<html><head><meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8"></head><body style="word-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; line-break: after-white-space;" class="">Morning Richard and Everyone <div class="">Yes I totally agree people would rarely think of snow and Spain. I don’t remember much to be honest about that scene so I should go back and look at that episode again. But I did remember John’s homecoming when he walked through the family door with Edmond how wonderful of his father in law to go there and fetch him home another act of his strength in character & unselfishness for his family and he deeply cares about John also and tried to make it easier on John’s parents it was a very considerate thing to do. I remembered how Jean Ashton greeted him , it did make me shed a few tears, I thought she received him with loving kindness and showed her great fondness for him as if her own beloved Rob walked through that door , it was brilliant acting. I remembered Phillip being perhaps sullen but thought perhaps he was fighting his own demons in his head just back from war himself and recuperating from his wounds . It must have felt like unreality for men and women to be in the midst of war and then back home to know that nothing has changed there and knowing they had to return to the madness . It never struck me as John being shy rather than quiet person a deep thinker , I don’t think it would have bothered him much or he noticed this much that there was no conversation as he was shell shocked or we call it PTSD nowadays and in turmoil himself it was just my thoughts on that scenes that I remember . Was this the same scene that John’s mum Cecilia Porter came to see him at the Ashtons also and caused such a fuss that she wasn’t to know till the next day and did not tell her own husband . I thought Mrs Ashton was extremely kind to her , showed great patience and understanding. Cecilia said some cruel things but Jean did not retaliate which was remarkable knowing what she had been through . Yes thought that too that Margaret and her Dad had very strong bond . I think he was very good father to them all and did his very best for them. </div><div class="">Kind Regards</div><div class="">Jane <br class=""><div><blockquote type="cite" class=""><div class="">On 14 Aug 2018,14:29, Veit, Richard via Afamilyatwar-list <<a href="mailto:afamilyatwar-list@baylor.edu" class="">afamilyatwar-list@baylor.edu</a>> wrote:</div><br class="Apple-interchange-newline"><div class=""><div class="WordSection1" style="page: WordSection1; caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration: none;"><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" class=""><b class=""><span style="font-size: 14pt;" class="">Episode No. 2, "To Die for Spain”<o:p class=""></o:p></span></b></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" class=""><b class=""><span style="" class=""><o:p class=""> </o:p></span></b></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" class=""><b class=""><span style="" class=""><span id="cid:image001.png@01D433A8.FC3E7160"><image001.png></span></span></b><b class=""><span style="" class=""><o:p class=""></o:p></span></b></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" class=""><b class=""><span style="" class=""><o:p class=""> </o:p></span></b></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" class=""><b class=""><span style="" class="">I open this commentary with a reminiscence from John Finch:<o:p class=""></o:p></span></b></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" class=""><b class=""><span style="" class=""><o:p class=""> </o:p></span></b></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" class=""><b class=""><span style="color: rgb(112, 48, 160);" class="">People rarely think of snow when they think of Spain. With this in mind I had set the episode in the heat of a Spanish summer. Needless to say, with our minuscule budget we couldn't even contemplate actually filming in Spain. What we did was find an area in Derbyshire, which viewers would accept as being Spain even though it was Britain in winter. In this we were driven by a schedule which left no alternative.<br class=""><br class="">Director Tim Jones, the crew and the actors all went off, and I settled down to finish a later episode I was working on. At some point a white-faced producer, Richard Doubleday, came through my office door. "We've had a call from Derbyshire," said Richard, "and Tim says they'll have to pack up and come home because it is snowing and the long-term forecast is bad". Catastrophe stared us in the face. We were on such a tight schedule that the loss of even a couple of days shooting would be disaster.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><br class=""><br class="">I was as shattered as Richard was, but some little thought came into my head from something I might have read when I was researching the Spanish Civil War. "Tell Tim to stay put until he hears from us," I said. I got hold of Margaret Lord , the researcher, and told her what I'd like her to do. She went away, but soon came back. "You're right," she said, "there was fighting in the Pyrenees and at that time of year it would be quite likely that it was snowing. So that's how Norton died for Spain in the snow.</span></b><span style="font-size: 11pt; color: rgb(112, 48, 160);" class=""><o:p class=""></o:p></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" class=""><b class=""><span style="" class=""><o:p class=""> </o:p></span></b></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" class=""><b class=""><span style="" class="">John's interesting account of that production challenge only goes to show that sometimes an unexpected predicament (Derbyshire snowstorm) can be turned into a plus. I think the snowy landscape added much to this episode, as did the actors’ visible breathing in the chilly air.<br class=""><br class="">In my opinion, the role of Parker has to constitute one of the most thoroughly reprehensible characters in the series. For that, I think John Ronane deserves much praise for a taut, memorable performance. Parker would seem to have precious few redeeming qualities. Much later, after four and a half years have passed, he will turn up once more in “Clash by Night,” and again he appears dangerous, not to be trusted. Of course, by then he has disavowed communism, and the character, now a diabetic, has become a quite vulnerable because of his need for insulin injections.<br class=""><br class="">One philosophical thought: I wonder why Parker did not fire a second (fatal) shot at Philip, as he did at Norton. Was it because he was distracted by issuing orders to the other men, or did he have some ulterior motive for allowing this other “deserter” to walk free?<br class=""><br class="">I am intrigued by the relationship between Lieutenant Norton and Podmore. The fact that Podmore was once Norton’s student at school somehow cultivates my sympathy for both men — a fragile, tenuous connection to the past, before the nightmarish turn both of their lives would take.<br class=""><br class="">The scene shifts to Liverpool. As in the first episode, John Porter is received coolly at the Ashtons’. Philip is decidedly uncommunicative with him, almost to the point of being rude. In this case, I suppose it can be attributed to the fact that Philip is pre-occupied by his recuperation from the leg wound. Also preying on his mind is the fateful decision to return to Spain and all of the heartache his departure is sure to cause. In any case, I feel sorry for John, who is shy and not much of a conversationalist in the best of circumstances. Later on, particularly during the post-war election, his social skills will develop more fully, and he becomes a passionate and even eloquent advocate of the Labour cause.<br class=""><br class="">I cannot close without mentioning that touching scene when Margaret and her father are reconciled — wonderfully acted. It clearly demonstrates the strong bond of love that exists between the two.</span></b><span style="font-size: 11pt;" class=""><o:p class=""></o:p></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" class=""><span style="font-size: 14pt;" class=""><o:p class=""> </o:p></span></div></div><span style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration: none; float: none; display: inline !important;" class="">_______________________________________________</span><br style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration: none;" class=""><span style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration: none; float: none; display: inline !important;" class="">Afamilyatwar-list mailing list</span><br style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration: none;" class=""><a href="mailto:Afamilyatwar-list@baylor.edu" style="color: rgb(149, 79, 114); text-decoration: underline; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px;" class="">Afamilyatwar-list@baylor.edu</a><br style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration: none;" class=""><a href="https://mailman.baylor.edu/mailman/listinfo/afamilyatwar-list" style="color: rgb(149, 79, 114); text-decoration: underline; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px;" class="">https://mailman.baylor.edu/mailman/listinfo/afamilyatwar-list</a></div></blockquote></div><br class=""></div></body></html>