Christmas 2015: Second Letter to Laura

Welcome back to the final Randomizer of the Year!

 

It's Christmas time again, and we can finally celebrate without it being November. Yay. Once more, we were returning back to the Christmas Truce from last year, to continue the story of 'Hoppy' in the trenches.

It's been 18 months since the centinary of World War 1 has begun, and yet I think it hasn't escaped your notice, as well as mine, that it has been a little...quiet. There hasn't been that much talk about the different events that have taken place, like the Second Battle of Ypre, the Gallipoli Campaign, the Lusitania hit and sunk, Edith Cavell, the Battle of Loos, the list goes on. I don't think that's fair to be honest, because they're are still significant events during the war. It's not suprising, I think, that it will pick up again next year, around June and July time. So perhaps to continue the story of 'Hoppy' a year on in the trenches may, though perhaps I hope not annoying barely, make a little impact with you all.

Since I wrote the first one, I thought it would be good to continue the story some months ago, because I thought it would be a good idea, and thus you will see how much the war had changed sharply in the course of leading to the next Christmas, and make you think how eventually even the war took precedence over one of the most special times of the year. Without trying to be boastful, I do like what I have written, but just as importantly I hope you will all enjoy it too. Keep in mind, if I did a third one, it might not come around next Christmas, but you never know!

Again, I don't own any of the pictures on show, using photographs and such to tell the story.

I'm gonna stop writing now, and let you read the second of Hoppy's letters, to his dear wife Laura...

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Second Letter to Laura

 

My darling Laura,

I hope you are well and enjoying your factory work, making the shells to wherever they land to grant you a quick divorce. I jest, I mean no manner of offence to you. I do hope you’re getting on, and enjoying Christmas with your parents. I have tried my best despite the usual shelling and raids on either side. I love the tobacco and new woollen gloves you have sent to replace my missing ones. They have not lost their warmth yet. I hope to give you this letter myself when I’m on leave soon after New Year, so you can read in silence. If not, Jim has offered to take it himself when his turn comes in February.

HQ have been very good, at keeping both sides from fraternising with each other this time, learning from last year. The snow has fallen hard again, but everything else had too. The shells have landed more in force along either side, mines dug in have blown across No Man’s Land and snow high into the sky, raids increased greatly taking our lines a little further, but without much success, and the gas attacks sift through easily too, especially on the new boys, high in beliefs to destroy the Hun to end this mess of a war. They are soon sorted out enough, a few ending up in hospital with masks still on. It’s an unforgiving sight, and makes for horrific telling that I will spare you the details. The snow does a good enough job of covering the bodies still lain across No Man’s Land, though bringing them back is still a demanding job amidst the guns and craters covered up, with the boiling water of course.

Our new commanding officer arrived at the beginning of the month to replace ‘Lollypop’, most unlikely to purposely place his head over the top in regret, and willing to push back the Germans with the strictest instruction. We all gave him the nickname ‘Terror Bull’, for despite the awful pun that even the German guns would become silent to, he may have been another dog, but his stubborn nature was not to be reconciled with, ordering daily raids to put us off the idea of another Christmas truce.

Not me. Never me. I cannot displace the idea of humanity on that field, despite keeping my silence among the others. I have slipped a few times into fighting ‘The Hun’, but I bring myself back to seeing human beings before me, killing and killed in this war. Some I believe try not to see them as their kind, but as monsters, caring only for destroying livelihoods around them. Emphasis on try, the only kind of success our generals would ever dream of. Few wish to be away, at the risk of shooting for insubordination. They pray for shoddy aim, or to God for any luck. I do not wish to kill, but I pray for shoddy aim myself every time. I smile for every scream. When there’s silence, that’s when I pray for forgiveness, especially for Kaleb.

How we have kept in contact through times of battle, standing to, and hearing the taunts thrown across each other I will never fathom. Through using craters to quickly correspond, and certain difficultly to crawl in and out in such quick manners, it seemed a greater task then attempting certain death crossing through No Man’s Land. But we did it, amidst the shots firing around us and more craters made. I’m more surprised at how poor the Germans can be sometimes at shooting me. Maybe they’re still fond of us, though it could also be luck. I don’t think I will speculate one with the other. The answer may hit me soon.

Kaleb has been better, since his unfortunate incident losing two fingers on his right hand in September. I debated with him the last time whether it’s lucky or not he’s still at the front, to which he simply laughed and had said, ‘Perhaps I could still miss you anyway!’. I couldn’t help but smile, before I left him back to my side. He’s eating well and giving a quick wave every now and then from below his parapet. His Beatrix sends her love to him every week, waiting for his return come New Year’s too. She’s thrown herself into the war effort, but not as well respected as you are at home so I hear. I don’t know to what extent, but perhaps I can assume it is bad.

Before our quick time together, I had the maddening idea to meet each other at Christmas possibly, if only to bring out humanity in us once more because it’s Christmas. Kaleb was uncertain himself. Christmas, he had said, was effectively cancelled. I was inclined to agree. There were no trees along their line this time, and the only flashing lights were the mines and shells lighting up the sky, along with the rippling of bullets, and continuous taunts from either side. It’s as if we had found new bizarre ways of saying ‘Merry Christmas’. Nonetheless, he had quickly nodded, and said that if there was a way, he would signal on the day. I had agreed. It wouldn’t be worth the risk if everything carried on as usual. We agreed to take photographs of our respective regiments, and pass them to each other as presents, quickly before anyone could notice we were gone for long. I was saddened, but I knew it was the only way.

Of course, I hadn’t been the only one to whisper out a truce again. Noise along the line was made at first, but once ‘Terror Bull’ had heard, he shouted loudly so even those dead in No Man’s Land could hear, ‘Any man willing to make peace on Christmas Day will join their brethren on the ground, either by my hand or someone else’s’. I continued to whisper only when I needed to, within earshot of Jim, Dennis and others. Needs must, I couldn’t trust the other men along the line.

On Christmas Eve night, we all sang together again in the winding dark, raising our voices along the explosions as high as Jim’s in his boastful tone, with our bully beef and tea again to warm ourselves. The Germans were almost covered by the explosions, but were still audible, their loud tone of ‘God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen’ sounding out over to our lines. To our surprise, ‘Terror Bull’ simply walked along, mouth tightly shut. He seemed to care more for actual physical fraternisation, rather than simply singing to each other. We were able to sing peacefully, and ignore our supposed duties to destroy ‘the Hun’.

As midnight struck again, we shook hands in salutations again, gripping hard once more, perhaps saying goodbye for the last time again, more formally then every other time of the year. Considering what may lay ahead for tomorrow it wouldn’t have surprised me. When the Germans gave their salutations to us, some of us gave salutation in return, and Jim unsurprisingly tried to outmatch them again, and failed in good humour. One young boy, no older than 16 perhaps, had asked me why we had sang with the Germans, giving me the usual ‘enemy’ issue. I said simply to him, ‘They are equal to us. Take that in stride’. He simply blanked starry-eyed at me.

This morning was clearer than last year as I stood to again, the sun shining down brightly onto the snow, showing the grim view of lumps of bodies covered, and a few Germans popping up and waving quickly in my periscope. I didn’t, awaiting for Kaleb to appear. Shots would ring out over to our side, as we did after they waved, more as a warning then to kill. I hadn’t much sleep again from the continuing bombardment, staring out blankly over No Man’s Land, tired and saddened again that you’re not in my arms. Your warm embrace clear, aching my head hard dear Laura.

I waited looking through the clear sky, to see if Kaleb would appear eventually. The explosions continued near us, sending snow and earth high into crumbled pieces, before falling down back in sheer devastation. Machine guns continued down the line, firing now and then, with the shouts of men walking across in raiding. Jim and Dennis were close by, holding their rifles over the top, waiting, and praying in earshot that no one crossed. I breathed steadily, hearing battle all around, and blinking at the screams of men falling into the snow. ‘Terror Bull’ walked along slowly behind me, telling to keep my eyes open for any raid parties approaching, and he would be conducting a raid in due course. I took a deep breath at that. I had to make sure he didn’t see me go over the top. Indeed, how unfortunate to die on Christmas Day, and not have my dinner later on. What a bother.

Kaleb made his appearance at around 9, noticing me through his own periscope and giving a quick wave with his remaining fingers, smiling broadly. I smiled, and waved quickly myself, before holding a hand out to hold him back a moment, and turned to Jim and Dennis telling them he had arrived. We quickly looked down our line around for ‘Terror Bull’, or the other soldiers on duty, and when no-one was looking, I turned back to the periscope, and gestured to come over. I put it down gently so no-one could hear, then I placed my rifle over the top of the parapet once more. The snow was thick and crumbly as I gripped with my gloves, and crawled pushing myself over the top, and lifted myself to my legs, as a short whistle came fast to my ears, and I quickly turned my back as a shell landed before me. 

A flash of light and a thunderous bang sounded out, forcing my body to shake violently, and fall back into my trench. I smacked into the wood hard, and grunted in pain, Jim and Dennis coming to check on me. I said I was ok, not feeling pain anywhere else apart from my arm, and I was helped back up. I turned my eyes back to the parapet, hopeful that I can still make it over, despite their pleas not to. I said I must, for my own sake, which may be translated in their terms, and yours I gather, as a ‘death wish’. We checked again, and I pushed myself back up the parapet, seeing another big crater gaping up before me, then picked up my rifle quickly behind me and clutched hard, turning fast ahead to see Kaleb lifting himself out from his side.

I sighed and smiled seeing him alive, and I ran as fast as I could through the crunching snow, seeing your wondrous face again, silk hair and childlike eyes, before my own once more reminding me why I must live, before I had to twist my eyes to see the craters here and there filled only minutely from the snow, as a machine gun fired off in the distance, and seeing the scruffy blonde-haired gentleman lifting himself to my height again as I came closer, looking toward me with a faint smile strewn over his face. I began to slow down just before him, and raised my arm to embrace him quickly on approach. He took a step forward, raising his arms in return, and we quickly embraced each other, then said Merry Christmas. 

After we embraced, he fumbled in his trench coat, and gave me a small rectangular photo of himself and a few of his friends lined up along their trench, all smiling and waving with words written at the bottom, ‘Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. Captain Kaleb Clauberg and the 2^nd Royal Bavarian Infantry, Crown Prince’. I smiled quickly, and took out our own photograph that we had taken over three weeks ago, entrusted to me to take over the top. Kaleb smiled looking at the picture, a shot ringing out near our position, and held out a gloved hand to shake. I immediately took it, and we wished each other Merry Christmas again, and a sad but fast goodbye, and I turned back around to face my side.

Again, I ran fast, avoiding the craters and lumps of bodies, as the sounds of bombardment and machines echoed around me, another explosion hitting some yards away on my right, and your wondrous image flashing before my eyes. I could see Jim and Dennis looking toward me, and back along to see if anyone was about to give fire, only gesturing with their hands to bid me faster. I began to slow down coming closer to the trench, and stopped short to climb down from the parapet onto the fire step, and immediately jumped down into the trench, to Jim and Dennis’s boisterous congratulations.

I clapped Dennis’s shoulder to hold myself steady, tired breathing slowly for the moment, and placed my rifle down against the stiff earth wall of the trench, to take the photo out from my own coat pocket. They beamed at the photograph, lips strewn straight teeth showing over their faces, commenting how nice it was before I placed it back into my jacket pocket. But I had nothing left to chance, as I immediately picked my rifle back up, and turned back to face the line stepping to the fire step, periscope in hand, and seeing Kaleb waving again through mine. I checked quickly again around my line, and waved back.

We had our Christmas dinner around 1, before we could write our letters home and begin our raid. Again we had roasted chicken and laughing all around with poor jokes of puns and absent friends. For me, it seemed my own happiness was exempt. Despite eating and drinking well and talking of my returning back to you, I couldn’t enjoy it as much as I did last year. Everything had changed so much in the year, despite knowing I thought well of the Germans, it was less fun knowing many from both sides had died, and we can’t do a thing to change that. 

I do believe that war has changed most of us into relentless machines, for a necessary advantage. Even I would admit to being so, though I’m not filled to the brim, and no desire to do so. Yet I have no vision as to when the war will end, and the killing stops eventually. It’s a shame that we must continue in this fashion for an end quickly, disgustingly so at Christmas too. I see no end to the killing, awaiting perhaps my own fate soon enough, or my aim may increase in accuracy for once. I suppose I must keep faith in myself to live, if not for this war to end sooner than later. I’m sorry to depress you with my words, but I will be honest, and keep my true feelings hidden from sight, then though the propagandised words of many letters before the public. Would you agree?

I will see you in the New Year my darling Laura,

Love, Hoppy.

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They shall not grow old, as we are left to grow old

Age shall not weary them, not the years condemn

At the going down of the sun, and in the morning

We will remember them

Merry Christmas, and a Happy New Year to you all.

For the final time in 2015, Randomizer out. 

This is England's Personal Best Scenes!

Welcome back to the Randomizer!

You may remember over a month ago, I was thinking about doing my favourite moments from This is England, instead I talked about Halloween and its origins. So I’m going to do that now! Not just because it was a great show, and having quite fond memories of it, but also it might have some relevant themes that connect with the world now more so then ever. For now, let’s talk about This is England, something Mibs Bayliss got me into, and I’m very grateful for it.

 

This is England began over 9 years ago, released in cinemas in 2006. It was at first the story of a boy called Shaun, who had lost his father in the Falklands War, dealing with his emotions on that, and making friends with a group of skinheads, the two biggest characters of the group Woody and Milky. Hanging out with them gives Shaun a new lease on life, and even gets himself a love interest, Smell. That’s her nickname, short for Michelle. Why she’s called ‘Smell’ is a bit of a mystery, or maybe it isn’t? But I digress. 

Maybe she likes camembert cheese? I don't know

The biggest change in the group comes in the form of Combo, a skinhead who had served a prison sentence, and has become a racist fighting with a black man in prison. After he returns, Combo shares more racist views, and Shaun, along with others, is swayed to join, wanting to make his dad proud. Shaun sees Combo as a mentor figure, the latter promising he won’t let him down. I’ll try not to go into spoilers for this series, but I think this will make it inevitable, considering I will be talking about the more powerful scenes in the series.

If you haven’t seen this film at all, I suggest you do so. It is a really good film, acting is really good, the music used is really good, more so with the piano played songs by the great Ludovico Einaudi, it will make you laugh and cry, it is an emotional power house. In fact, why are you still sitting there reading? Go to Amazon or to HMV, buy it! Simon says!

If you think the film was great, yet visceral, you should see the three mini-series. Set in 86, 88, and 90, the series now effectively follows Woody and Lol, in their various situations between family (oh boy…), depression, and…so much more, it’s hard to think what I can say. Shaun is still in there in the series, and gets a good deal of focus. It’ still sort of a coming-of-age story, just like the film. It does continue the tone nicely, having some great light-hearted moments, but also throws you into the dark moments, slowly building up to the crescendo, and make you feel horrified. The last series was shown over two months ago in September, and it’s likely to never come back to our screens again, but it’s still a very powerful series, and deserves utmost attention if you can find the time to watch it.

Thus we come to talking about my particular powerful moments overall. These scenes will be significant, because they do invoke so much into the drama of the present, and how the past still affects them deeply. Some of these scenes, you will need to prepare yourselves for, and as I’ve said, there will be spoilers. So if you don’t wish to know them, try to have a binge day of watching this series beforehand. If you have watched this before, or don’t want to bother watching, then let’s get to it.

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5 of my favourite moments:

1.       Shaun and Smell’s first kiss (This is England)

This is the scene that had me bursting out laughing first time on hearing. Seriously, it starts off really sweet, and then swipes away with one of the best lines in the film.

Shaun has been flirting with Smell for a while, and then one night at a party, encouraged by Milky and Lol, asks Smell if she wants to go out into the garden with him. They bond about how pretty Smell is, and then they kiss each other for a moment, break, kiss again, Smell checking if he’s ok every time, and she comes out with this beauty of a line: ‘Do you want to suck my tits?’.

How can anyone not laugh at that, I don’t know. On first watching that it did feel like it comes out of nowhere, it was probably the first film I’ve seen that sort of breaks the tension after a passion lustful kiss. In effect, that is what it is, it’s a lustful kiss. In building up to that, we actually don’t learn so much about Smell through dialogue, it’s really expressed through her character. In the costumes she wears, her expressions, and the shots of them together talking with each other, separate from the group. So that idea’s planted into our head somewhat, that these two are going to be together.

In hindsight this might be a great move in exploring first loves, because we actually don’t learn that much about Smell through the series, it’s really through Shaun’s eyes, and we allow ourselves to be guided watching the film and the series how their relationships folds out at the end. I believe to a point as well, that because their relationship isn’t a focal point so much in the series (except perhaps This is England 88), we get a good, interesting idea in how they work as a couple, which I think putting the two together, they mesh well to a point, but not enough.

It’s a great moment, that on reflection has deep underlying tones to it.

Guess in years, judging by my hands, how long we last for?

2.       A lingering shot (This is England 90)

A lingering shot? Well that sounds kind of boring doesn’t it? Well not exactly, not if you understand the significance of it, as I’m sure many of you will know.

In This is England 90, the episode Summer (I think, someone please correct if I’m wrong, could be spring) has Lol, Woody, Lol’s mum and the latter’s girlfriend on the sofas, and then going out to have a barbecue, leaving us with a long lingering shot of the living room in daylight. Why is shot so significant? Because it was the setting for a rape scene.

Back in This is England 86’s third episode, One of Lol’s sister’s friends, Trev, came up to the house to see Kelly, only to find Mick, Lol and Kelly’s father. She sits with him for a moment, the awkwardness rising bit by bit, only to see Mick then attack Trev violently, and then proceed to rape her. It’s a horrifying scene to witness, and perhaps for many women who have suffered, realistic. I don’t wish to try and say the wrong thing, so I apologise if I do say anything that may accidentally be misconstrued.

Never remain silent to rape...

That kind of shot, a simple medium shot of a living room, especially in a series like This is England, can just bring up so much in our heads, and serves to show that despite what the future has in store, the past is still there, significant in being unable to escape what happened. It kind of show what This is England 90 is about overall: no matter what, the past is there. To ignore it is to avoid yourself, if that makes sense. If that shot wasn’t in there, the series wouldn’t make you think and feel as much. It’s those kind of shots that can make or break a series, and that simple shot MAKES the series.

3.       The Table Scene (This is England 90)

Where do I even start? Well, I had the third episode recorded, but already I was reading on Facebook from friends about how devastating that scene was. It had me wondering what happened in that scene that was gut-wrenching to watch, and when I did, I was pretty shocked and saddened to watch the drama unfold.

The scene showed Lol and Woody, Milky, Kelly, her friend Trev, Lol and Kelly’s mum, Shaun, and Lol’s support worker, all sitting around the table after Sunday dinner. Lol has chosen that point in time, to tell the truth of what happened to Mick. The story told was that Mick was killed by Combo’s hand, and Combo is due to be released from prison. The truth comes out, as was in seen in This is England 86, that after Trev was raped, Lol took matters into her own hands, and killed Mick with a hammer as he tried to rape her, Combo taking the fall, and coming to stay with Lol and Woody for the moment.

From there, everything goes up. Milky understandably pissed that Combo is coming to live with them, after what he did to him near the end of This is England, beating Milky into a coma, and not allowing his daughter Lisa to live under the same roof as the man. Kelly is pissed as well, because the truth had been kept from her, believing both Lol and Trev to be liars, and Mick to have been a good man, as seen by a photo of her dad in her wallet (I think from the second or first episode, not sure). To nitpick just for one moment, I believed that Lol had already told Kelly the truth back at the end of 86, but obviously I was wrong.

As well as believing this for all my life....

That scene was just emotional and brutal to watch, because it was close to home from all that has happened so far. You understand both sets of reaction to Lol’s confession, very credible though also ambigious as well. Kelly’s feeling of being betrayed, for lack of a better word, is understandable, because it’s her best friend and sister trying to protect her from something horrible, allowing her to believe a lie for four years. Chanel Cresswell playing Kelly really hit the reaction well, making the uncomfortable levels rise to outright fury, because of what Lol and Trev did out of the love for her. Milky’s reaction too is understandable, having lived with that attack for most of the series, furious how Woody and Lol would even consider taking Combo in, and Woody trying to explain that forgiveness was under-rated, but Milky was having none of it.

It’s that point that sets up how the rest of the series goes, and it delivers on those consequences brilliantly, even set up from the film so long ago. We see Milky later on planning his revenge against Combo, and Kelly falling deeper to using drugs, most prominently heroin, while staying at two friend’s house, Harvey and Gadget. Yes, that is his name. His parents were very cruel, but that’s not the point. It’s a scene that’s acted well, the tension risen brilliantly, and the drama executed perfectly. It’s one of many perfect scenes in the whole series.

Let's see America do better at this scene...

4.       Shaun and Smell reunite (This Is England 86)

I will admit, I had watched This is England 86’s first episode before I saw the film, but I didn’t watch the entire series until I got it on DVD. I thought it was good on first viewing. It was interesting to watch, seeing the characters for the first time on-screen, and surprised to see blood in the back of Combo’s car at the beginning. But one thing that had stood out for me at that time, was Shaun and Smell seeing each other for the first time since what happened when Combo had beat up Milky.

When Shaun is injured by a bully, he’s taken to hospital to be checked up, at the same time as Smell and the others are in hospital, because one of the group had a heart attack. Shaun tells her he feels guilty about what happened between Combo and Milky, but Smell tells him it wasn’t, and gives him a kiss on the cheek before leaving, saying she’s missed him, really, before leaving, Shaun saying he’s missed her too.

First time on watching, it probably was quite sweet. Now seeing it again, it’s still a really sweet scene because it shows how deeply they still love each other, even after three years of not seeing each other. Even if I still don’t know much about Smell by word, I still see that underlying affection there, though I will admit it’s interesting to watch without knowing a thing about her, when I’m thinking about first loves being there. It’s a strange conundrum. What I note as well, is that it’s the start as well of Shaun getting back together with the gang, as a backward introduction dissimilar to the film, but still allowing the audience to understand what happened to a point in the past, and still appreciate how Shaun comes back to the group.

I count it as among my favourite scenes because it’s deliberately caring, and poignant between two people who still clearly care for one another, but perhaps to a point as well ambiguous not because it’s not clear they’ll get back together or anything, but because of how believable their love really is, because of what we know about the characters themselves, and how they know each other. As perhaps is a really subtle way of never knowing who is genuine in the series. I might be going down deep into the rabbit too far, but there could be something behind it, and I’m not just talking about the red pill.

What if I told you...that it was not your fault, and that the line 'What if I told you', was never used, and I have the power to see the future, and you're reading this in Lawerance Fishbourne's voice?

5.       The last conversation in the series (This is England 90)

Right before the end of the final ever episode of the series, we see Lol and Woody finally getting married without a hitch, Shaun and Smell having a quick conversation with each other, and Lol conforting Milky about what happened to Combo when he met him for a ‘cuppa’. All of them brought the series almost entirely full-circle, except for one thing.

Kelly comes to the wedding, and almost leaves not without leaving a card behind, but is caught by Lol and they have a very deep conversation about missing each other, Lol apologising for not talking with her one on one, and Kelly telling that she has given up the heroin. With a final embrace, Kelly is ready to join in the wedding reception, and Lol takes her in.

That scene, and I’m going to get a little soppy here, just made me think of my brother on first viewing. Not to the extent of actuality, I don’t do heroin. Much. But it just made me think about how much my brother cares for me, and how I do care for him too despite being a dick beating me at FIFA 16. Should have a fair play rule, but that’s not the point. On viewing again after over a month, it’s a fantastic scene to behold.

It’s simply beautiful acting to take in and watch, the emotions are pretty spot on, and it’s just so believable. If there was any reason to watch the series from the start to the end, THIS is a bloody good reason to. That one final bit of characterisation between those two siblings is great because it shows, more for Kelly, how they in the ground for the moment, but they are willing to come back, especially for Kelly. She’s been through hell, and after a little bit of time sitting down to talk and getting away from her dark place, she is ready to face the world head on. For Lol, it’s euphoric to see Kelly safe, and sorry for her part in putting Kelly accidentally in her place, but it does not diminish her love, and in the end embraces her.

It’s a beautiful scene to behold, seeing how much these two have suffered in their different ways, coming together as the closest of best friends. Well, as long as FIFA 16 isn’t involved.

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That’s really it for this week. There’s so much more I can go into talking about more scenes in This is England, but perhaps this was enough time to talk, and enough time for you to watch the series itself. I’m not going to lie, it is a very ‘in-your-face’ drama series, but the way it’s done is perfect because you understand what these characters are going through, and it doesn’t feel contrived. That’s the best thing, it’s not drama for drama’s sake. It’s drama for driven characters, touching on very relatable themes.

I would say definitely watch this series if you have a chance. It might be a whole day, and a little bit of the next day, but it’s worth it, and you’ll see for yourself why these scenes are powerful in their own right, and see some of your own favourite scenes during viewing. No more to say except…This Is England.

It will be missed...

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That’s it for this week. Next time, the continuing story of Hoppy in the Trenches from last year.

See you soon!