Enemy at the Door

Guernsey under occupation in WW2. One thing that struck me were casting similarities to Colditz (1972), played out on a larger stage. Alfred Burke plays Bernard Hepton's role as the firm but fair German in charge. Simon Cadell has Anthony Valentine's part as fanatical Nazi breathing down his boss's neck. Bernard Horsfall has a similar responsibility to Jack Hedley as hard pressed interlocutor between the Germans and the captives. There is even Colditz actor Richard Heffer, playing a similarly dashing daredevil. The big difference is the presence of women, and some of the most memorable episodes concern them.

After the Ball. At a dance instigated by Reinicke (Cadell), a young Austrian soldier picks up an attractive Guernsey girl. But subsequent event prove disastrous for both of them.

The Jerrybag. The sad story of Betty, not bad looking but somewhat dowdy and lacking self esteem. She has an affair with, and gets pregnant by a German soldier, is ostracised by her fellow islanders, and her lover later comes to grief on the Eastern front. Betty reappears three years later in The Right Blood, where her luck fails to improve.

My one grumble is that the conclusion of the final episode Escape is unnecessarily grim, and one felt short changed that Reinicke failed to get his deserved comeuppance.

I caught this series again recently on UK's wonderful Talking Pictures TV channel; probably the 4th or 5th time since first viewing it back in 1978/79.

All episodes are very interesting with thought-provoking moral dilemmas; the acting throughout is excellent; one really cares about the participants.

It was rather "controversial" in its day with its sympathetic treatment of the German occupiers, showing them as often just as hapless as the occupied, quite a departure from the usual British "plucky hero" films that dominated from way back in the '50s.

It is difficult to commend any individual actor as all the main ones are so perfect in their roles; if forced, I guess it would have to be either Bernard Horsfall as the doctor or Alfred Burke as the Major (later Colonel) who has come from the world of academia.

Similarly, how does one cite a favourite episode? For me it has to be the second series' one where the new General gives the Alfred Burke character a severe rollicking, then reveals a relenting surprise! The tension during that interview is worthy of Tarantino.

The final episode is desperately sad; but I don't get the impression that the producers were planning to end the run there. What a shame that we never got a third season-I can imagine the final episode with the end of the war and the Colonel nobly handing over his command to the Committee.....

Anyway, let's be grateful for what we have.

I am always interested in WWII shows that tell about the experience that civilians had during this time. Especially British citizens because they were fighting much longer and pretty much alone for over 3 years. This show did not disappoint in telling a story that not many people knew or thought about probably. But this show has an added story/surprise that from my point of view has rarely been shown. The show not only tries to tell the story of the people on the island who had to live under the German occupation but it also tries to show what it was like for some of the members of the occupying force who tried to follow their conscience as they did their duty.

I have to say the writing and the acting from the actors were excellent in portraying this dilemma that some of them faced. I felt the struggle while watching the Germans soldiers tried to be fair in situations that maybe they didn't agree with but wanting to honor why the Germans were fighting. It was difficult for them to separate this from the Nazi beliefs and Hitler's fanaticism.

In many ways I saw the struggles that both side faced. And it was all due to how well the actors portrayed their characters. I will repeat excellent acting.

For anyone who hasn't watched this or maybe started and then quit - you are missing out. Watch it and let yourself be drawn in by each episode as it goes deeper into what people experienced as the war progresses and as both sides become more familiar with each other, as both good and bad emerges in the people involved I agree with what other reviewers has said - I wish it would have had more than 2 seasons. I want to know who survived and what happened to the Germans who tried to be fair and faithful?

This is not a new production, with all the bells and whistles we expect of modern productions, but it is a very fine British drama, well written scripts and the best of performances (with episode actors who went on to be substantial TV and Stage personalities). The stories it tells are well researched, chronicling a period of history not widely told, and therefore a valuable record of WW II war time struggles. For those who have enjoyed the 2018 movie THE GUERNSEY POTATO PEEL PIE LITERARY SOCIETY, this tells more of those stories (within the TV production capabilities of 1978). This second series was even more substantial than the first, and I give the whole series an 9 (superb) out of 10. {Occupation War Drama}

From a time when British television period and costume drama was of a consistently high standard, Enemy at the Door, by London Weekend Television, is a real standout.

The casting is as perfect as could be. It's also very cleverly written, and acted, in that the German occupiers often seem more likeable than many of the islanders, particularly the Commandant, Richter, played superbly by Alfred Burke. The relationship between Richter and the local doctor, Martel (Bernard Horsfall) is exquisitely crafted, demonstrating the tensions arising from being enemies by circumstance, harbouring a mutual liking and respect without showing it too much, and having to oversee a functioning community in impossible circumstances.

Simon Cadell plays the obligatory SS fanatic, Reinicke with sinister understatement, and jolts us out of any complacent sympathy for the German perspective by demonstrating just what they were capable of.

It's such a brilliant and thought-provoking story, and such a shame that it did not extend beyond the two series.