Enemy at the Door is a British television drama series made by London Weekend Television for ITV. The series was shown between 1978 and 1980 and dealt with the German occupation of Guernsey, one of the Channel Islands, during the Second World War. The programme generated a certain amount of criticism in Guernsey, particularly for being obviously filmed on Jersey. The series also marked the television debut of Anthony Head as a member of the island resistance. The theme music was composed by Wilfred Josephs.
Plot The islanders were chiefly represented by the respected local doctor, Philip Martel, who struggled to maintain the peace, while the Germans were led by Major Dieter Richter, a peacetime academic who was inclined to be lenient on the Guernsey populace, but whose approach was challenged by his more conventionally nasty SS counterpart Hauptsturmführer Klaus Reinicke. Rounding out the principal German characters were Major Freidel and Oberleutnant Kluge, a former policeman, still more inclined to act as a policeman rather than a soldier.
ITV later described Enemy at the Door as "Not all the Germans were villains and not all the British were heroes". Many episodes portrayed the balance of power and fragile harmony between the islanders and the German occupying forces, and how it was threatened by either resistance action or over-zealous clamping down by the Germans.
A precursor to his role as Bergerac in the detective series set on Jersey, John Nettles played a police detective ordered to work for the Germans and anguished by the conflict between his duty and collaborating with the enemy.
The series's narrative ended in 1943, with the Germans still occupying the island.
Cast
Alfred Burke as Major Dieter Richter Bernard Horsfall as Dr Philip Martel Simon Cadell as Hauptsturmfuhrer Klaus Reinicke John Malcolm as Oberleutnant Kluge Simon Lack as Major Freidel David Waller as Major General Müller Richard Heffer as Peter Porteous Helen Shingler as Helen Porteous Antonia Pemberton as Olive Martel Emily Richard as Clare Martel
Simon Cadell, who played Hauptsturmfuhrer Klaus Reinicke, had already in 1976 played a German officer in the forces occupying the Channel Islands — in that case, as Dr Braun in a television adaptation of William Douglas-Home's play The Dame of Sark, set on Sark.
Reception The review on the Screenonline website by Sergio Angelini describes Enemy at the Door as featuring "stories and characters that explore the complex issues of alienation and wartime collaboration in a multi-faceted and surprisingly subtle fashion". However, "[W]hile striving for a sense of day-to-day reality, the series was shown well before the 9 o'clock watershed, consequently holding back from showing too much of the grim reality of the situation."
West Germany was among the countries that purchased Enemy at the Door for broadcast. The series was rebroadcast in the UK by Talking Pictures TV from September 2020 and on the same channel in May 2024.
Series overview
Episode list
Series 1 (1978)
NoTitleEpisode SummaryOriginal Airdate1The first episode is set in June 1940, as the islanders of Guernsey await the German invasion following bombing raids. Dr Philip Martel is invited by John Ambrose on behalf of the bailiff to join a negotiating committee in anticipation of occupation, leading his daughter Clare to accuse him of collusion. After the Germans arrive Dr Martel and the committee face the invaders under Major Richter, who refuses to recognise the island as a demilitarised zone and puts it under martial rule. Clare's boyfriend Peter Porteous and local fisherman Peter Girard attempt to escape by boat but the Germans fire on them, killing the young fisherman. Peter Porteous escapes but the Germans are aware that somebody has tried to elude them.21 January 19782Hauptsmann Reinicke's call for reprisals in the wake of Peter's escape are rejected by Major Richter who wants to court local goodwill. Peter's mother tells Oberleutnant Kluge that Peter would never try to escape as he is her carer but Kluge is suspicious and purposely falls against Peter to prove that he has a wounded shoulder. Reinicke antagonises librarian Cecily Brown by placing several innocuous books on a banned list. They struggle over a book each wishes to keep hold of and the Nazi falls and cuts his head. Cecily is arrested and Richter agrees to let her go if she apologises to Reinicke but, despite Martel's urgings, she refuses on principle and is sentenced to two years in a French prison.28 January 19783Reinicke organises a dance for soldiers and local girls to attract good publicity. Anton Schen, a young Austrian, takes a shine to Marie Weston. But her widowed father, a lawyer who fought in World War I, has had his car requisitioned by the occupiers and does not want Marie to attend the dance. She nevertheless goes behind his back and dances with Anton but, on the way home, she fights off his advances and accuses him of rape. At his court-martial, Anton claims that Marie was willing, but despite some misgivings Richter finds him guilty and has him shot. Next morning Richter orders Reinicke to give Mr Weston his car back.4 February 19784Aware that it was Peter who tried to escape, Richter relays a message from his high command to Dr Martel to warn anybody hoping to follow his example that reprisals will be taken. Dr Martel's son Clive lands secretly on the island to spy out the German position, hiding with his old business partner Teddy Lupus. Martel's daughter Clare meets Willie Kessler, a Luftwaffe pilot, whose face was burned in an air strike. He is attracted to her and they become friends but when she goes to meet Clive and sees Kessler watching them she throws a stone at him, causing him to fall to his death and float away in the sea.11 February 19785As Clare tells her parents what she did Kessler's body is found but it is assumed he died in an abortive raid on the island by the British led by Clive. There are many casualties and Dr Martel hands over the critically wounded Major Kirk to the Germans to save his life, whilst bringing food to Clive, who is in hiding. Bar keeper Fat Molly names fisherman Joe Le Beq as organising the raid, though she knows he is innocent, because she holds him responsible for her husband's death, and the Germans arrest him and threaten to shoot him. This flushes Clive out and he is sent to a POW camp. The handling of the situation, however, brings the enmity between Kluge and Reinicke to the surface.18 February 19786After cut-out blue paper V for Victory signs appear in library books, somebody takes to painting V signs on walls at night as well as lighting fires. Fifteen-year-old Billy Le Prevost is caught near one of the walls and arrested by Kluge, though he believes Billy is innocent of the graffiti and is sheltering somebody else. To ensure that Billy is truly considered to be innocent, Peter starts a fire whilst the boy is still held captive. Consequently, Kluge lets him go but tragedy awaits him.25 February 19787Retired diplomat Sir James Prideaux resists Reinicke's efforts to make him divulge British government information. Prior to the war, Sir James's wife Diana had an affair with Polish military attaché Arciszewsky in Riga, which her husband knew about but kept quiet. The Pole is now a civilian prisoner on the island but escapes from his work camp and hides out with the Prideaux who enlist Dr Martel's help to get him to safety. However, Arciszewsky is discovered to have typhus and, before Reinicke can trap the Prideaux for assisting him, he kills himself.4 March 19788Kluge is anxious to clamp down on the island's black market activities and enlists the reluctant aid of local police sergeant Roy Lewis. There is a new drug called sulfanilamide which Dr Martel believes will save the life of seriously ill youngster Bobby Beauchamp but he is denied its use by the Germans and so turns to black marketeer Louis Mendoza. The men are caught, thanks to Lewis, but the policeman is surprised that Kluge is more humane than he had thought.11 March 19789On her father's death, Betty Ridge gets work as a cleaner for the Germans, meeting young soldier Erich, with whom she spends a romantic evening. At a dance, their association scandalises locals who taunt her as a "Jerrybag". When Betty falls pregnant, despite Erich's sincere wish to marry her, they are forbidden as such unions are not allowed. Erich is sent to the Russian front before the child is born and his death is reported. Betty feels he abandoned her and wants to give their baby son up for adoption but, after a sympathetic pep talk from Peter, she is proud to keep him despite local animosity.18 March 197810General Von Wittke comes to Guernsey, ostensibly to write a report on the Occupation. In fact he has come to see General Laidlaw, a retired British officer and the ex-husband of Von Wittke's sister, a German opera singer. Von Wittke and other generals are aware that Hitler is a lunatic who will ruin the country. They aim to depose him and Von Wittke asks Laidlaw to travel to London to broker a deal. A Gestapo officer arrives on the island, suspicious of Von Wittke's presence, but the general successfully convinces him that he had come to invite Laidlaw to Germany to make anti-British broadcasts and that Laidlaw had refused. The trip to London never happens.25 March 197811Dr Martel arranges hospitalisation for frail old Mrs Bree who, with her son Edward, are rent-free tenants of Peter. However, they have had to move to an inadequately heated cottage after the Germans commandeered the farmhouse in which they used to live as a billet. In fact, the Germans want to demolish the cottage to make way for an arms dump and trick Peter into cleaning up a cesspool on his land in exchange for letting the Brees return to the farmhouse. However, after Mrs Bree dies, they charge Edward with stealing coal to keep the cottage warm and send him to prison.1 April 197812Arrogant Prussian officer Major Von Bulow comes to the island and is billeted with Peter whilst he trains soldiers for the Russian front. He recognises Chantal, a French prostitute in the Germans' brothel as an old flame of Reinicke and, as he dislikes Reinicke, takes great delight in revealing her occupation, sending his batman Klinski to have sex with her. Reinicke is humiliated as planned but when a drunken Klinski, rejected by Chantal, kills her, he is also the chief suspect. He is exonerated but his reputation tarnished as Von Bulow leaves Guernsey.8 April 197813Richter gives Dr Martel permission to travel to France to get much needed medicines for the islanders. At the same time, Peter has secretly been photographing German ships at the local port, with a view to passing them to the French Resistance so that the Germans' strengths can be calculated. He and Clare put them in Martel's case but the Germans open it as he is leaving for France, with the result that the doctor and Peter are both sent to prison.15 April 1978
Series 2 (1980)