Best mystery TV mistakes of all time

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Waking the Dead picture

End Game (1) - S8-E7

Revealing mistake: Boyd has a video-conversation with Linda on the phone she sent him. On top of the screen you can see how long the video will last (1 minute and 3 seconds), showing it's a pre-recorded video, not an actual live conversation.

littlestar

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The Sixth Sense picture

With This Ring, I Thee Kill! - S1-E7

Factual error: Rhodes views the silent movie and the film breaks, leaving the last frame frozen on the screen. Wouldn't happen. When 16mm film broke in 1970s projectors, any portion that jammed in the mechanism was exposed to intense heat from the projection lamp, and would burn. (00:35:30)

Jean G

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Knight Rider picture

A Knight In Shining Armor - S1-E1

Continuity mistake: When Kitt's on fire, before getting back to the HQ, we see a shot of the main HQ screen, and towards the bottom left is a screen with a picture of Kitt and green writing reading "Fire extinguished".

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The Event picture

Face Off - S1-E15

Revealing mistake: Episode 15, "Faceoff": When the agent fires the hook to get to the roof of the church, it does not reach the balcony. However in a following shot you can see the agent climbing there. (00:10:05)

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Covert Affairs picture Covert Affairs mistake picture

Pilot - S1-E1

Continuity mistake: In the morning, Annie comes into the kitchen and says hi to her niece and nephew. Her jacket is alternately buttoned or unbuttoned. (00:39:30)

ployp

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Scream Queens picture

Blood Drive - S2-E6

Character mistake: Zayday makes incorrect statements about blood types. She mentions that, since Chanel #5 is type O-, her parents must also be O-; in actuality, they could each be type A or B (genotypes AO or BO, respectively) and could also have Rh+ blood as long as they also carry the recessive Rh- allele. Zayday also says that the child of two O+ parents must be O+, but actually the child could also be O- (again, if the parents carry the Rh- allele).

DavidK93

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Surface picture

Episode #1.15 - S1-E15

Continuity mistake: When Miles jumps off the ferry to swim ashore, the camera view is from the ferry: he jumps into quiet, fairly level water, yet the camera recedes from him (he jumped off the back of the boat as the camera continues moving with the boat). The angle changes and we see the wake of the boat - but it's not what he jumped into.

David R Turner

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Murder Most Horrid picture

He Died a Death - S1-E3

Continuity mistake: Tony Sparkle is seen defacing a picture of Judy Talent. He starts writing something beginning with T. The action cuts away for a moment, and then back again. The words on the picture are "SAD OLD BAT". (00:07:05)

paolog

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The Triangle picture

Show generally

Factual error: Haloclines are referred to throughout, and depicted occasionally as some sort of underwater tornadoes. Haloclines are in fact just salinity gradients, and look nothing like they do on the show.

Andrew Perry

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Law & Order: UK picture

Vice - S1-E3

Character mistake: When Brooks and Devlin talk to Teddy, the forensic scientist, Teddy puts his rubber glove on incorrectly, with the thumb hanging off the pinkie side of his hand. (00:09:45)

Cubs Fan

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Warehouse 13 picture

Magnetism - S1-E3

Factual error: In the banner for the exibition in France at the start, the French isn't right. It says "Opéra nationale" and "La morte de Marie Antoinette Des objets fabriqués de le temps de Marie Antoinette". It should be "Opera national" and "La mort de Marie Antoinette Des objets fabriqués à l'époque de Marie Antoinette" or "des objets fabriqués du temps de Marie Antoinette".

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Magic City picture

Show generally

Factual error: Noticed this watching season 2, and I assume it was also the case in season 1. The entrance of the Miramar Playa has flags from various countries flying. One of them is the Canadian flag with the maple leaf. Wrong flag. In that period the Canadian flag was the "Red Ensign", or "Dominion Flag." The maple leaf flag wasn't introduced until 1965.

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In the Heat of the Night picture

A Matter of Justice - S8-E1

Factual error: About 45 minutes into the episode, the girls' car stalls because the alternator's wire has been removed to cause this. For a car to stall like this, the battery has to be heavily drained which it would wind up being. When the killer comes up to the car, he tells her to try and start the car. She does and it turns over but doesn't start. The battery would never have enough amperage to turn over the car if it didn't have enough to keep the motor running.

terry s

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Ripper Street picture

Some Conscience Lost - S4-E2

Factual error: The depiction of the hanging is completely inaccurate. By the 1890s, the gallows at Newgate were housed in a room within the prison, not in the courtyard. Prisoners' wrists and legs were pinioned before they were hanged, not left free as depicted. The long drop was used in Britain from the 1870s, not the short drop depicted. The large knot depicted was not used in Britain (although it was in America) ; a simple sliding loop was actually used, and this was positioned under the jawbone at the side of the neck, not at the back of the neck, which would quite probably not have broken the neck, leaving the person to strangle to death.

Necrothesp

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MythBusters picture

Coffin Punch - S6-E19

Continuity mistake: Jamie and Adam are shooting at Police badges to see which one would potentially stop a bullet. When they get to the third badge, it is held up to the camera. It says 'Jamie Hyneman' on the badge. The badge is then shot, and shown again to the camera. This time the engraved writing on the badge has changed to 'Adam Savage'.

Mr Manchester

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