The Complete Secret Army: An Unofficial and Unauthorised Guide to the Classic TV Drama Series

When I bought this book, I was worried that it would mostly be episode summaries, copied off Wikipedia. How wrong could I have been?Andy Priestner has produced a guide to Secret Army that genuinely does justice to what is, arguably, the best drama the BBC ever created. The research is meticulous and detailed; the writing elegant and nuanced; the access first-rate. Also, given the price, the quality of the illustrations is almost beyond belief.Not every television series needs commentary of this sort, but Secret Army, for all sorts of reasons, probably does. Priestner is careful to give well-researched accounts of the historical reality behind episodes that I had assumed were pure fictional drama. He is very strong on how the actors, in their different ways, contributed to the final product. His location guide will transform journeys through rural Cambridgeshire for many of us! And he never forgets that the subject matter here is real, complicated and, for some, still painful.This is a big, serious, intelligent book about a series that was all those things too. I recommend this book in the highest terms possible. It is the book that Secret Army deserves.

This is an encylopedia of not just the TV series (superb though it is), but of little known facts of WW2. Did you know the story in the last episode of series 2 (the 'Day of Wrath') when a previous 'evader' escapes back to Britain and then on a raid, shoots up Gestapo HQ in Brussels is based on a TRUE story? Check out Baron Jean de Selys Longchamps on google.......It appears this series was based on many factual accounts, including the very idea of 'escape' lines; one of them being set up by a 24 year old woman.........I don't want to give away anymore details. If you thought the TV series was good; get this book and enjoy many an hour of researching the actual stories behind each episode.

This has been on my wish list for some time, as I grew up with Secret Army and rewatch the series most years on DVD. I hesitated because of the cost, and because too many books-of-the-series turn out to be poor spinoffs that do little more than regurgitate the plot of each episode.In contrast, this is a detailed, meticulously researched book that provides a marvellous companion to the series on DVD. Whilst most of the book is indeed set out episode-by-episode, the plot summary is kept short and supplemented by well written analyses of the storyline and character development of the series (including a fair amount of criticism; it's not a "fan book"), information on the real life wartime events that inspired each story, details of the guest actors, detailed information about the production including all the locations (many of which were near Covent Garden or a short drive from Peterborough!) - everything you could want to know about the series.I highly recommend this book for anyone interested in the background behind probably the best TV series the BBC ever made.

I bought the book at the same time as the DVD set - the Dutch import - partly because I can not read Dutch ! I bought the book from Speedyhen via Amazon. It worked out cheaper book £ 18.50 + p&p £ 2.80. ( Amazon £30.). The book called The complete secret army. Throw away contact details for the trade descriptions ! 662 pages good job it is a paperback.The acknowledgements read like a page from who's who. I have not read much of it yet as it only arrived yesterday - great service from Speedyhen - I had already seen 3 episodes earlier in the week when the book arrived.One thing I can not understand is this is the unofficial and unauthorised guide. Why did the BBC not endorse it ? But I guess that is them they do so many things I do not understand.Previous reviews mention how the book is laid out, this is brilliant. The book will be at the side of me when I next watch an episode. I love the way he has included what the actors have also been in. With this being an old series you know you know the actors but they have changed over the years plus iro of the females they also have the 40's hairstyles.I recommend this to you if you have the DVDs and want to know more. I would have said that it also includes details on the follow up series Kessler.k

The perfect companion to the brilliant Secret Army dvd set. I liked watching an episode and then reading the review inbed and Im going to be sorry when I run out of episodes. There is quite a lot of information on the series, its conception, production and some interviews with actors. I did not find quite as much insider stuff as in the authors excellent book on Tenko but still this book really had aided my enjoyment of the series.

This excellent book called "The Complete Secret Army" fully meets my expectations.It is unquestionably a great work which gives us a clear idea of what each episode of this captivating war series is all about and also favours us with a detailed description of the main characters in the series, informing us how each leading figure experienced the making of this compelling creation and how he or she felt in his or her particular role.Also of peculiar interest is the background information that is provided after the synopsis and review of each episode and the many pics and illustrations which adorn the book are quite wonderful,especially as regards the filming locations.The book also reveals so many things which so far were rather enigmatic to my mind,for example why Lisa Colbert,the female leader of Lifeline,had to disappear from the series so early thus giving Albert Foiret ,her second in command,a chance to take the lead.In short,this book is a real asset to anyone's library and certainly a 'must' for any true fan of this wonderful drama series

If you liked the series Secret Army this is the book for you. Extremely detailed, starting with the orginal idea for the series and all the historical background. Biographies of all the main actors as well as break downs of every episode and critiques of each one.