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Season 1 generally

Factual error: Chief Superintendent Hilton wears the ribbons of the General Service Medal (awarded for military service in a combat zone, most commonly in Northern Ireland) and the Police Long Service and Good Conduct Medal (awarded for twenty years' service), but not the Golden Jubilee Medal (awarded to all officers with five years' service in 2002), which he would also have. When he reappears in Series 4, he is wearing the Golden Jubilee Medal, Diamond Jubilee Medal (awarded in 2012) and Police Long Service and Good Conduct Medal, which would all be correct, but no longer has the General Service Medal.

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Show generally

Factual error: Officers of Assistant Chief Constable rank and above are consistently referred to as Executive Officers. The British police actually call these ranks Chief Officers.

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Season 2 generally

Factual error: Deputy Chief Constable Dryden wears two rows of silver oakleaves on the peak of his cap. Deputy Chief Constables only wear a single row of oakleaves.

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Season 3 generally

Factual error: The members of the firearms team are described as Authorised Firearms Officers (AFOs). They are actually the more highly-qualified Specialist Firearms Officers (SFOs).

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Season 3 generally

Factual error: The term 'WPC' (Woman Police Constable) is used for female constables in official documentation. This term has not been used for many years. All constables are now just 'PC' (Police Constable).

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Episode #3.1 - S3-E1

Factual error: In the first scene, Chief Superintendent Reynolds is wearing a pip over a crown on his epaulettes instead of the correct chief superintendent's rank badge of a crown over a pip. This has been corrected in subsequent scenes.

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Episode #3.1 - S3-E1

Factual error: When he is interviewed in formal uniform, Sergeant Waldron is wearing stripes on his epaulettes as well as on the sleeves of his tunic. In formal dress, sergeants only wear their stripes on their sleeves.

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Factual error: When we see Elton John's father Stanley in RAF uniform at the beginning of the film he is wearing other ranks' uniform. Stanley was commissioned in 1944, three years before Elton was born, and served as a commissioned officer until his retirement as a squadron leader in 1963. He should be wearing officer's uniform.

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Factual error: There are a number of errors in the Irish rank insignia. The general wears at various times three bars (worn by a captain in 1961, when the film is set) and a modern major-general's rank badge (introduced in 1971). The junior officers wear British-style pips (not introduced by the Irish Army until 1971). The company sergeant wears the rank badge of the lower rank of company quartermaster sergeant.

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Factual error: The Indian commander, 'General' Raja, was actually a brigadier (India uses the British system, in which a brigadier is not a general and is not addressed as such). The rank badge he wears (two stars over crossed sword and baton) has never been used in India for any rank. The real Raja was also not a Sikh, so did not wear a turban or beard as he does in the film.

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Factual error: The soldiers marching in the background at the end of the film are swinging their arms and legs randomly all over the place with no uniformity at all; no real soldier would march or be allowed to march like this.

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Factual error: President Moïse Tshombe of Katanga was never a soldier and did not even pretend to be one. Nobody addressed him as 'General Tshombe' as the UN officials do throughout the film.

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Factual error: Ronnie Knight is shown being released from "HM London Prison." There are several prisons in London. None of them is or ever has been called "HM London Prison" (or even the correct form, "HM Prison London").

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Episode #3.1 - S3-E1

Factual error: A uniformed constable addresses Detective Sergeant Ripley as "Guv" in this episode and another officer addresses him as "Sir" in the following episode. These terms of address are reserved for officers of the rank of Inspector or above. Sergeants are addressed as "Sarge", "Skipper" or "Skip."

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Episode #1.3 - S1-E3

Factual error: The detectives determine that the killer must be using a boat which he used to dump the first body next to a canal in Birmingham. However, the barge he is using is far too large to navigate the Grand Union Canal from London to Birmingham, let alone the canals within Birmingham itself.

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Show generally

Factual error: Throughout the series and credits, the ranks of Detective Superintendent and Detective Chief Superintendent are abbreviated as DSU and DCSU instead of the correct DSI and DCS.

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Factual error: The RAF policeman at the end is wearing battledress with exposed buttons done up to the neck. RAF battledress had a fly front with concealed buttons and, unlike the Army, all ranks of the RAF wore it open-necked with a collar and tie.

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Factual error: The military policemen wear plain black armbands. Their armbands actually had 'MP' in red letters.

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Factual error: The Royal Navy officers wear a completely inaccurate cap badge that appears to be a wreath with nothing in it. It actually surrounds an anchor and crown.

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Factual error: King George VI was a qualified military pilot and always wore his pilot's brevet above the rank rings on his left sleeve when in naval uniform. This is shown in numerous photographs. He does not wear it in the film.

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