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ack-ack
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Some folk like dressing up and playing war games at the weekend.

 

Romans, Saxons, Vikings etc - No harm, good to watch.

 

Roundheads and Cavaliers - ditto, a great spectacle

 

Redcoats and the like - Why not? We all like a bit of Sharpey

 

Wermacht, Luftwaffe, Waffen SS - No. Sorry, I don't get it.

 

Can somebody enlighten me?

 

I collect militaria which some might find a bit odd but I have since I was 10 and its something which I find fascinating, but I've never found the need to dress up as a Nazi and start singing the Horst Wessel with like minded folk.

 

Article in the mail today sort of summed it up really.

 

What is the consensus?

Edited by ack-ack
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the wifes sisters boyfriend goes on re enactment weekends,dressed as a german officer..he has taken german lessons so he can talk to his troops in german...what a plonker..none of them speak german.i keep winding up about being on the loosing side...

 

cant see the point myself

 

mikky

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Dressing up generally is a strange thing. Many years ago a workmate of mine, now dead sadly, took his son to a Country and Western weekend at Caister holiday camp. They liked the music etc. However, they came away before the end of the weekend because the place was full of grown men dressing up and playing cowboys. He just found it too embarrasing to watch.

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I've a friend who is a well known face on the historical reenactment scene. He is a brilliant bloke and very funny, but because he knows I like my military history he is always trying to "recruit" me to join the ranks of overweight men in ill fitting uniforms puffing around the arena at a village fete near you. There is actually a group of U-boat reenactors out there who have a conning tower mounted on a trailor... I kid you not.

 

To me, the living history that involves glorified camping and getting leathered in a field before wasting a load of black powder the next day actually looks like a laugh. The problem is that these things are a magnet (even more than internet forums ;) ) for people who take things waaaaaay too seriously, so I will pass.

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To me, the living history that involves glorified camping and getting leathered in a field before wasting a load of black powder the next day actually looks like a laugh. The problem is that these things are a magnet (even more than internet forums ;) ) for people who take things waaaaaay too seriously, so I will pass.

 

 

I concur, the muskets, smocks and dubious stews in the dutch oven mixed with copious amounts of Ale/Mead/Cyder sounds like a blast.

 

You only have to attend the war and peace show to realise just how many odd balls there are out there. Restoring the vehicles - great, sharing the vehicles with the public - great, dressing in the uniforms to suit the vehicles - go on then, I can see that one, joining an group that relives the glory days of the offensive on the Soviets - nah.

 

I looked up one of their sites and it was mentalist central. Waltmania.

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I went to a Mil show last weekend where they had a living history section .

 

As has been mentioned above , not my tea of tea , but each to their own I suppose .

 

I dare say some of the guys there will think Im odd for walking around the woods for hours on end for a few rabbits think Im odd to!! Not like thet arer hurting anyone , and some of its fairly intresting to watch .

 

All the best fellas .

 

 

Andy .

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Not really my cup of tea so I will stick to the wife in high heels, stockings and suspenders under the black maids dress and white lacy if that's OK with everyone! :lol::lol::lol:

 

Before anyone asks, NO there will not be any photos or videos posted! :no::no::no:

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It's like anything else, there will always be those who take things far too seriously. My brother's stepdaughter and her family are all into the Sealed Knot etc, but they are the full 'museum standard'reenactors, who work for the National Trust etc at the old castles and pageant days, they earn a decent living at the old dressing up lark, partly because they have to do so much research and spend so much on the gear, which even has to be handmade with the correct thread/stitches etc! The younger family member, a lad of about 14, earned over a grand last summer, working as a 'Page' to one of the 'Knights' at the royal armouries-type events, so quite a decent earner for a schoolkid. I have been to some of the museum-style sites like Eden Camp near Beverley, and the WWII reenactors gave people a chance to see what the real uniforms, weapons, vehicles etc were like.

However, as has been said, some of them seem to almost believe it is all real. Stephen Fry said that when they were recording Blackadder, some of the Roman reenactors refused to speak English if they were in costume, only Latin, even off-camera!

I went to a British Western Shooting Society competition the other weekend and it seemed like great fun, yes, a few were wearing full western gear, but they didn't really think they were cowboys, it was all just part of the day.

 

A little is fun - too much is obsession... :good:

Edited by Bloke
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I shoot with the BWSS as well, and no, I dont drive home in the gear, spurs get in the way of the clutch pedal :D

 

As far as I`m concerned it`s a little different from reenacting, live ammo and steel plates, the dressing up bit to shoot is incidental, just like me putting my overalls on for work, once I`ve done, it`s back to civvies.

 

People that are really obsessed with this type of thing, be it Sealed Knot or Military stuff do worry me a little.

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Not being in to this sort of thing at all but having said that on a purely aesthetic level you have to admit that the German kit has always been very smart in the old films we see the English in there rough uniforms never look as smart as the Germans did.

 

I no that the Germans did some bad things but when you look back at various times most Country's have things that they have done that they would sooner forget.

 

From what I can remember Rommel was regarded and a good General and indeed was admired my many people we do tend to jumble the good and the bad all together Ie the Roundhead's and Cavalries surely did some bad things but that tends to get forgotten about.

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Lad and I are going to the Great Central Railway in Rothley, Leics later for a look as it's a ten minute walk from home and they are having a WWI re-enactment day.

For some of the smaller privately run organisations such as the GCR anything that brings the punters in to spend a few pounds on overpriced hot dogs has got to be a plus.

There's supposed to be a vintage fighter coming over later, so in the best 'Commando' book tradition it'll be great to hear some fellas shouting "Achtung Spitfeuer". Walts are sooooooo much fun to watch. :rolleyes:

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Is it any different to making a war film?

Let's face it a multi million dollar movie is just men and women dressed up, running around a film pretending to he german, british or American or whatever army folk. Only difference is they have a camera following them.

 

Saying all that, reenactment is not my kind of fun nut I do like watching war films.

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Lad and I are going to the Great Central Railway in Rothley, Leics later for a look as it's a ten minute walk from home and they are having a WWI re-enactment day.

For some of the smaller privately run organisations such as the GCR anything that brings the punters in to spend a few pounds on overpriced hot dogs has got to be a plus.

There's supposed to be a vintage fighter coming over later, so in the best 'Commando' book tradition it'll be great to hear some fellas shouting "Achtung Spitfeuer". Walts are sooooooo much fun to watch. :rolleyes:

 

A Spitfire in WW1? Wow! :lol:

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Someone i know does this kinda thing in either British,Russian or German depending on what they're doing.He's harmless and i dont know why people here make such a big deal of it? Its not as if they're gonna go on the rampage with a deactivated rifle and from what he says they get large family audiences so they're not attacting the next generation nazi thugs.I dont see what the difference is either with having a viking display or WW2-apart from the weaponry.

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Some folk like dressing up and playing war games at the weekend.

 

Romans, Saxons, Vikings etc - No harm, good to watch.

 

Roundheads and Cavaliers - ditto, a great spectacle

 

Redcoats and the like - Why not? We all like a bit of Sharpey

 

Wermacht, Luftwaffe, Waffen SS - No. Sorry, I don't get it.

 

Can somebody enlighten me?

 

I collect militaria which some might find a bit odd but I have since I was 10 and its something which I find fascinating, but I've never found the need to dress up as a Nazi and start singing the Horst Wessel with like minded folk.

 

 

Article in the mail today sort of summed it up really.

 

What is the consensus?

 

 

What the Germans did and stood for is sickening! but i think the only reason re-enactments involving WW2 Nazi's is frowned upon is because it's so recent in our history. You wont have to go far to find someone who was directly affected by the war not to mention the press coverage at the time i.e photo's, video, film etc.

If there were news reels, photo's, videos etc of Romans, Saxons and Vikings and their brutal vicious ways of fighting, rape, pillage, torture, slavery, barbaric ways of mutilating victims (the blood eagle springs to mind link) and lets say it all happened less than a hundred years ago, i reckon we'd all have a different view on them re-enacting aswell.

Edited by carpentermark
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