Rating: 
Summary: A Mostly Enjoyable Production
Review: Being a long-time Enya fan, I've known about the Celts miniseries for quite a few years. Thus, when it came out on DVD, I was eager to view it. Like tens of millions of other Americans and Canadians, I have a significant amount of Celtic ancestry, and have been greatly interested of late in discovering my roots. So, was this miniseries what I'd hoped for?
For the most part, yes. The series covers the Celts from the first time the Greeks encountered them (naming them "Keltoi"), some 2500 years ago, up to the present (or 1987, at least). They came to rule almost all of Europe, but eventually other peoples invaded their lands and pushed them into the far West, where their descendents remain today: the British Isles, Brittany and Northern Spain. They were fierce warriors, but clannish and hence easy prey to the "divide and conquer" strategy. They were also famous for their magic; even down to this day the Druids continue to fascinate us.
We learn that elements of Celtic religion and folklore continue to influence even the non-Celts; people who carve Jack-O-Lanterns for Halloween are unwittingly practicing a form of Druidism, as are people who toss coins into wishing wells, once an act to appease or petition the water spirits. The idea of "romantic love" appears to come from the Celtic tradition, as shown by the legends of King Arthur, himself an ancient Briton. A common theme of Celtic lore were the tales of people matching wits with those from the Other World; I was reminded of Bilbo Baggins trading riddles with Gollum in the dark, Bilbo's life and the fate of Middle Earth hanging in the balance, though he did not know it. Although the miniseries does not mention J.R.R. Tolkien, the fact is that he drew upon Celtic mythology, among other things, when penning "The Lord of the Rings".
Some aspects of the miniseries are quite humorous. Take, for instance, a couple of scenes depicting the quintessential stern English schoolmaster trying to drill Celtic history into the heads of utterly, mind-numbingly bored young men. Sometimes the humor is unintentional. BBC has a certain classic documentary style which Monty Python loved to parody. So, when the narrator was walking across a field of battle in which the Irish and the Vikings are fighting furiously, whacking at each other with swords and axes, I kept expecting someone to run past and lop his head off, in the gruesome tradition of "The Search for the Holy Grail". But, of course, nothing of the sort happened.
It is inevitable that in some ways the DVD has not aged well, being almost twenty years old. The weakest of the six episodes is by far the final one, in which scholars get together and discuss whether there truly is such a thing as a true Celtic culture any more, or whether it has merely been reduced to cartoons (Asterix the Gaul, leprechauns chasing rainbows) and souvenirs. They showed one goofy video from an utterly forgettable 80's pop star dressed up in ridiculous Celtic armor, featuring girls who looked like plaid-wearing cheerleaders. I found myself lamenting they hadn't thought to feature Runrig, a Gaelic-speaking rock group from the Isle of Skye who have played a major role in the Celtic revival of the past 30 years, and are very serious about their language and culture. Their classic album "The Cutter and The Clan" came out in 1987, so they were certainly becoming well known at the time. But, alas, there was no mention of them.
As a side note, episode 5 primarily devotes itself to the efforts to preserve the Celtic languages of Welsh, Breton and Irish, and the beginning of the afore-mentioned Celtic revival. Did you know that children who dared to speak Welsh in the classroom were once shamed mercilessly and ridiculed?
While I was never all that fond of Enya's earliest music, I gained a much greater appreciation of it after hearing it played on the DVDs. The music in one scene, showing a Welsh village submerged by the waters of a newly created reservoir, was most haunting. And then there was this weird video in episode 4 showing Enya as I'd never imagined her before: her eyes glowing red, she shoots lightning from her fingers and ignites an ugly old car. Perhaps it symbolized the fight to free Celtic culture from the junk of globalization. I'm not really sure.
Parental warning: Note that these DVDs are not rated. I suspect they'd have to be given a PG-13, or its television equivalent, if they were to be rated. Here's why: In a couple of places, in both episodes 1 and 4, there is a depiction of a reconstructed ancient Celtic village complete with people in period dress, or lack thereof. In both cases, blonde women are shown painting each other with elaborate blue whorls, and there is full frontal nudity. Some will find this mightily offensive, as shown by the recent Super Bowl halftime uproar. Myself, I found it somewhat annoying, and could have done without it. It reminded me of photos in old National Geographic magazines. But certainly it accurately depicted the customs of the ancient Celts, as described by Roman writers of the time.
In summary, I'm glad I bought "The Celts". It did teach me a lot I didn't know about my heritage. Most likely I'll watch a good part of it again, though I'll be skipping episode 6 and the nude scenes.
Rating:
Summary: Celtic History is Alive and Well
Review: Even though this documentary was six hours long, it was so informational. Not only did it give details about the history of Celtic civilization, but it enlightened us about Irish immigration into America. The influence of the Celts spans from the Middle East to Western Europe and now to the United States. I especially liked the re-enactments of events and sites. And, as one reviewer said, if you an Enya fan, it is a must-see. Her music makes the Celtic history in this video come alive!
Rating:
Summary: Excellent documentary on the Celts
Review: For those who are a fan of Enya, then you're going to want this three videotape collection. The Celts was a BBC production from 1987, and the music from Enya's debut is featured here (as well as an original version of "The Longships" that never appeared on album, but was later re-recorded for Watermark). But what really matters here is this is a useful series documenting Celtic history, with its beginnings in the Austrian Alps and spreading everywhere up to Ireland all the way eastwards to Turkey. And while most people associate Celtic with Irish and Scottish, the documentary goes out of the way to let everyone be aware of Breton, Welsh, and other culture. I do like the episode regarding about Celtic religion and spirituality, how it made a transition from Paganism to Christianity. They even state how many of the Pagan rituals never really disappeared even during the rise of Christianity. It's not without its flaws. For one thing, there are a few boring spots (like the one with a school teacher lecturing the kids about the Celts, and the kids seem absolutely bored). Don't expect digital, DVD quality picture. Although from the late '80s, it has that '70s-style grainy footage quality, and it obviously looks like it wasn't made during the last few years. But despite some flaws, and the fact I find some uneven spots, this three videotape set is still worth having.
Rating:
Summary: A little slow, but very informative.
Review: I admit that this almost six hour long documentary was a little slow going and sometimes got dull. Nevertheless, I have to agree with the other review that it was very informative. This 3 cassette documentary has much information about the Celts, history, battles, legends, music, and the present. It showed very lovely Irish setting and other parts of Europe (one part was set in Boston, when they talked about modern Irish immigration to the U.S.). It's not as "grabbing" as documentaries on the History Channel, but it was still very interesting.One of the best parts of this series is the music by Enya, which it is most famous for. Those who enjoyed Enya's album "The Celts" will enjoy this series with the music background. In fact, this is certainly a "must" for Enya fans. It has music that was not included on the album, including two different versions of "The Longships" and "Pax Deorum". It also has the music video for "I Want Tomorrow" and Enya made a few cameo appearances! It also had pop music and traditional music that wasn't by Enya, but was good anyways. Even you aren't an Enya fan, you will enjoy learning about the Celts. Even though this series was a little slow going, it was very interesting, informative, with nice scenery, and good music.
Rating: 
Summary: Some fluff and vague on timeframes
Review: I find that four of the six episodes are "fluff," and the historical content of the two better episodes (the first and second) is vague as to timeframes and dates. There is too much of the narrator everywhere, and at times he even blocks the view of whatever is being shown.
Rating:
Summary: Some fluff and vague on timeframes
Review: I find that four of the six episodes are "fluff," and the historical content of the two better episodes (the first and second) is vague as to timeframes and dates. There is too much of the narrator everywhere, and at times he even blocks the view of whatever is being shown.
Rating:
Summary: Some fluff and vague on timeframes
Review: I find that four of the six episodes are "fluff," and the historical content of the two better episodes (the first and second) is vague as to timeframes and dates. There is too much of the narrator everywhere, and at times he even blocks the view of whatever is being shown.
Rating:
Summary: A good overview of Celtic History
Review: I have watched this 3 video set more than once and always find something new. The host is excellent. I would wish that there was more emphasis placed on ancient Celts and their religion, and legends than on modern day ones and their problems of keeping an ethnic heritage alive, yet it is good see that they are meeting with some success in this area. The movie also focuses on all Celtic cultures, rather than the stereotypical focus of Irish and Scots as being all there is. Enya provided the musical background and of course her music along is evocative both of past and modern Celtic culture. On the whole, enjoyable and informative.
Rating: 
Summary: The best documentary on the Celts!!
Review: I have watched this set MANY, MANY times since I got it 2 years ago. I never get tired of it. I turn it on whenever I'm bored with TV. It has given me insight into some of the things I've read about the Celts, historically and fictionally. Enya's music is wonderful, as always. This is a must have for any Celt or ancient British Isles enthusiast!
Rating:
Summary: The best documentary on the Celts!!
Review: I have watched this set MANY, MANY times since I got it 2 years ago. I never get tired of it. I turn it on whenever I'm bored with TV. It has given me insight into some of the things I've read about the Celts, historically and fictionally. Enya's music is wonderful, as always. This is a must have for any Celt or ancient British Isles enthusiast!
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