervole]

Excellent!
I like the older ones better as well. As they get more mechanised, I find it less interesting.

[igenlode]

As they get more mechanised, I find it less interesting.

I'm afraid it was the machinery angle that initially drew me in ;-)

[watervole]

I adore things like mill machinery. Even early reapers and binders, but I start to drop on traction engines. (I love them, but less in the farming context)

I think I like most to know about things that would be possible to replicate with basic tools.

[igenlode]

I never knew sweetbreads were testicles :-D
(Ep. 3)

[watervole]

Neither did I, until that same point!

[igenlode]

According to the BBC, "Sweetbreads are subject to much confusion, and are often mistakenly believed to be the testicles of an animal. In fact, they’re two separate glands - the thymus gland (from the throat) and the pancreas gland (from the heart or stomach) that are taken from calves or lambs" -- that does ring a faint bell.

But obviously what they were eating in the programme *were* testicles, by whatever name :-)

[igenlode]

Wait, is that *the* Ronald Hutton? :-O The one who wrote all our history textbooks at school?

[watervole]

Is this the Ronald Hutton you mean? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ronald_Hutton

I have several books of his, but I wouldn't have thought schools would have many as they are mainly relating to really well researched folk history.
His one on pre-Christian UK religion is probably unique, in that it doesn't invent information - just tells you what we can prove from the archaeological evidence.

'Seasons of the Sun' is my favourite, and has more useful information on maypole dancing than I've found anywhere else.

IF time ever allows, I'd like to read his book on Modern Paganism (treating it as a genuine modern religion, but not as a continuation of ancient Druids, etc)

[igenlode]

Not the folk history, but all the Early Modern England textbooks (apparently he went off into the pagan stuff later, and his Wikipedia talk page is full of aggrieved posters complaining about how he didn't do their particular favourite justice...)

[word_geek]

He did write some of the stuff we used for A level (I picked the English Civil War option), and my school invited him over to give a talk