Why Do I Bother Watching?

I suspect I am not alone in watching many TV programmes on 'catch-up' - either I remember to record them, or I rely on the i-player. I have finally managed to see the final episodes of Hinterland, Undercover, and Home Fires. [And I have recently discovered another film channel.] But I am left with a number of unanswered questions about these three series.

Hinterland - the amazingly bi-lingual Welsh police series. Which has three stars - DC Tom Mathias [Richard Harrington] Mared Rhys [Mali Harries] and a red parka. No kidding, her red jacket has a massive following! I read this here and mentioned it to Bob as we watched the last episode together. Then we saw her in the car wearing a red jacket without a furry hood. Is it the same jacket? we wondered. 'Maybe it is like my M&S one, and you can remove the hood and the fur' I suggested. We kept watching and a subsequent shot showed the coat with the hood [and the badge on the left arm proved it was the same coat] But why did the continuity person not notice that in two later scenes, Mared walked out of the door in the coat without the hood- but turned the corner, and there it was again, in all its furry glory. What's with that coat?

I found Undercover enjoyable - and thought some of the characters and relationships were cleverly written. Until the last episode. I can only say that if felt like the ending was just a set-up for a second series. All sorts of unanswered questions and implausible plotlines. I won't give any spoilers here - but this Guardian review [which does give things away] echoes my feelings. How did they get away with those impossible bits - eg a DPP with epilepsy who drives her own car?

Home Fires - ended abruptly, and with altogether too many loose ends- rapidly followed by an announcement from ITV that there will not be any more series. This has greatly angered the WI, who have bombarded the television company with jars of jam in protest! I quite enjoyed this from lots of points of view - watching +actors like Francesca Annis and Samantha Bond who have been around for years, playing more mature roles. And Claire Price [who was the perfect Siobhan to Ken Stott's Rebus] But what did the ITV do with all the jam? [please tell me they passed it on to a Foodbank]

But for sheer nostalgia, and an old film to watch whilst you are tackling the Ironing Mountain, nothing beats Talking Pictures TV [freeview channel 81] These are all films from the 30's through to the 70's - most in black and white. The actors either speak with clipped Terribly British Accents [think Celia Johnson, Brief Encounter]  or they are Cheerful Cockneys [Eliza Doolittle, My Fair Lady] or suspicious foreigners. Enormous fun - especially as the film finishes, when the continuity announcer always says "Thank you for watching Talking Pictures!"