Factual error: I can remember the early 80s. The country was in recession and there were certainly no Thatcherite yuppies about. They didn't show until 1985/86 onwards.
Factual error: In episode two, "Souvenir" by OMD was featured. It was not released until a month after the royal wedding that year.
Factual error: One of the songs played on the boat party is too early for july 1981. "Ay Ay Ay Ay Mosey" by Modern Romance was a Christmas time hit that year.
Factual error: Series 2, episode 3: "Is There Something I Should Know" by Duran Duran wasn't released until 1983.
Factual error: When the police arrive at the prison during the riot, the transit van they jump out of is a post-1984 model fitted with a 1980/81 w registration number.
Plot hole: At the very end of series two, there was a shootout during an armed robbery. WPC Granger somehow had access to a firearm. Surely the fact of her uniform rank would not have allowed this.
Plot hole: Series 1, Episode 7: Alex has a car wrecked by having a tank driven over it. She is seen in the turret, so who was behind the wheel?
Factual error: Series two is set in 1982. TV A.M. didn't come around till 1983 with Roland Rat on it.
Other mistake: The song 'Happy birthday' by 'Altered images' wasn't a hit until the autumn of 1981, and couldn't have been played at the boat party.
Factual error: An Austin Maestro van is used in this episode, and although the hatchback Maestro started production in 1983, vans were not added to the range until 1984.
Continuity mistake: At the end, when Daniel gets into the green van to drive away, he enters through the passenger door leaving the door wide open, then driving off with it still open. Next shot from a different angle, the door is closed.
Factual error: "Walking on Sunshine" wasn't a hit until 1985. "Two Tribes" by Frankie-goes-to-Hollywood wasn't out till June 84, not 83. As for "Uptown Girl," it wasn't out till the Autumn.
Factual error: Series 3 episode 2: at the end of this episode Cyndi Lauper's record "Girls Just Want To Have Fun" is being played. Unfortunately this song wasn't issued until 1984 - the year after the show was set.
Factual error: Series 1 episode 2: Steve Strange announces that the song his band Visage have just performed, "Fade to Grey," is their new single. "Fade to Grey" was a hit in the Autumn of 1980. Visage had issued two more singles after "Fade to Grey," both of which were hits in 1981: "Mind of a Toy" and the self-titled "Visage," which would have been their most recent release when this episode was set.
Character mistake: In the episode about the prostitute killer, observe the singers in the church choir. One of them hasn't a clue as to the lyric of "Oh Happy Day." Bloke in second row.
Factual error: The Ford Granada driven by Ray in the final episode of series two is a Facelift Mark 2 model first made Autumn 1982. But it has a V registration, meaning it was first registered between August 1979 and July 1980.
Continuity mistake: In the opening minutes of Series 2, Episode 6 (just after the recap of the previous week's episode) we see Alex Drake chasing a suspect through a crowd of "fun runners" all going for a jog. Notice that Alex is wearing a red scarf around her neck - and a narrow red belt around her waist. A few seconds later, Alex is standing alone, hallucinating, and the red belt she was wearing has disappeared.
Factual error: Series 2, episode 6: A white Austin Maestro van can be seen. These didn't start production until 1984.
Continuity mistake: In episode 8, after Gene Hunt's berating of Lord Scarman, Alex is seen clapping in closeup. When the shot is panned back, she is standing with her arms folded.
Factual error: Series 2, episode 2: The song "Wishing I Had a Photograph of You" by A Flock of Seagulls can be heard, but it wasn't released until the autumn of 1982.
Answer: Have you finished watching the entire series? I don't think it's fair to answer this for someone who hasn't.
Bishop73