Just caught up with it all on iplayer. I may be in the minority here but i think it is brilliant! The production is so good, i think the parts that lack dialogue are really clever and make you really think.
There bit when John tried to hang himself, and Grace and Bert ran to him, there was a really touching scene when Bert was helping John off the noose and said really softly 'daddy daddy'. I was almost sobbing!
I think that the nice teacher was conscripted and not shot, the MPs scared him with a threat of death by firing squad.
Re the cows... John went to steal the cow medicine for Mary, other farmer (are we calling him Tim from Corrie?) saw him coming out of the shed, framed him by mutilating the cow. John gets arrested. Dont know why snood guy kills all the cows.
Joe is not dead because-i read Beas link Grace did that face because Maxine-Peake is a brilliant actress she wanted to leap with joy but couldnt because the rest of the village went down in the Somme, Joe was walking through mud as a homage to the Somme 
the shell shock was evident last week.
Little baby Mary is so cute, and young Bert is beautiful 