To Serve Them All My Days (1982)

Rising Above Tragedy

This BBC mini-series is beautifully filmed and written. The story based on the novel by RF Delderfield follows the career and personal life of a young Welshman who joins the staff of a boy's boarding school upon returning from the trenches of WWI. We meet David Powlett-Jones as a shell-shocked combat veteran and watch him develop into a first class educator and ultimately the school's headmaster. Along the way he meets both personal challenges and professional difficulties that drive the story and engage the viewer. John Duttine is absolutely brillant as Powlett-Jones and the supporting cast are almost uniformly excellent including the young actors who portray the students at the school.

This is a series to become absorbed in as it runs to almost 13 hours in all. The story unfolds gradually as the years pass and the banter between the old school teachers and their younger colleagues is witty and memorable.

Television rarely provides viewing of this quality. August 27, 2008

"Look ahead to a life worth living"

First off, I'm one of those who enjoys any drama, American or foreign, that depicts teachers, academia, and even anything remotely to do with a school - "The Paper Chase," "Good Will Hunting," "Diabolique," "Goodbye, Mr. Chips," "The Chorus," etc. The 1980 production of "To Serve Them All My Days" remains one of my favorites. I viewed this miniseries many years ago and recently with nothing new at hand, viewed it for the second time. Despite already knowing the story, I've to say it hasn't lost its appeal for me at all. It wasn't one of the more well-known British productions even back in the `80s and I think part of its appeal to me is that it looks like a homegrown production. By that, I mean that it doesn't have the gloss or polish that later British productions, especially those by BBC, had. It even looks like it was made on the cheap, but the story is powerful and quite moving.

The series is comprised of 13 episodes that span the years of 1918 to 1938 or thereabouts. The story centers on a soldier, David Powlett-Jones (PJ), who's just returned from active duty during WWI. He ends up teaching at a Devon boarding school called Bamfylde. Coming from a coal-mining family in South Wales and ever conscious of the class differences, he tries to settle into his new life and devotes himself to the education and guidance of his boys. As the decades go by, he finds purpose and meaning in the life he's chosen. In between, he marries and suffers some tragedies that make him a better man in the long run. It's a very lengthy story that I find difficult to synopsize (I've found sites that unfortunately provide too much of the plot). Suffice to say that the miniseries is similar to "Goodbye, Mr. Chips," but has a more pronounced political and social bent to it. PJ is vocal about the backward thinking of his era and wants to move the school toward a more progressive future even it means displeasing those who'd rather cling to the status quo.

As is the norm with most British productions, the acting here is first-rate, especially John Duttine as PJ and Frank Middlemass as the very amiable headmaster, Algy Herries. Lots of very interesting characters and each one well-defined, as well as a great many truly intelligent dialogues. The political and social issues (socialism, miners' rights, bigotry) add meaning and depth to the story and not just there as window dressing. This is definitely a worthwhile series whose themes of fairness, endurance, dedication, service to others, love and true knowledge will never lose their relevance. It took many hours (approximately 12) to view it all, but they are some of the best hours I've spent. July 20, 2008

An endearing tale your family will love

This DVD chronicles a fictional WWI soldier, shell-shocked from battle, as he starts out as a teacher in a wealthy boarding school and eventually comes to be the Headmaster. You watch as he overcomes his battle scars, goes head-to-head with an evil headmaster, encourages his students to greatness, wins the heart of a sweet woman and then tragically loses her to a car accident along with his children, and comes through it all as a winner. This was a series played on BBC in the mid-80's, but it remains a sweet story that will have you eagerly awaiting each new episode. Guaranteed to become a family favorite. February 13, 2008

Great story.

Growing up in England and attending a catholic school the characters hit home for me. Different era perhaps, but attitudes and the personalities really came to life for me.
The story line is well docummented here, so I won't repeat it.
But what I can say is the actors do a fantastic job of bringing to life the type of characters I encountered as a child. And even nearly 3 decades after it was aired on PBS the story and atmosphere of the series is as sound now as it was back then. The main character of Powlett Jones carries the brunt of series so well that even if I dissagree with his politics, he's the type of person who I would love to spend time with. Not many portrayals on film can do that. He has such a wide gammit of emotions and conduct that make for compelling vewing. He's tormented by war, acutely get's the boys attention by a solid backbone and has a gentle and submissive personality when his family and love intrests come to play...And on top of that doesn't comprimise his values even at the most vunerable moments. Fantastic acting by the main character to portray so many different aspects and make it believable.
The other characters are just as engrossing. Wheteher you like or hate them they keep your attention(At least for me) Howarth and Carters interaction from two different out looks is both funny and entertaining.
The headmaster Herries is probably the most loveable and mature individual. Has a serious side, but hates to dwell on the negatives!
There are so many others who add to the drama, but all told this series crosses the border of so many up's and downs of one persons life in anusual setting of a boarding school of the early 20th century!
Great viewing and the characters are real and down to earth. November 18, 2007

Well worth seeing, decades later

Here, Andrew Davies has less propitious material than he had, later, with his production of Pride and Prejudice, but he does a superb job with an academic/historical/slightly political/romantic novel and a limited budget. The script is perfect, as is the acting. The interplay of British academics in a public school (i.e. what Americans would call a private prep school) is so close to reality as to suggest that we are viewing a documentary. The drama--with both romantic conflict and academic conflict--is muted but still very intense. The governors/trustees of the school are a special treat. After you watch the entire miniseries you will want to read the novel or check out plot summaries of it, since there are some changes between the book and the miniseries that will be of interest. Highly recommended. November 11, 2007

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