Tenko : Complete BBC Series Box Set | 
 enlarge | Actors: Stephanie Cole, Stephanie Beacham, Jean Anderson, Ann Bell, Louise Jameson
Studio: Acorn Media
Category: DVD
List Price: £149.99
Buy New: £50.92
You Save: £99.07 (66%)
New (10) Used (1) from £50.92
Rating:  7 reviews
Sales Rank: 3480
Format: Box Set, Pal
Language: English (Original Language)
Rating: Suitable for 12 years and over
Region: 2
Number Of Discs: 12
Running Time: 999 Minutes
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1.9
Dimensions (in): 7.6 x 5.5 x 3.6
EAN: 5036193090554
ASIN: B0009M9FEQ
Release Date: July 11, 2005
Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days
Condition: Brand New - Swift dispatch from UK mainland
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| Customer Reviews: Read 2 more reviews...
TENKO November 16, 2008
Simon H. Bailey (Edinburgh, Scotland UK)
This series was one of the most brilliant the BBC ever produced. The acting was top notch, with a number of our best actresses portraying the horrors of WWII Japanese prison camps. This is indeed one of the premier serialisations which will remain one of the greatest dramas from the late 20th Century.
One of the best TV dramas ever made comes to DVD October 13, 2008
R. Boden (Coventry, UK)
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
They don't make television like this anymore. A true ensemble cast (mostly female), all of whom are very good actors. The story is great, the plots are great and it's got just enough of an air of kitsch about it to make it even better than if it was too well-made. Notice the bamboo plant which moves from scene to scene, the wobbley flats which represent "sky" outside of the hut windows and some of the campest lines ever to grace television. Although "Tenko" does have its kitsch qualities, the absolute brutal and tragic nature of the POW camps is there from the very beginning - showing how women of all social classes were brought at once to the same level as "fourth class women".
The DVDs unfortunately contain no "extras" which is a pity, but you do get every episode of the show (30 x 1 hour episodes!) and the feature-length special "Tenko Reunion" which was set (and filmed) a few years after the original series ended.
The Tin Cake August 12, 2008
Essex Girl
4 out of 4 found this review helpful
This is a very well-written and well-acted series, set around the story of a group of British, Australian, Dutch and Eurasian women in a Japanese POW camp during World War II. The characters are complex and have considerable depth: the plots that develop are true to the characters involved in them. We see their doubts and their failings and some of the reasons behind their more unpleasant actions: as a result, you find yourself sympathising with individuals who would normally only arouse your judgement. Not all the Japanese are brutes; not all the prisoners are saints.
The series also scores highly in the accuracy stakes. Somebody did a lot of research: not only is the broad thrust accurate (the impoverished circumstances of the shipwrecked British compared to the Dutch who were able to bring a few possession; the place of Eurasians in Colonial society) but also the tiny details (the tin birthday cake in an early episode comes straight out of a camp memoir). The women aren't thin enough, though, as that would be impossible: by the time they were liberated, female survivors often weighed in at less than six stone.
As a nation, we tend to be forgetful about World War II as it played out in the Far East, and this series is a good corrective. It's accurate enough to educate anyone interested in finding out what happened to civilian internees, and it's worth watching as a drama for its own merits.
Enthralled .... from beginning to end April 26, 2008
R. Hawkins (Warwickshire)
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
I found the TV series unmissable when I first saw it. I was given the complete DVD set for my 70th and was hooked all over again.
Acting, writing and sets all first class.
Why no subtitles - hard for my husband (who is hard of hearing) to enjoy it.
A fantastic drama, just try not to get addicted! March 6, 2008
Lumix (Coventry, UK)
7 out of 7 found this review helpful
I received this for Christmas, and proceeded to watch the whole box set over the Christmas holidays. It really is fantastic, the acting is superb, and you completely forget that it's really filmed at a specially constructed location in England.
The characters are fully developed and you find yourself following the story of each one as the series progresses and the original group is split. Even if you are only mildly interested, I would wholeheartedly recommend taking the plunge and buying this, however only if you haven't got anything important coming up in your schedule!
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