User reviews

The Last Post is, remarkably, an interesting watch.

On the surface, this series sounded downright dull. Military Police in one of the last bastions, of the fading UK empire. I watched the first episode as much out of a state of inertia, as genuine interest.

Suffice to say The Last Post captured my interest and held it beautifully. This is an engaging series with a emphasis on human interest blended capably with action scenes, that mirror in a faded way, current conditions in places like Afghanistan and Iraq.

Whats different is the prevailing sense of empire that blinds all but the most insightful British officers to the reality of life in Aden. There is still a rather naive view of empire as somehow benevolent and not oppressive, in spite of the torture of locals, the only accepted method of extracting information about resistance fighters. As one officer rightly points out to his commander "They hate us....".

Its a series with a very 60's vibe that has at its core a transition from the view of empire as a polite unassailable fortress, to one of open conflict and chaos.Its an interesting watch for this reason as the British forces operate almost as if they live in a transplanted "England". They go about their business with a certain "urbanity" with all the usual petty personal conflicts and intrigues, that does not reasonably reflect the danger they face.

I do not know where this series will go but thus far its started out with an interesting premise that could work very well or derail very badly. In any case so far its looking good. Eight out of ten from me.

I am a female civilian war reporter from the Vietnam War, and I was entrenched with the American troops. I find this series SPOT ON. I was struck by the truth of the men going off to fight and coming home to a dinner cooked by their wives, not being able to say where they had been or what they had done or seen. And the separate lives of the wives, the alcohol abuse, the risk of death from childbirth no less real than what the men faced every day or so. I found the battle scenes to be absolutely realistic. The odd, angry shot. Geurilla warfare.

I was really looking forward to this series, however it is disappointing. I can ignore some of the issues such as the inaccurate process etc. The military action scenes are really pathetic. The portrayal of the SAS was disrespectful , they looked like a bunch of raw recruits . I hope it improves as many of the other scenes work well

I'm really surprised by the number of negative reviews on here. The Last Post was a fabulous drama. I can't speak for the historically accuracy of the details but the cinematography, the scenery and the overall picture painted were beautiful and rang true to me.

The story unfolded very effectively over the six episodes giving a mix of the overall political backdrop with a number of more personal dramas each of which was engaging and interesting.

The acting was a delight. Just about every performance was perfect.

I only saw the first episode of this series and I loved it. It had enough teasers in to get me hooked on the promise of entertaining future episodes.

Being exposed to the military myself (Not the British Army) I have seen a post in a hostile environment, where the military families (living on base, sometimes with vast different backgrounds) are flung together for periods of time - Those families do not have the luxury of failing to make it work.

This makes for interesting living arrangements and dynamics. Women don't always have it easy, despite who you are and where you come from, you are pegged to your husband's status and position. A bit tricky to navigate when you are living in each other's pockets.

Be aware that there might be small details that are not 100 % correct regarding the setting. However, looking past that, I am crossing my fingers that this series has potential.

I wasn't more than 11 years old when the incidents shown in 'The Last Post' were playing out but as a history buff I am very aware of the strife in Aden as the British were unwinding their overseas possessions. As a history buff and a retired field grade officer in the U.S. Army I saw the clinkers right off in the portrayal of the soldiers in the show. Yes, the folding stocks on the Sterling SMGs are never extended when in use. Yes, the troopers going into action failed to stand up the rear sight on the SLRs. Yes, there are other issues too, but the story surpasses them all. I've been the 'new man' myself joining a clubby unit and having to prove myself to the other officers and especially the NCOs. I was the newlywed who married and left for overseas duty immediately; my wife had to fly across the world to join me in a plane that had to make an emergency landing along the way to have duct tape applied to the tail to continue her journey. I was the Commander who had to make decisions that effected the lives of soldiers in my command. My wife and I first lived in a small compound of soldiers and their families in a foreign country with all of the stress and heartache that comes with this type of living. I absolutely loved this show. For once, put the military inconsistencies aside and immerse yourself in the lives of the show's characters. I watched all six episodes and found each one to be powerful and moving. I sincerely hope we get a second round of shows

Its always the case with any Historical drama, especially for some reasons those involving HM Forces of a certain era, that they manage to make a string of continuity errors. The Last Post didn't hold any surprises and it was clear the programme makers wanted to make an effort to re-create Aden in 1965. The first two glaring errors concern the aircraft at what I assume was the R.A.F. Base at Khormaksar. I'll skip comments about the lack of Hawker Hunters which filled the place at the time. The programme maker had caught wind that the English Electric Lightning was in service at the time. But however unlikely it was that Lightnings would have deployed to Aden at the time, they certainly wouldn't be painted in the Ghost and Sea Grey scheme with toned down markings. They were all in natural metal finish, that year in particular, the RAF's Lightnings carried striking fin and spine squadron markings. Another, the Vulcan seen far to quite whistling overhead and with out of date anti-flash white paint scheme further, roundels on the underside of the Vulcan, never. Most curious of all, however, were the cap badges of the RMPs, I've never seen such a thing! the initials inside the laurels should read E II R, with the roman numerals in the centre of the ER in miniature, surmounted by the St Edward's crown. Beyond this, the infantry weapons depicted were certainly of the era and of course the women looked straight out of a 1960s fashion catalogue. Back to the uniforms,something the telly usually can't get right are soldiers' Berets, but by thunder they got it right, rather than looking like small under inflated Balloons perched on each man's bonce as usual, they were actually shaped with the loose material pulled flat down the right side with the cap badge positioned over the left eye. Then again the redcaps redcaps looked like they'd been shipped to location squashed down too many in the container. The peaks did not point down to the bridge of the wearers nose with the crown of the red top pointing almost vertical at the front. As for the story line, it started to pick up after a while, but I can't for the life in me understand why a serving Military Police NCO failed to report a rifle shot that nearly killed his boss's small son. He may not have had an iPad but I'm sure there was a landline with a short dial number for the Guardroom to hand. Verdict, must do better!

Unlike several other reviewers, i didn't serve in Aden, and don't know what types of weapon the RMP used or what sorts of planes people few in on.

However, i didn't watch this series in order to discover such details, and if you do, I fear that as well as being disappointed you may be missing the point. This is an entertainment, but also an allegory -- on the one hand a tale of decline and fall, on the other a tale of compromised decency. Evelyn Waugh meets the evil in war, as it were.

If military verisimilitude is your thing, this may not work for you; but if you liked Parade's End, the Tudors, and Brideshead Revisited (as I did), I think it will.

The acting was really good (other than the journalist's fake American accent), it could have been better without making the British Army look like a bunch of clowns...I cannot go into it without spoiling it for you.

Rarely have I seen such a good series. Brilliantly acted, wonderful and fulfilling story, excellent scrip, outstanding cinematography. This was both gripping and moving from start to finish with such an original story. No doubt some will criticise the historical accuracy but I have to say you get a real sense of what it may have been like to live army life at the very end of the British Empire. Will definitely watch it all over again.

I was stationed in Aden from October 1965 till the end in 1967. I found episodes 1 and 2 disappointing and far from realistic for that period. The dress, tactics and use of weapons and interaction between the ranks was wrong - certainly not 60s. There were no lightnings at RAF Khormaksar just hunters and the usual transport aircraft of the time and a couple of shackletons. Families were flown in using BUA not BOAC. The RMPs worked in unison with the RAF Police and did not have their own base. Their main task was to maintain discipline and investigate crime by service personnel and families in Aden. In addition, they provided control of access to various units/HQs, escort for VIPs (in spotless land rovers with silver hub caps and white cotton seats), and ran the military detention center/cells. Incidentally I was arrested one night by the by RMPs after too many pints of tiger beer and handed to the RAFP who took me to my billet to sleep it off (it was Christmas). Some RMPs/RAFPs also investigated terrorist incidents and serious crimes though they tended to have SIB experience. In no way did they carry out covert intelligence forays downtown or up country or, work with the SAS. These were probably added to give a bit of excitement to the series, but, the portrayal of SAS in action was shabby to say the least. Any joint operations were carried out with support by infantry units not the RMPs. I did not expect the series to emulate exactly what it was like out there but I did expect it to be better than this.

This "British FUBAR" rant is political nonsense and ought to be deleted. It is of no help to the BBC viewers who watched The Last Post.

Its author does not understand the difference between 'discreet' and 'discrete' -- and his claim that Colonel T.E. Lawrence, CB was a knight, specifically a KBE, is typical of his ignorance.

Liked a lot about this, the characters are well drawn, it could have been more authentic around the tactical stuff and fleshed out with some more characters but its got heart.

I found the plot line very gripping on many levels.Here is a tale of the soldiers Empire clinging on,the men and women in the frontline facing ideology and forces they don't understand.It is very relevant to today's Middle East,especially ISIS .The claustrophobic lives of the wives,the rules the men live by which are starting to fail are vividly captured. Fine acting by everybody! Congratulations,a great series with something real to say.

I also was suprised to see so many negative reviews, I served in the military and I can see how some vets would pick it apart and point out all the indescepancies because that's how soldiers are made to pay attention to the details, so that doesn't surprise me at all. I just finished the first episode and I was glued to the TV, and honestly I didn't have high hopes in the beginning. I didn't expect it to be historically accurate 100% which didn't matter , it's not a documentary or a biography so it doesn't matter, it's entertainment /Fact based. Acting was great, the adultery and drunkenness has been going on since man picked up his first beer so spot on there. Looking forward to the rest of the season and I'm sure it'll be great. Thanks for the great show well done!

One of best done jobs of writing, directing and acting I've experienced in quite some time

Both my wife and I loved it

Beautifully done

Thank you

Firstly, the good... Jessie Buckley is great, and Jessica Raine is even better, in fact quite extraordinary. A few of the other actors (mostly the women, as well as young Toby Woolf) also aren't bad. But there "the goodness" stops.I am not even going to bother with comments about the landrovers, weapons etc, as this is not meant to be a kit-spotters film. But I have never seen a film which managed to get so many aspects of the story wrong. The interrelationships are written with every last cliche possible, and mostly are utterly unrealistic. Just one example out of literally hundreds: a Major who is unable to make up his mind about what to do when under fire in the field, and has to get his Captain to decide, has lost all credibility - it is inconceivable that the next day he would carry on as before. There is inconsistency after inconsistency, often within minutes of each other in the same episode. The story is infantile - despite the publicity blurb, the entire writing and editing team clearly do not have the faintest clue about anything military - there were so many errors in the plot, that came so frequently, that I gave up bothering trying to note them down. The dialogue contained anachronism after anachronism. In summary, the 3 stars I gave this film are solely for the 2 lead actresses - the rest would get none.

Loved the performances of this cast. Riveting and unusual script brought to life by excellent acting. Of all the Series on networks and cable these days, this was a most unusual setting and story. It really took hold and kept me In the setting and events right up to the end. Oh please make another season! It is desperately needed. Take a chance and View this most exciting and unusual story. It may be a movie series but it feels like a good book when your done.

Another good example of not getting attached to a show it's first season. I'm sure there was not a good reason not to renew.

Thought this looked lame.

Literally didn't watch it right away until I was bored.

I was wrong. It was a solid view.

It had a "Stranger Things" vibe (purely because of the background music/tone/tension).

And that tone/tension lasted throughout the season.

Bravo, Amazon. Bravo, indeed.