Red Dwarf

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Continuity mistake: The time that the events involving the crew of Red Dwarf keeps changing throughout the series. At various times, references are made to the date, which is stated as being in the 21st, 22nd or 23rd centuries. Examples: In 'Stasis Leak', the date reference is stated as being 2077 (21st century). But in 'Ouroboros', the date is stated as being 26th November 2155 (22nd century). Also in 'DNA', Lister says he is an enlightened 23rd century guy.

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Deliberate mistake: In the first few series, it is suggested Lister and Kochanski barely know each other. In 'Balance of Power' Holly says that Lister has only ever spoken 173 words to her. However, by series 4 Kochanski is referred to as Lister's ex-girlfriend with whom he shared a relationship. In the series 4 documentary, Doug Naylor explains that Lister's attitude towards Kochanski was immature in the first series which is why they changed his back story from wanting to be with Kochanski to actually having been with her by series 4.

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Other mistake: Unfortunately the whole basis of the show is one big factual error. Throughout the series we see that Red Dwarf sustains damage from collisions, explosions, and so on. Most important of all, the rocket engine nozzle - surely made from the strongest materials available - has been punctured by some kind of impact. The systems require constant maintenance by humans (painting, repairs, etc), so skutters are not enough by themselves. So, we know that Red Dwarf is not made of some sort of fictional, indestructible materials, it is made of the kind of metals, plastics and other construction materials we build space shuttles and the like out of nowadays. So, after three thousand - never mind three million! - years the whole ship would be a clump of useless, corroded junk. The rubber and plastics in seals, electronic components and furniture would have crumbled to powder. The electronics themselves would have failed after a few hundred years at most. Metals in contact with liquids in pipes or reservoirs would have oxidized, and even the oxygen in the air would have been corrosive after that amount of time. Red Dwarf is not immune from the effects of long term decay and deterioration - if it were when Lister was released from stasis he would have found rooms full of relatively intact dead bodies instead of piles of crumbled dust. After three million years in space Red Dwarf would have been a pile of scrap, fatal to anyone going near it; subject to slow, subtle but constant radioactivity in space, after three million years it would be hotter than the inside of a working reactor.

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Other mistake: Holograms are often seen passing through physical objects, walls, furniture, and other people. Yet, they have a physical object generating the hologram: their light-bee. This would not be able to pass through other solid objects.

The End - S1-E1

Other mistake: When Rimmer unclogs the chicken soup dispenser nozzle, he works on the back of the opening in the wall. When he orders chicken soup, the shelf drops down from above where Rimmer was working, thus above where the nozzle is located. (00:03:00)

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The End - S1-E1

Continuity mistake: When Rimmer and Lister leave their sleeping quarters, there are two pictures on the wall between the door and the window and a canister on the wall beside the beds. When they are next in the room the items are gone, and at The End of the episode they have all returned. (00:09:20 - 00:12:50)

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The End - S1-E1

Continuity mistake: At the start of the 'Welcome Back George McIntyre' reception scene, Lister, Chen and Selby are throwing things at Rimmer, then Rimmer looks around. In the next shot, Lister and Chen are looking round to their left, Selby is stabbing between his fingers, Rimmer is now looking straight forwards and Petersen has appeared from nowhere. (00:09:40)

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The End - S1-E1

Continuity mistake: When Petersen is trying to knock the coin from his head, the next shot shows Rimmer studying his arm. In the background, Petersen is seen with his right arm on the table, whereas in the wide shot it was behind his head. (00:10:20)

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The End - S1-E1

Continuity mistake: When the Captain is making his speech for George McIntyre, he takes his hand out of his pocket and touches his glass. In the next shot, his hand is back in his pocket again. (00:10:35)

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Red Dwarf mistake picture

The End - S1-E1

Continuity mistake: In George's memorial service, the extras are totally different in the shots from George's point of view to the shots from the back of the room. Look for the woman with brunette hair and orange overalls - she's there in the forward shots but missing in the reverses. The chairs, tables, props, costumes and character placements are all completely discontinuous. (00:12:15)

The End - S1-E1

Continuity mistake: When Rimmer is panicking about his exam, Lister wakes up. If you look closely he lifts his head twice from his pillow between shots. Also, his bedsheets change position most notable by his elbow. (00:13:20)

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The End - S1-E1

Visible crew/equipment: In the first episode, 'The End' when Lister is telling his door to lock so he can get his cat out you can see the hand of a member of the crew pushing the door shut (look out the window). (00:14:18)

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Trivia: The actor who plays the original Kryten, in 'Kryten', also turns up later as the voice of Talkie Toaster.

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Answer: Presumably he does, but it's never been used in any material related to the show. He is the only Cat left (as shown in Series 1), so even if he had once had a name, nobody would know it.

Moose

Answer: In the book, the Cat finds the concept of a name confusing, as he's convinced he's the center of the universe and the idea that someone wouldn't know who he was is baffling.

Brian Katcher

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