Best drama TV factual errors of all time

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The Pacific picture The Pacific mistake picture

Guadalcanal/Leckie - S1-E1

Factual error: On the map behind the colonel during the first scene, Iceland is labelled as being under Nazi control. This is incorrect, as the British were in control of the country during the whole of the war. (00:05:10)

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Breaking Bad picture

Gliding Over All - S5-E8

Factual error: When going over the logistics of the plan to kill the ten men in prison, Jack tells Walt that killing Osama Bin Laden was less complicated. Breaking Bad takes place over a period of two years, beginning with Walt's birthday in 2008, and ending on his birthday in 2010. Bin Laden wasn't killed until May of 2011. (00:15:23)

Phaneron

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JAG (1995)

JAG picture

Washington Holiday - S2-E9

Factual error: In the whole episode, Romania is depicted as a monarchy with the king in a position that allows him to make political decisions. However, Romania ceased to be a monarchy in 1947. By the time depicted in the episode (circa 1997), Romania was a republic and its head of state was the president. Members of the ex-royal family did not hold any positions in the Romanian government and were certainly not authorized to represent Romania in international events.

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Forever Knight picture

Forward into the Past - S2-E4

Factual error: Nick tells fellow vampire Aristotle, "You still owe me for that time at the Battle of Hastings." Nick was brought across in 1228, or so the intro told us every week. The Battle of Hastings, as any British school kid knows, was fought in 1066, over 100 years before Nick's mortal birth. (00:29:30)

Jean G

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Days of Our Lives picture

Show generally

Factual error: When Shawn is talking to Belle over the phone, the Eiffel Tower can be seen outside her window, yet, she's supposed to be in Milan, Italy.

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Hell on Wheels picture

Derailed - S1-E8

Factual error: When the whore is talking to Lily, she says "The first thing she should do (in her new tent) is to get the carpenter to lay some boards, or she will be saying hello to Mr. Trench Foot", referring to the medical issue related to feet in wet and unsanitary conditions. This disease of the feet was not referred to as this until World War One. (00:23:10)

ExpatScott

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Longmire picture

Carcasses - S2-E2

Factual error: Several times firearms registration is mentioned, but Wyoming has basically no gun laws. No registration is required, and no concealed carry permits are required.

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Batwoman picture

The Rabbit Hole - S1-E2

Factual error: Alice and Kate's little reunion underwater is disrupted by policemen that fire at them, and one of the shots reaches the transport truck, ignites it and makes it explode. The scene is baffling; forgetting the complete disregard for fellow policemen in the vehicle, how would bullets have enough strength to penetrate into an armored truck deep underwater, reach a critical weak point from that angle (the truck is upright, they should be barely get to shoot the roof of it) and still underwater cause inside the completely immersed vehicle a spark that would ignite fuel and make the whole truck explode? (00:31:45)

Sammo

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Z Nation picture

Show generally

Factual error: Throughout the series, there are scenes of decapitated heads speaking with audible voices, in spite of the fact that they have no diaphragms, lungs or larynxes. Even if a decapitated head was somehow fully animate, it still couldn't utter a sound.

Charles Austin Miller

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Murdoch Mysteries picture

Murdoch.com - S2-E10

Factual error: Enid, the telegraph operator, exclaims that "He is sending an SOS." However, in the 19th century, distress calls did not include the letters "SOS," It was not until the early 20th Century that SOS was chosen as the international distress call.

goofyfoot

Upvote valid corrections to help move entries into the corrections section.

Suggested correction: The show is set in the early 1900's, which is the early 20th century. By the time this event transpired, SOS would have been established as a universal distress signal.

The show starts in 1895 and by season 2, it was still the 19th century and before Germany adopted SOS in 1905.

Bishop73

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Fringe picture

Pilot - S1-E1

Factual error: When the 747-aircraft of the fake German airline is being shown, you can see the German flag on the plane. But you also see an "N-xxxxx" registration which stands for USA. If it were a real German plane, it would have a "D-xxxx" registration.

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The Twilight Zone picture

Elegy - S1-E20

Factual error: The astronauts land on an asteroid said to orbit a binary star 655 million miles from Earth. This is impossible, as that distance would place them well within our solar system. In fact, they'd be inside the orbit of Saturn, where of course there aren't (nor could there be) any extraneous suns. The nearest star to our system is, in fact, trillions (not millions) of miles away. (00:02:15 - 00:04:00)

Jean G

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Gunsmoke picture

Custer - S2-E3

Factual error: In the opening scene Marshal Dillon walks in Boot Hill cemetery. Dates on grave markers include 1883 and 1882. At the end of the episode Marshal Dillon and Chester discuss an Army deserter who had just been acquitted of a murder that Marshal Dillon was sure he had committed. The army deserter is being sent back to his unit to fight the Sioux and Cheyenne Indians under Gen. Custer. The viewer knows the army deserter will soon die in the Battle of Little Big Horn on June 25, 1876 - seven years before the date on one of the grave markers. (00:00:25 - 00:24:30)

Junius

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Downton Abbey picture

Episode #4.5 - S4-E5

Factual error: When Lady Edith visits a Harley Street doctor his nameplate is shown outside his surgery. His name is prefixed with "Dr." However, one of his post-nominal qualifications is "FRCS." As a Fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons, his name should be prefixed with "Mr.", as with all qualified surgeons in the British Isles.

Necrothesp

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Alias picture

Show generally

Factual error: In the episode where Sydney is supposed to be in Helsinki, there are visible skyscrapers in the background. There are no skyscrapers in Helsinki.

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