WWI: The Final Hours – BBC2

By Mandy Cooper
( What's on TV )
published

WWI: The Final Hours - Photograph taken 11 November 1918 as Marshal Foche, second from right, leaves the railway carriage in which the Armistice which
(Image credit: Alamy Stock Photo)

A BBC2 docu-drama on the secret November 1918 Armistice negotiations between a German politician and two Allied decorated war leaders

On 8 November 1918, an Englishman, a Frenchman and a German met on a train to talk peace in Europe ( image from 11 November 1918, above).

WWI: The Final Hours

David Bark Jones portrays the British Navy Admiral, Rosslyn Wemyss

Admiral Rosslyn Wemyss (David Bark Jones) had an agenda to protect Britain’s seas, France’s Marshal Foch (Pip Donaghy) had seen his land decimated by war and was set on dismantling Germany at all costs, while German politician Matthias Erzberger (Chris Rogers) had been sent to negotiate on behalf of a nation on its knees.

WWI: The Final Hours

A dramatic recreation featuring Pip Donaghy as French Marshal Ferdinand Foch

WWI: The Final Hours - shows Chris Rogers as German politician Matthias Erzberger

Chris Rogers as German politician Matthias Erzberger

This film tells the story using dramatic reconstruction of that extraordinary secret meeting that ended one war but began another.

TV Times rating: ****

Mandy Cooper
Mandy Cooper
TV Times Highlights Editor

As TV Times Highlights Editor I get to hear about all the latest TV shows coming soon. Here at TVT HQ we are in the privileged position of selecting the best programmes from across all the channels and streaming platforms. Our mission is to make it easier for our readers to decide what to watch - and give them lots of choice of genres - all the latest shows, plus some nostalgic choices we call hidden gems, too. My career began with a postgraduate degree in periodical journalism (ahem, yes old school!) in 1991 and I’ve worked in TV media since 2000.