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I enjoy historical investigation programmes....

KT53KT53 Posts: 9,016
in The potting shed
Things like Time Team, Digging up the past etc, but recently I came across a programme on Blaze "In Search of Pirate Treasure" or similar title and it is laughable at times.  American made, and they tend to go OTT in their programmes anyway, but this takes it to a whole new level. 
Basically they are trying to tie the pirate, Captain Kidde, in with the Knights Templar and Freemasonry, and some of the links they are 'finding' are tenuous to say the least.  One theory about Kidde, Freemasons and the Knights Templar was put to an expert on Freemasons.  The question was along the lines of "Do you think there could have been a secret inner circle of Freemasons with direct links to the Templars?".  The look of incredulity on the face of the expert was a sight to behold, followed by his one word answer "No!".  That hasn't stopped their researcher though, the man is made of sterner stuff.
On last night's episode, he was in southern Mozambique allegedly in search of a lost Templar castle.  There are scenes reminiscent of Indiana Jones of him driving a Jeep at high speed along dirt track, heaving the steering wheel to get round corners etc as if the Germans were after him.  He then leave the Jeep and starts scrambling up through a hillside covered in dense bush.  He has a long climbing rope over his backpack, and the rope keeps disappearing and reappearing during the climb.  Eventually, he exclaims "I've found it, here in the jungle in the middle of nowhere".  What he seems to fail to notice, and clearly thinks his audience is as thick as him,  is the beautifully cut gardens all around this 'Lost castle in the middle of nowhere'.  At one point you can even see a stone bench in the background facing over an open view.
The maddening thing for me is that the search for Kidde's treasure and the underwater archeology being undertaken by other members of the team is genuinely interesting.  Why spoil it with idiotic scenes like that?

Posts

  • madpenguinmadpenguin Posts: 2,543
    Not seen that particular programme but I know what you mean.
    It's like watching a zombie/apocalypse film and seeing all the action taking place in abandoned neighbourhoods and all the gardens are beautifully manicured!!
    “Every day is ordinary, until it isn't.” - Bernard Cornwell-Death of Kings
  • KT53KT53 Posts: 9,016
    I think a zombie/apocalypse film would have been more believable than that segment of the programme.
    Another programme title which makes me chuckle, another from the dear old US of A is "Unsolved Mysteries".  If it's been solved it's not a mystery and if it's unsolved it's a mystery.  They could have saved themselves a word in the title. :D
  • PosyPosy Posts: 3,601
    I don't watch American programmes. They just make me irritable.
  • fidgetbonesfidgetbones Posts: 17,618
    They make american programmes on the basis of..
    Tell them what you are going to show them.
    Adverts.
    Show them what you said you were going to show them
    Adverts
    Recap previous bit
    Adverts
    Tell them what they have already seen.
    Adverts
    Tell them what they are going to see next week.
    Advert for next programme.

    You could put an hours programme into 15minutes, and a series would make a good one hour programme with some good editing.  That doesn't sell adverts though.

    I usually record them and watch most of it on fast forward. :D


  • KT53KT53 Posts: 9,016
    I have to agree in general terms fidgetbones, but there are actually some quite interesting programmes - interesting to me at least.  Sadly many more where the presenters seem to think that they have to be shocked and/or amazed at everything they see.
    Thinking about it, the documentary type series I have enjoyed most tend to be Canadian rather than from the USA.
  • LynLyn Posts: 23,190
    Did anyone see the programme where for the first time ever they broke into a tomb in Egypt, never opened before, the girl presenting said ‘how amaaaaazing, is that the original paintwork’ ! 
    Gardening on the wild, windy west side of Dartmoor. 

  • KT53KT53 Posts: 9,016
    Lyn said:
    Did anyone see the programme where for the first time ever they broke into a tomb in Egypt, never opened before, the girl presenting said ‘how amaaaaazing, is that the original paintwork’ ! 
    I haven't seen that one but I definitely get the impression that some of the female presenters, not all, got the job for reasons other than their intellect.
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