Soldier Soldier
Soldier Soldier is a BBC drama series. The title is based on a traditional ballad of the same name: "Soldier, soldier, will you marry me with your gun, fife, and drum?" - an instrumental rendition of which served as the show's theme music. It ran for seven seasons and 82 episodes from 1991 to 1997, produced by Central Television and shown on the ITV network. It depicted the daily lives of troops from the 1st Battalion's 'B' Company. The fictional British Army infantry regiment The King's Fusiliers is based on the Royal Regiment of Fusiliers. It is considered an accurate picture of army life in the early to mid-1990s, when the British Army was experiencing substantial upheaval. This was likely most evident during the third series, around 1994, when a considerable number of real regiments were forced to merge with one another due to army reduction. In Soldier Soldier, the King's Fusiliers are compelled to merge with the Cumbrian Regiment, another fictional regiment, to form the King's Own Fusiliers. The fatality rate was low during the time Soldier Soldier was broadcast, with most casualties owing to training mishaps and suicides. The military as a whole was tasked with more peacekeeping missions than real combat. As a result, despite the domestic issues that could arise, the show did a fantastic job of portraying the army in a favorable manner.