A huge step to London in the year 1814. The series Taboo (2017) breathes the atmosphere of London in a time that strikes me as raw, unhygienic, dark and muddy. The storyline is not based on real events. That takes away some of the shine, but that is made up for by the entourage and especially by the acting of lead actor Tom Hardy. You see men with long sideburns and high black hats. A bit scary and dark. The ancient series The Onedin Line is also set in the same century. As well as the Taylor Sheridan series 1883 and also the beautiful Penny Dreadful. The series Penny Dreadful falls under the horror genre and I am not a big fan of that, but it gives a wonderful picture of how people lived at that time. We are talking about the end of the 19th century, just before electrification. By the way, Penny Dreadful deserves an award for the series poster.
The aforementioned Tom Hardy plays a supporting role (Alfie Solomons) in another special historical series: Peaky Blinders, or rather Peaky “f*cking” Blinders. The leading role is reserved for the inimitable Cillian Murphy as Tommy Shelby, who is the head of the Shelby family. Each and every one of them is completely traumatized by the terrible First World War. What that does to a person is most visible in the character of brother Arthur Shelby, very creditably played by Paul Anderson. The run-up to the First World War was fascinating, many volunteers reported and the German emperor predicted a short war. It would be a 'joyful' war. Things turned out a bit differently. In Peaky Blinders we see many flat caps, equipped with razor blades. And we see an emerging industrialization. It provides beautiful images of the industry in development in Birmingham.
Another series set in the interbellum is the German series Babylon Berlin. This story is also not based on real events, but we do see the rise of Nazism. This series is also beautifully designed. The series is set in Berlin, the place to be in the Weimar Republic. It discusses characteristic events such as hyperinflation and the stock market crash. It is the time of exuberant dances such as the Lindy Hop and the Charleston, often performed in exhausting dance marathons. Germany was dirt poor due to the Treaty of Versailles. This created a breeding ground for the rise of National Socialism with all its consequences.
We jump to 1960. A genuine ode to a series that is always in my top five: Mad Men. This series paints a picture of the sixties of the last century. The most important events are well covered. The assassination of Kennedy, the moon landing, the Cuban crisis, the rise of the hippies. It is all discussed and beautifully woven into the story. There is a lot of smoking and drinking and cheating is something that goes without saying. Nevertheless, this period appeals to me personally. The fashion, the architecture, the emerging prosperity. I was born in 1962 and was too young to consciously experience it all. Other noteworthy series that are about the fifties are Happy Days and the miniseries 11.22.63.
From 1949 to 2005. This is the time in which The Crown is set. Of all the previously mentioned series, The Crown is based the most on real events. There are parts that have been romanticized. This is inevitable because we were not able to look inside the walls of the palaces. But the historical events did take place one by one. Such as the great smog in London in 1952, when the city was completely disrupted for four days. Or the Aberfan disaster, a mining accident that is said to have caused Queen Elizabeth to cry during a visit. The Crown excels in all aspects. The description of the events, the locations, the scenario and, last but not least, the excellent acting of almost all the actors. All this results in a monument that is unparalleled.
After watching these series I come to the conclusion that I can count myself lucky to have been born in 1962. Increasing prosperity, no war, no poverty, accelerating technological developments. The only thing I was worried about in my youth was the pollution of the Rhine by discharges in the Ruhr area, but that has also been solved. Hopefully technological development will also provide for various current problems in the near future.
