''Island at War'' is a British television series that tells the story of the

German occupation of the Channel Islands The military occupation of the Channel Islands by Nazi Germany lasted for most of the Second World War, from 30 June 1940 until liberation on 9 May 1945. The Bailiwick of Jersey and Bailiwick of Guernsey are two island countries and British ...

. It primarily focuses on three local families: the

upper class Upper class in modern societies is the social class composed of people who hold the highest social status, usually are the wealthiest members of class society, and wield the greatest political power. According to this view, the upper class is gen ...

Dorrs, the

middle class The middle class refers to a class of people in the middle of a social hierarchy, often defined by occupation, income, education, or social status. The term has historically been associated with modernity, capitalism and political debate. C ...

Mahys, and the

working class The working class (or labouring class) comprises those engaged in manual-labour occupations or industrial work, who are remunerated via waged or salaried contracts. Working-class occupations (see also " Designation of workers by collar colou ...

Jonases, and four German officers. The fictional island of St. Gregory serves as a stand-in for the real-life islands

Guernsey Guernsey (; Guernésiais: ''Guernési''; french: Guernesey) is an island in the English Channel off the coast of Normandy that is part of the Bailiwick of Guernsey, a British Crown Dependency. It is the second largest of the Channel Islands ...

and

Jersey Jersey ( , ; nrf, Jèrri, label= Jèrriais ), officially the Bailiwick of Jersey (french: Bailliage de Jersey, links=no; Jèrriais: ), is an island country and self-governing Crown Dependency near the coast of north-west France. It is the ...

, and the story is compiled from the events on both islands. Produced by

Granada Television ITV Granada, formerly known as Granada Television, is the ITV franchisee for the North West of England and Isle of Man. From 1956 to 1968 it broadcast to both the north west and Yorkshire but only on weekdays as ABC Weekend Television was its ...

Manchester Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The ...

, ''Island at War'' had an estimated budget of £9,000,000 and was filmed on location in the

Isle of Man ) , anthem = " O Land of Our Birth" , image = Isle of Man by Sentinel-2.jpg , image_map = Europe-Isle_of_Man.svg , mapsize = , map_alt = Location of the Isle of Man in Europe , map_caption = Location of the Isle of Man (green) in Europ ...

from August 2003 to October 2003. When the series was shown in the UK, it appeared in six 70-minute episodes.

Cast

* James Wilby as James Dorr *

Clare Holman Clare Margaret Holman (born 12 January 1964) is an English actress. She portrayed forensic pathologist Dr. Laura Hobson in the crime drama series ''Inspector Morse'' and its spin-off ''Lewis'' from 1995 to 2015. Career Holman started her act ...

as Felicity Dorr * Sam Heughan as Phillip Dorr (aka Mr. Brotherson) * Owen Teale as Wilf Jonas * Julia Ford as Kathleen Jonas * Sean Gallagher as Sheldon Leveque * Saskia Reeves as Cassie Mahy * Julian Wadham as Urban Mahy * Joanne Froggatt as Angelique Mahy * Samantha Robinson as June Mahy *

Louisa Clein Louisa Clein (born 6 July 1979) is a British actress, known for portraying the role of Maya Stepney in the ITV soap opera '' Emmerdale''. Life and career Clein was born in Poole, Dorset to Jewish parents, Peter and Channa Clein (née Salomon ...

as Zelda Kay *

Philip Glenister Philip Haywood Glenister (born 10 February 1963) is an English actor. He is best known for his role as DCI Gene Hunt in the BBC series '' Life on Mars'' (2006–2007) and its sequel '' Ashes to Ashes'' (2008–2010). He also played DCI Willia ...

as Baron Von Rheingarten * Daniel Flynn as Captain Muller *Colin Tierney as Oberwachtmeister Wimmel *

Conor Mullen Conor Mullen (born 1966) is an Irish actor who played Frank in Smother, Stuart McElroy in ''Holby City'' and Aidan Doherty in the 2007 BBC1 drama series ''Rough Diamond''. He was born in Dublin. Both his parents were pharmacists, and he is one ...

as Oberleutnant Walker * Andrew Havill as Oberleutnant Flach *

Laurence Fox Laurence Paul Fox (born 1978) is a political activist and former actor, most well-known for playing the supporting role of DS James Hathaway in the British TV drama series '' Lewis'' from 2006 to 2015. A grandson of the actors Robin and Ange ...

as Bernhardt Tellemann * Richard Dempsey as Eugene La Salle *Ann Rye as Ada Jonas *Sean Ward as Colin Jonas

Episodes

Reception

Overall, the miniseries earned more favourable reviews in the United States than in the United Kingdom. In a review by Anita Gates for ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'', Gates wrote, "You can call 'Island at War' a soap opera, as some British television critics have, but if that's true this soap opera is a gripping, poetic one—about moral courage in many guises. You might also call it a drama of manners." ''

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

'' magazine called the series "reasonably absorbing but no great classic." In the

Channel Islands The Channel Islands ( nrf, Îles d'la Manche; french: îles Anglo-Normandes or ''îles de la Manche'') are an archipelago in the English Channel, off the French coast of Normandy. They include two Crown Dependencies: the Bailiwick of Jersey, ...

themselves, the series faced widespread criticism in the local press due to inaccuracy, mispronunciation of names (for example, 'Mahy' was pronounced 'Mah-hee' rather than the correct 'Ma'yee'), and the fact that the series was filmed not on the islands themselves, but the

. The ''

Guernsey Press The ''Guernsey Press and Star'', more commonly known as the ''Guernsey Press'' is the only daily newspaper published in Guernsey. History The ''Guernsey Evening Press'' was first published in 1897. In 1951 it purchased the struggling ''Guernsey ...

'' noted that "the programme caused outrage among many people who accused the producers of distorting Guernsey history."

DVD release

The complete DVD collection was released in 2008, by

Acorn Media UK RLJE International Ltd, d/b/a Acorn DVD, a British company that publishes and distributes DVDs, as well as selling home-video products and streaming videos with a particular focus on British television. History Launched in 1997, Acorn Media U. ...

. The DVD received a second release in 2017 by Network.

Cancelled second series

Although highly successful during its initial transmission the series ended, rather abruptly. The writer Stephen Mallatratt died from cancer shortly after the series broadcast. This, coupled with the high production cost and controversy over historical accuracy, meant the series came to an end. Each episode cost around £1 million to produce.

References

External links

* *
Island at War
{{Webarchive, url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161009034810/http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/masterpiece/islandatwar/index.html , date=9 October 2016 '' at PBS 2000s British drama television series 2004 British television series debuts 2004 British television series endings Channel Islands Films shot in the Isle of Man Films set in the Channel Islands 2000s British television miniseries ITV television dramas Television series by ITV Studios Television shows produced by Granada Television Military history of the Channel Islands during World War II Works about the Channel Islands World War II television drama series English-language television shows