11 Nov '10

“Really just another costume drama in disguise.. The only flaw with the programme – and I fear it may be fatal – is that once you’ve got the animals in the fields and the crops in the ground, this Edwardian farm begins to look pretty much like any other farm, and expecting viewers to hang in for 12 episodes is overdoing it rather.”
John Crace, The Guardian

“It was as dull as watching lime burn, which is what the archaeologists Alex Langlands and Peter Ginn did for several days to the strange delight of their screechy historian pal Ruth Goodman. The programme ended with “improvised” dialogue…so stilted it could join a circus.”
Andrew Billen, The Times

“Its core pleasure is getting us to appreciate the present a bit more, with a vivid demonstration of just how grinding life used to be.”
Tom Sutcliffe, The Independent

“Save for one cliched choice of fairground backdrop, visually the film never erred and only occasionally did the dialogue stumble as it passed from naturalism to something more heightened.”
Andrew Billen, The Times

“(Grit and warmth) rarely come in the same package which is why [it] deserves credit.”
Matt Baylis, Daily Express

“[Presenter] Richard Miles.. has a slightly unfortunate presentational manner, frequently looking down his nose at the lens through half-closed eyes. Somehow he even manages to walk contemptuously. His script, by contrast, very much gives the impression that he cares and is full of interesting things about the radical social experiment of the city-state.”
Tom Sutcliffe, The Independent

“Whisper it softly, but recent episodes of have been a wee bit rubbish. Thankfully, normal service was resumed last night.. It was as if the teams had watched several episodes of The Office under the impression it was an HR training video.”
John Crace, The Guardian