Murder on the Day of the Dead - S7-E5
Continuity mistake: When Jack and Florence talk to Hugh, Florence's top when she is shot from behind has the two straps on her left shoulder about one inch apart, while they are joined close in the front views. The mistake goes on throughout the whole scene. (00:32:50)
The Healer - S7-E4
Continuity mistake: When at the beginning of the episode Pastor Steadman King is holding brother Marius to heal him with faith, he's holding him by the arms, the wrists, the palms, in a continuous jump between cuts. (00:01:30)
The Healer - S7-E4
Continuity mistake: Florence is telling Jack about the identity of the victim. His hands keep changing position between shots on the Steadman King poster he is holding. (00:05:35)
Continuity mistake: In the first part of the denouement, DI Jack Mooney is waving the victim's book around holding it in one hand when shot from the front, both hands from the back. (00:42:25)
The Healer - S7-E4
Continuity mistake: When Jack is inspecting the cup finding a sharp and unpleasant scent, Florence's hand changes position on the writing pad (stops writing and lowers the pen, vertical pen, horizontal pen) between shots. (00:07:00)
Continuity mistake: During the toast, Gilly White staggers for a moment. As different camera angles alternate, she is holding the champagne glass either sticking a finger out or not. (00:01:45)
Continuity mistake: Dwayne's bushy cover has been blown, so he nonchalantly walks out and greets the stern-looking Audrey. He opens his arms when he says her name, but in the reverse shot he repeats the movement, as he was still pretending to scribble on his pad. (00:14:00)
Episode #1.1 - S1-E1
Continuity mistake: The 'cleaning lady' hands Richard a used paper tissue. In the close-up of her hand he is picking it up by a messy, crumpled part, but in the next shot Ben Miller is holding it by a side pretty much straight. (00:19:25)
Continuity mistake: After the chat with the hotel manager, Jack and Florence are in Stephen's room. The level of drink in Stephen Marston's cocktail glass changes between shots - it's half full when Jack is straining to sit down, and is back up right at the cut. (00:35:25)
Continuity mistake: DI Jack Mooney is looking at the coroner report on the PC screen. He changes his stance and is initially hunched over and then straight, but the person in the foreground is keeping the exact same posture every time the camera cuts to Dwayne. (00:25:35)
Plot hole: There is simply no way that the cheating presented in the episode, with the player reaching in his pocket to mark the cards, consistently for over 5 years (!), and wearing the same obvious prop, could go unnoticed, especially in official tournaments with millionaire prizes, on camera even.
Continuity mistake: During the questioning of "professor" Eugene Sutton, his hand is flat on the table in front views, with the side down in the reverse angle. (00:34:00)
Continuity mistake: Office scene with the poison being revealed. Dwayne in his snazzy detective suit interjects that you have to know the right, or wrong people to get a hold of it. In the wider shot (whole room in frame) Danny John-Jules' left hand covers the cuff of his blue shirt, while in the closer angle the shirt is perfectly visible. (00:13:50)
Continuity mistake: After mentioning the Dutch poker player, JP waves around the calling card of the taxi driver. He holds it vertically when seen from behind, horizontally in the front shot. (00:27:50)
Episode #1.1 - S1-E1
Continuity mistake: In the opening, two men (one turning out to be future longest serving original cast member, Danny John-Jules) are playing one-to-one basketball. A couple guys are mending nets just by the hoop...but are gone right away in the faraway shot. (00:00:15)
Factual error: The fictional island of Saint Marie where the series takes place is a British territory - after all, the whole gig is about fish-out-of-water British cops in the tropics. Specifically the Commissioner explains the history of the island to DI Richard Poole driving him to the station the first time and says that it was a French territory but in the mid 70s they handed it back to the British. Despite that, throughout the whole series the police and almost every local drive (on the left) vehicles with French registration plates, specifically with the 971 code of Guadeloupe, where the series is shot. In the first seasons the British police also routinely sends evidence and other critical parts of the job to labs in Guadaloupe, effectively out of the country. Seems quite absurd that in 40 years the British wouldn't have established vital parts of administration and rely entirely on French neighbours.
Continuity mistake: In the episode finale, Dwayne's beer switches hands two times off-camera for no reason and with no visible movement of the actor's arms.
Continuity mistake: At the beginning of the denouement, Jack is holding the statuette; he holds it by the bottom or upturned depending on the camera angle. (00:45:35)
Continuity mistake: After the intro, Florence reaches Jack at the shack and leans against the wall while he's whining about the speech he has to write about their boss. In all close-ups Joséphine Jobert's hair flows in front of her shoulder, but in the one wider angle (when she shrugs him off with "I don't know, sir") her hair is fully behind her back. (00:04:25)
Other mistake: Meeting with the suspects for the first time, Jack is flipping through the brochure with the player profiles while "The prof" is saying that logistically speaking the murder is impossible. Jack looks down at a page, but the close-up shows a different one. (00:08:35)
Answer: There's probably no particular reason. Sets and props on long-running TV shows often change as needed and for various reasons throughout a series run.
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