I didn't really follow it when originally broadcast but did start watching the repeats on Drama, but they are on so late I don't usually see them. I did see the first few episode of the repeats from the start of the original series, but last night was the first I have watched for a while.
Wasn't Spooks originally from only a relatively few years ago? Two thousand and something? So... it must have originally been produced in widescreen, most likely now standard 16:9 unless it dates back further than I remember in which case early episodes could have been broadcast in the 14:9 'compromise' format.
The thing is, I still watch TV on an old analogue 4:3 CRT TV, using a digi-box. Last night's late edition of Spooks on Drama was broadcast in forced 4:3 format! While this neatly filled the screen of my old TV it obviously didn't look 'right'. Everything appeared squished and wrong, cars were foreshortened and when anybody got out of a tiny car they looked as if they were 7 feet tall.
I normally set my digibox to the 14:9 compromise format, although this is no longer really supported by the broadcasters it still works well enough. Try as I might, I couldn't change the display format on last night's Spooks - AFD On, AFD Off; 19:9, 14:9, Pan & Scan... - nothing made the slightest difference. It was 4:3 take it or leave it.
Now I know in say the late 1990s or early 2000s when widescreen TVs were still newish and the broadcast TV format had not yet settled down I can remember seeing such horrors on TV screens in showrooms. Usually a 4:3 picture ridiculously stretched to 14:9 or whatever, by incorrectly set up TVs etc. And I know different formatting approaches have been taken by different broadcasters - BBC parliament long ago fixed on 16:9 come what may (but not 'forced') so they even broadcast old 1970s 4:3 election footage in-screen at 16:9; but as it isn't forced I can Pan & Scan it to correctly fit my old TV as originally broadcast. Old 1980s favourites like Minder are normally broadcast to fit 4:3.
But, from memory, this is the first time I ever recall seeing a programme broadcast on national TV at an incorrect format which was forced on the viewer. What went wrong? Programming supervised by a very young recent recruit who was under the illusion that as their dad liked it it must be from the ark and set some switch wrongly?
I suppose I should be asking the Drama channel for the answer! Anyone else ever recall seeing anything like this?
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Moved topic to appropriate board - chas49
Moved topic to appropriate board - chas49