On the Buses

On the Buses (1971)

16 mistakes

(3 votes)

Continuity mistake: Vera gets onto her bus just after Stan and Jack have put spiders in the cab. She is wearing boots when she discovers the spiders, causing her to run into the back of the lorry. As she does so, it is evident that she is wearing shoes.

Continuity mistake: When Stan stops the bus to collect his washing from the laundrette there is a white mini parked outside the laundrette with a brown car parked in front of it. But when Blakey confronts Stan coming out of the laundrette with the bag of washing, the brown car has gone without enough time for it to start up and drive off.

Continuity mistake: In the last scene, when Stan boards his bus inside the depot, the registration number is "WNO476" but, as soon as he drives out the front entrance, it changes to "VNO857".

Plot hole: When Olive gets in the motorcycle sidecar to go to hospital to have her baby, her weight lifts the bikes rear wheel off the ground. Stan rides on the rear of the bike seat to keep the wheel on the ground. However, Stan never intended to get on the bike until this problem occurred but he was holding a motorcycle helmet from the start of this scene.

Factual error: When Blakey nearly catches Jack in turnaround Betty's house, Blakey tells them to get moving as they are late. At first they both go through the passenger door of the bus at the back before Stan goes round the front to drive, but the bus drives off too soon for Stan to walk to the front, climb in the cab, start the engine and drive off.

Continuity mistake: When the bus stops on the motor way the advert on the side is for "whitbread tankard" but when that bus arrives at the depot two hours late the advert is now for "KP nuts" although the buses registration number stayed the same in both scenes (VNO 862).

Continuity mistake: The same two cars pass the lorry before and after Vera crashes into it.

Revealing mistake: When Stan drives through a puddle and splashes Blakey the water just reaches Blakey's knees but in the close up the water that goes in Blake's face is obviously thrown at him from a bucket.

Continuity mistake: When Blakey sees Stan go into the launderette to collect his washing, there are two men watching from the balcony of the shop next door. When the angle changes as Butler comes out of the laundrette, the two men on the balcony have gone.

Continuity mistake: Stan and Jack are watching the women drivers eating in the canteen and compare them to Russian athletes. The blonde woman and the grey haired woman change position at the table between shots.

Continuity mistake: When Stan's bus pulls up opposite the laundrette there are loads of children watching from the balcony above the shops, but when Stan enters the laundrette the kids have all gone, and when Stan returns to the bus the kids are back on the balcony.

Revealing mistake: When the sidecar separates from Arthur's motorcycle the extra wheel fitted so that it can roll away can be seen it has gone when the sidecar comes to rest.

Continuity mistake: The female driver is chastised by the general manager for following the wrong diversion signs. At the end of the preceding scene, we see the bus VNO 862 with a saw advert. This advert is white text on a blue background. When the bus pulls up to the inspector and general manger, the advert can be just seen in the top of the shot. It is now brown on a white background. Plus it's now bus WNO 476. (01:05:25)

Continuity mistake: When Stan sends a female driver on a fake diversion route, in the first scene the driver gets into bus WNO 476 (a no. 33) - the bus has KP nuts ads on the front and sides. In the next scene we see bus VNO 862 (a no. 13A) with Lyons maid and SAS adverts. This bus is then used for the remainder of the diversion gag, with close ups of the same female drivers as at the start. (01:04:10 - 01:05:25)

Continuity mistake: When Stan is getting away from Betty's husband he demolishes a telephone box and a bus shelter in the bus. When he first gets in it has a white steering wheel but in all the following shots in this sequence it has a black steering wheel.

Visible crew/equipment: As Stan drives off after demolishing the telephone box and bus shelter the camera lights are reflected in the back window of the bus.

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