Royal Marines Commando School

From the makers of Educating Yorkshire, this brand new eight-part documentary series has unprecedented access to arguably the most arduous basic military training programme in the world. Royal Marines Commando School goes behind-the-scenes at the Royal Marines’ Commando Training Centre in Devon. With a unique combination of fixed-rig cameras and embedded directors, it documents the experiences of Royal Marines in training as never before. They say that the first two weeks of Royal Marines training are among the toughest of the whole 32 weeks. This episode follows 56 new recruits through this so-called ‘shock of capture’. The recruits spend these opening weeks living in a 60-bed dorm where their every waking hour is controlled by their drill instructor, Corporal ‘Froggy’ Chauffour. Froggy is a Frenchman with a passion for discipline and high standards, all delivered with his trademark toughness and a glint of humour in his eye. As he puts it, ‘My voice will own them for the rest of their lives’. Like rabbits in headlights, the recruits struggle to cope with the gruelling demands of their new way of life, toiling tirelessly to master the details, stay awake and even suppress giggles in the face of Froggy’s wrath. Some question their decision to join up, while others have their career as a Marine cut short when it’s barely begun. By the end they must all pass a final inspection on everything they’ve learned so far, which for this troop in particular looks like a tall order., Behind the scenes at one of the most infamously tough military training schools in the world.