But when it comes to some things the BBC and some other UK broadcasters truly excel.
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Then there is stuff like Dr Who, Torchwood, Life On Mars, again ... etc ... etc.
A lot of this stuff does turn up on US tv, particularly on PBS and cable channels such as HBO. But often you have to wait, and even then it might have been re-branded or had a US commentary dubbed on, had advert breaks inserted, edited for content/language/nudity and to fit schedules, etc, etc.
But mostly you have to wait.
I hate that. But for a while there has been a way around it. It is possible to download British tv and watch it within hours of it appearing in the UK. If you have to ask how to do this then you shouldn't be doing it ...
Anyway, it's quite easy to replay the resultant video files on your computer, but rather more difficult to watch the shows on your tv.
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Unfortunately, my particular model pre-dates dvd-r and dvd-rw so files are restricted to about 700Mb, but since a lot of shows are now coming down in the 1Gb+ range, files have to be split before being burned - not always easy - and quality suffers.
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In practise, downloaded shows are copied onto the memory stick from the computer. Transfer the memory stick to the adaptor which is already cabled up to the tv and there you go ... what more could you want?
Look out for soon: Doctor Who, Ashes To Ashes.
*See my hifi / media index here.