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War and Peace revival visitors labelled 'dark tourists' in Netflix documentary

Organisers of the popular War and Peace Revival show have disputed the claim of a documentary series that it is a "dark tourist" attraction.

The event featured in an episode of the Netflix series Dark Tourist, hosted by David Farrier, who visited the 2017 show at the Hop Farm in Paddock Wood.

The five-day event is home to nostalgic entertainment, war re-enactments and demonstrations from both the battlefield and the home front.

A recreation of an engagement between German and American forces from WWII at the War and Peace show at the Hop Farm, Paddock Wood on Saturday. Picture: Chris Davey FM4868880 (3115209)
A recreation of an engagement between German and American forces from WWII at the War and Peace show at the Hop Farm, Paddock Wood on Saturday. Picture: Chris Davey FM4868880 (3115209)

Farrier says in the documentary: "80,000 dark tourists come here every year to pretend to be soldiers from different wars, different sides and different times. They don't just come to watch. Many take a week off work just to hang out in the mud.

"I don't understand the appeal, but the best way to figure it out is to get a little dirty myself."

Farrier's final thoughts were: “I’m not sure that making a ghastly piece of history ‘fun’, is the best way to understand it, or avoid repeating it. It’s definitely not my idea of a holiday.”

A recreation of an engagement between German and American forces from WWII at the War and Peace show at the Hop Farm, Paddock Wood on Saturday. Picture: Chris Davey FM4868789 (3045593)
A recreation of an engagement between German and American forces from WWII at the War and Peace show at the Hop Farm, Paddock Wood on Saturday. Picture: Chris Davey FM4868789 (3045593)

One of the organisers of the event Steve Morgan reacted to the final episode: "I think the makers struggled to understand the point of what we do. They focused on quite a small element in order to suit the remit of the documentary theme."

Responding to the challenges that Mr Farrier made about participants wearing Nazi outfits, Steve Morgan said: "He got hung up on the Nazi thing, but you've got to have both sides there because it is historical fact. Our re-enactors don't have any politics behind them, they're great historians who have got a great knowledge of the units they are portraying.

Hop Farm, Maidstone..War & Peace Rivival Show 2018..Picture: Steve Crispe. (3318592)
Hop Farm, Maidstone..War & Peace Rivival Show 2018..Picture: Steve Crispe. (3318592)

"The point of the re-enactments is to give the public a a more realistic view of the time that they can't get looking in a museum. It has great educational value for the public.

The 360 History Group who won the best medium living history award for the 'Black Hawk Down' display at the War and Peace show at the Hop Farm, Paddock Wood on Saturday. Picture: Chris Davey FM4868564 (3045552)
The 360 History Group who won the best medium living history award for the 'Black Hawk Down' display at the War and Peace show at the Hop Farm, Paddock Wood on Saturday. Picture: Chris Davey FM4868564 (3045552)

Nevertheless, Mr Morgan stressed that he was not angry about the documentary: "I don't think it's an unfair portrayal, it's like with any media - they edit it to fit the topic. I'm not disgruntled about it."

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