Tuesday 18 August 2020

Tv times

Recently I ran a post about films and wargaming, to the enjoyment of many I think. Today I am asking what television has most influenced your gaming? Firstly when growing up and secondly as an adult?

23 comments:

  1. The series 'Battleground' (?) with Edward Woodward (Callan)

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    1. To my shame I have never watched it, maybe I ought to give it a try.

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  2. TV Influences on my wargaming
    These are always really difficult to extricate influences from films and books.

    Growing Up - the miniature battle scenes across beautiful model terrain like Waterloo etc. in Michael Bentine's Potty Time?
    The Eagle of the Ninth by Rosemary Sutcliff (BBC Sunday teatime TV 1970s 1980s)? Small group skirmishes and mission beyond the Hadrian's Wall into Pictish lines -- great book trilogy as well.

    Tween-age
    Dad's Army?
    By the Sword Divided influenced my ECW Games 1980s but I don't remember it much?
    Flambards influenced my interest in early WW1 Flying but I don't game this era?

    Adult - Like BBC default mode / on permanent Repeat - Dad's Army. A blend of Foyles War and Dad's Army would be perfect.
    I don't really watch much TV and haven't since my twenties. I am a bit bored of watching low budget, out of focus historic footwear in cheap reconstructions in "history documentaries."
    The most memorable programmes of the last 25 years have been sci-fi fantasy stuff like the X Files etc which has little effect (at the moment?) on my gaming.

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    1. Sunday tea time slot was a great one, so many different stories, it was great. By the sword was terrific, I borrowed a friends copy on dvd and it enjoyed it again last year. Dad’s army still going strong and enjto varying degrees by all my daughters. I too like Foyles War. Never watched x files, don’t know why.

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  3. The Flashing Blade - as a wargamer "It's better to have fought and lost than not have fought at all."
    The example of the stalwart French fortress commanders was inspiring.
    Stephen

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    1. Flashing Blade, terrific. The song has stayed with so many of us...

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  4. I seem to remember a lot of Westerns and Robin Hood/"Medieval" type stuff on TV - I guess this is why my first two boxes of Airfix 1/72 were The Waggon Train and Robin Hood.
    Like his Grace the Duke of Baylen, I also liked The Flashing Blade.

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    1. I’d forgotten the westerns. Granny was a big Bonanza fan so saw it when she was with us. Loads of western films . First my parents let me watch was set in the Seminole Wars with the swamp and crocs making an impression on me.

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  5. The earliest military TV program I can remember is the American war series called 'Combat'. Since it aired from 1962 onwards it just shows how old I am. It was filmed in black and white which was OK as we only had a black and white TV in those days.

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Combat!

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    1. A new one on me Jim, I will look it up.

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    2. You can find them here:

      https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IS4grrSWuZo&list=PLfQk6ph47fOzjRNdlvAtWO_GtkZmUiJuZ

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  6. Good question. Definitely By the Sword Divided, which was excellent if a bit stereotypical with rotten Roundheads and jolly cavaliers. Robin of Sherwood influenced my life in many ways, and I hope to game it one day.

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    1. By the Sword, not stereotypes surely , history:)
      Robin of Sherwood I didn’t watch really, though I have seen bits of it. I look forward to seeing you gaming it.

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  7. There seemed to be more historical based shows when I was younger.
    Following Man of Tin's format

    Growing up, The Swamp Fox, Hawkeye
    Tween-age, The Time Tunnel, Rat Patrol
    Adult, Band of Brothers, Vikings

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    1. Time tunnel, I recall that . Vikings I avoided for ages but then got hooked on it. Band of Brothers was so well done and moving. I don’t recognise the other tv you mention and I must look it up.

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  8. My mother had worked for Warner Brothers, and we visited the cinema for free. As a result, I saw no end of war films when they were released during the late 1950x and early 1960s. I can remember going to see DAM BUSTERS at our local cinema when it was released in 1955.

    The most important TV programme for me was CALLAN. He made being a wargamer interesting ... which helped make us look a little bit less nerdy.

    All the best,

    Bob

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    1. Dam busters was one of those films ( like On which we serve etc) that seemed to fill wet Sunday afternoons for me growing up. My father was a big Callan fan but I haven’t really watched it. Must remedy that I think .

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  9. Many programmes (some mentioned above) inspired my play as a kid. I wouldn’t call it wargaming as such. More ‘playing at war’ or playing with toy soldiers (without structured rules). Combat I remember and my brother, cousins and I used to play on a bit of wasteland near my grandparents’. Robin Hood - homemade bows and arrows from my brother’s friends tree. The Flashing Blade of course; Desert Crusader (French I believe); and something from the same period about a pair of Mirage pilots (the Flashing Blade updated 😉).

    As for ‘wargaming’ then there were relatively few TV programmes that influenced my wargaming as such. Somehow By the Sword Divided passed me by. The early 1970s BBC production of War and Peace vaguely influenced me. I would drift off during the Peace parts and pay attention during the War parts. André being mesmerised by the fizzing howitzer shell sticks in the mind.

    I’ve been waiting patiently for a drama series on the Silesian Wars or one of the great sieges of the 17th century, but I think there’s more chance of Grimsby Tosn making it to the Premier League.

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    1. ‘Town’ not ‘Tosn’ 😄

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    2. I remember those Mirage pilots and I think they were 'The Aeronauts' - Wikipedia says originally 'Les chevaliers du ciel' which is much more classy..

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    3. The Mirage pilots are new to me entirely. I recall that War and Peace and like you drifted in and out of the “ boring bits”. I really liked the recent BBC version of W&P and could have let it push me to Russian Napoleonics . The syw petit guerre was crying out to be filmed . The adventures of Baron Trenck a fun filled prog for all ages? A dad’s army equivalent set in a grenzer unit...

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  10. Battleground, and Michael Bentine's Potty Time here too. Also 'Wings' about WW1 RFC chaps. The Eagle of the Ninth TV version where I discovered the legion song 'When I joined the Eagles' could be set to the tune of The British Grenadiers :)

    Adult wise... Das Boot (original version) is about all I can think of.

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  11. Potty time , there’s a thing. Wings I had forgotten that, a good series.

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