Colditz

I saw Colditz when it first came out and much enjoyed seeing it again nearly fifty years later. There are no bad episodes, at the time of writing none are rated lower than 7.8. But there are very few reviews and I'm surprised more people don't seek out quality classic stuff rather than settle for the dreary rubbish now served up on tv.

Of the episodes I'd rate 10, Tweedledum is best loved, three reviews of it have said all that can usefully be said. In Ace in The Hole a new inmate, highly decorated RAF officer Tony Shaw (Jeremy Kemp) is polite but somewhat aloof, showing little interest in escaping. This is the most thoughtful episode, Shaw's riveting verbal dual with Major Mohn about the nature of military accomplishment is the best five minutes dialogue in the series. Among strong competition my favourite is The Gambler, in which Ray Barrett plays a ruthlessly amoral card sharp, by a country mile the most dislikeable prisoner.

I would have liked to have seen more of one or two interesting characters who appeared just once. Such as Major Schaeffer (Michael Gough) in Maximum Security, whose alcohol fuelled distain for the Third Reich would have made the perfect foil for Mohn. A couple of the regulars I suspect were there primarily for their looks, no names no pack drill as they say in the army.

Being a great fan of Secret Army, I am one of the many people who have bought up the recent DVD release ... and from what I understand ... the producers did Colditz before SA ... it won British Academy Awards and was extremely popular.

After the great success of the Secret Army DVD releases, isn't it time Colditz was released on DVD too? I would definitely buy it. What do you think guys?

There is just so much good stuff from the 1970's and 60's .... it was a classic period

The more people asking for some of it on DVD, the more likely we are to actually have it released.

This outstanding series is the kind of psychological drama at which the British excell. Set almost entirely within a reconstruction of the now-famous castle-fortress prisoner-of-war camp during WWII, there is little in the way of physical action. Instead we're treated to some of the best form of "mind games" and psychological manoeuvring and competition you can hope to see on TV, as the two sides constantly strive to get one over on the other. The Allied prisoners are determined not to be beaten mentally by their surroundings and look for every possible means of escape, while the Germans are always on their toes, looking for clues about possible break-outs and ways in which the Allied prisoners are trying to outsmart them. I couldn't tear myself away from the series when it first came out in Britain, and I was pleased to see how little it had aged when it was reshown on the History Channel a couple of years ago. Excellent acting and strong story lines make this a must-see for me. Out of 10, I'd rank it about 13.6!!

"Colditz" was shown here in Finland as a rerun in 1997-98. It was based on the books "Colditz and the Latter Days" by Pat Reid which tell the story of a group of Allied POWs who have been sent to the most heavily guarded prison camp in Germany.

The series was so good that I did not miss a single show of it, I also bought the books on Colditz written by Reinhold Eggers (known as Ullmann in the series) and Pat Reid.

The series show how the POWs had to live in Colditz, a few went insane some died while trying to escape and some made a succesful escape. The series is among the best when it comes to drama.

When the very popular and succesful "Family at War" series finished a new wartime drama was made about the stories and exploits of British prisoners of war being held at Oflag 4c known as Colditz. This BBC production ran two seasons from 1972 to 1974 and although repeated, perhaps twice, it wasn't shown again after it's final airing in 1975 until it was broadcast on UK Gold many years later. The series mostly centered around the British contingent and was filmed mostly on video which only added to the claustrophobic feel of being incarcerated. This castle deep inside Germany was used as a POW camp to house highly decorated or prominent captured service men as well as troublesome officers who were well known escapers. Other nationalities included French, Dutch, Polish as well as Americans.

The German captures were headed by the Kommandant a veteran of WW1 and strictly by the book man. Straight backed a committed patriot but dignified, took his responsibilities very seriously and felt that observing the Geneva convention was vital in helping German POW's deal with their captivity in allied POW camps, therefore, he was tough but fair. This was clearly on display when he finally understood Colonel Preston's predicament after the death of his wife in England and the compassionate act of not returning a letter with other personal effects to a dead serviceman's wife, giving the impression he'd never received the last letter.

He was supported by the very imposing Hauptmann Ulmann his security chief who was also committed to his duties but nevertheless earned the respect of the POW's as he too observed the Geneva convention. This was in sharp contrast to the Second in command Major Mohn who came in the second season. He was committed to the cause but arrogant as well as being a strong party member who had connections with the hierarchy in the Nazi movement. Although decorated and wounded in combat because of his underhanded methods towards his duties and his constant provocation towards the prisoners he eventually became despised.

The series found its feet in the 4th episode of the first season which centered on the arrival of Colonel Preston who became the senior British officer. After some initial resistance from the British prisoners, he soon gained the respect of them. Through his ability to command he brought a sense of purpose and discipline to the officers by initiating a rotation of officer of the day, daily orders being posted and the forming of an escape committee. The other main senior British officers were Captain Pat Grant the head of the escape committee, Flight Lieutenant Carrington, submariner Lieutenant Dick Player and the short tempered and moody flight Lieutenant Carter.

Despite the first series climaxing on a two-part episode with an attempted break out of four British officers, I think that season two was just slightly better, probably benefiting from the presence of the nasty Major Mohn. Two seasons were probably enough for the series and ended with the war coming to an end with the United States and Russian forces closing in on the castle. I think that a short 2-3-part miniseries a few years later centering around a reunion of some of the officers with the intention of tracking down Horst Mohn and trying to bring him to justice would have been satisfying. It didn't happen, nevertheless a great series to watch, I'd highly recommend Colditz.