Harry Mount

Remembering well

Now that the Great War is no longer living history, we must beware of obscuring the truth with sentimentality

Extraordinary how potent cheap drama is. The latest season of Downton Abbey, which ended on Sunday, pulled off a rare double in its interpretation of the first world war — making you laugh one second at the wooden acting and the clunky script; the next second, making you cry at the suffering and tragedy.

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