Women at War

What happens when you set a telenovela in First World War France?

This month Chris, Angus and Jessica review the Netflix limited series Les Combattantes (Women at War). Along the way we discuss untranslatable words, the relationship between war atrocities and propaganda, recreational drug use, and the excellent communication links of a small-town convent.

References

Women at war, (2022)

The Bonfire of Destiny, (2019)

RH Mottram, The Spanish Farm, (1924)

John Horne and Alan Kramer, German Atrocities, 1914: A history of denial (2001)

Lukasz Kamienski, Shooting Up: A history of drugs in warfare (2016)

Other episodes

Christmas Truce

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Can a story about soldiers shaking hands in the snow carry a warning for the nuclear age?

Blackadder

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Was Blackadder Goes Forth the most powerful portrayal of the First World War ever put on television?

Fall of Eagles

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How did the First World War bring down Europe’s great dynasties, and how did the BBC retell that story on screen?