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If you’re a careful viewer, you’ve probably noticed mistakes on your favorite shows. Maybe someone leaves a modern watch on during a period drama. Maybe a cameraman sneaks into a shot. And water bottles seem to be everywhere!!
It’s especially important to be careful when filming historical shows. Nothing takes you of a scene more than noticing something decidedly out of place.
Here are the 5 biggest offenders:
1. Downton Abbey
Downton Abbey is typically really diligent about keeping things historically accurate. Their biggest mistake didn’t even make it into the show. When they were shooting publicity photos, someone wasn’t paying attention, and a water bottle snuck into the background:
With typical British humor, the Downton Abbey team decided to use the gaffe to draw attention to a charity: WaterAid.
2. M*A*S*H
To be fair, M*A*S*H wasn’t trying all that hard to be historically accurate. I mean, look at the hairstyles!
We all knew they were using the Korean War to talk about Vietnam. That said, there were a lot of historical inaccuracies.
For example, in season one, Radar is seen reading a comic that wasn’t published until 1968 (the Korean War was from 1950-1953).
Photo Credit: 20th Century Fox
They also mention the movie Godzilla, which wasn’t released in the U.S. until 1956. The original Japanese version was released in 1954.
In another episode, Radar imitates John Wayne in McLintock! That film wasn’t released until 1963.
God you guys! Can’t you get your years straight?!?
3. Mad Men
Mad Men was also careful about keeping period accuracy, but a few things still slipped through the cracks.
For example, in a season four episode, Don Draper references Saturday Night Football. Prime-time football didn’t start until 1970 (the episode took place in 1964).
In a season one episode, Betty Draper discusses her sorority days. The character attended Bryn Mawr, though, which doesn’t have sororities.
4. Little House on the Prairie
Little House on the Prairie took place in the 1870s, but there were several times that it revealed it was shot in the 1970s.
A modern hot air balloon was shown in one episode. In another, a girl says she was captain of the girls’ basketball team at her school. Basketball wasn’t invented until 1891.
They referenced peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, and peanut butter wasn’t invented until 1903.
Perhaps the weirdest mistake was when a character based on Colonel Sanders appeared.
Sanders wasn’t even born until 1890.
5. Game of Thrones
Okay, so technically Game of Thrones isn’t historic. Their fantasy world definitely took place before modern times, though.
So it was pretty wild when eagle-eyed viewers spotted a Starbuck cup in a season eight scene.
They edited out the coffee cup.
Clearly, they didn’t learn, because a later season eight episode had a visible water bottle.
What TV mistakes have you noticed?
