The Things We Learn From TV Programs

Introduction

I watch a lot of television and some of my favourite series are ones that drop in interesting facts as part of the stories that they tell. One of my favourites is "Elementary" with Lucy Liu and Johnny Lee Miller. I watched the whole series and then restarted from the beginning and still thoroughly enjoy it and I may rewatch it when I am finished.

Although there are many programs specifically designed to inform us, I love when I watch a dram or comedy and they tell me something or make a statement that tells me something that I didn't know before that moment, and then will stick with me for the rest of my life.

So What Have I Learned From TV?

Watching "Elementary" last night, Sherlock and Watson were watching a piece of pork injected with crystal meth to see if it would be touched by insects or vermin. They were in some derelict corner of New York. Sherlock mentioned that there was a species of ant Indigenous to New York called the Manhattant, I thought it was a joke but I still went onto Google (check the end of the video that I shared) to check it out and found this:

The facts that Sherlock and Watson drop into this series are brilliant and are just a sprinkling of extra magic, with information about bees, tortoises, architecture and history woven into plots including Sherlock bringing home the Stanley Cup.

It's typical that I started this story and then have forgotten all the examples that I had hoped to share, but "Elementary" is so full of actually useful tips delivered by Joan and Sherlock in the course of their investigations.

Another program that gives me a lot of medical information is "Doc Martin" which stars Martin Clunes as the curmudgeonly but ultimately caring and knowledgeable title character who is hemophobic (perfect for an ex-surgeon, which incidentally Joan Watson is).

One that I started thanks to having free time when Fiona is not around, is "Dexter". This is one of those programs like "24" that I know of, and have heard good things about, but never thought I would get around to it, but it dropped on Netflix.

From this, I think I have learned about blood spatter patterns, freshwater snakes, the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse and The Book of Revelation and I am only up to series five.

I have learned a lot from two BBC quiz programs "Pointless" and "House of Games". The latter one led me to discover just how big Khazakhstan actually is, when I used to think it was a samll eastern country somewhere near Mongolia.

I know I have not flooded you with things I have learned from these programs, but I have hardly scratched the surface, although I have chosen dramas and quizzes rather than documentaries and news programs.

Many comedy programs spill over into the news and The Last Leg has taught me much about disabilities and the problems that people face.

It has built up my respect for disabled people who often overcome enormous fences to shine in our world. I also wrote a piece about what I had learned from the show.

Conclusion

Groucho Marx once said:

"I find television highly educational. When someone switches it on I go into another room and read a book"

While there is much on television that is absolute rubbish, in today's digital environment there is always something to watch, and often the choice is much more than we can cope with so we have to be very selective in our choices.

Thank you so much for reading