Re: Selected programming for April 6-8, 2024

On Sun, 7 Apr 2024 03:27:13 -0000 (UTC)
"Adam H. Kerman" <ahk@chinet.com> wrote:
 

Rhino <no_offline_contact@example.com> wrote:

Sat, 6 Apr 2024 17:36:38 -0400 Robin Miller
<robin.miller@invalid.invalid>:

 

Mr Bates vs The Post Office      [new to US]    (9 pm, PBS)

>

Alan Bates (Toby Jones) was one of the 700+ sub-postmasters who
were accused of stealing money from the British Post Office. In a
20-years long fight, he and his allies seek to prove faulty
software was the real cause in this four-part miniseries from ITV.

>

https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/masterpiece/shows/mr-bates-vs-the-post-office/
>

>

https://www.metacritic.com/tv/mr-bates-vs-the-post-office/
[score 80]

>

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt27867155/    [rating 8.6]

>

A very interesting true story about how the British Post Office's
computer system, Horizon, literally ruined the lives of many
postmasters by driving them into bankruptcy, prison, or even suicide
in a few cases while the Post Office management covered up the
disgracefully bad system. It has been called the worst miscarriage of
justice in Britain in 200 YEARS.

>

If you like underdog stories like Erin Brockovich, you should enjoy
Mr. Bates vs. The Post Office.

>
Let's not blame the system. Let's blame the high-level coverup.
>

Actually, the computer system was truly dreadful. I've been researching
it and, of the people that designed it, only 1 or 2 were actual capable
and competent and the rest ranged between borderline and awful.
Computer Weekly has dozens of articles on the subject from the past 20
odd years that this scandal has been happening. I don't know how
comprehensible they would be to you without a computer background but
they stagger my imagination.
 

I saw the documentary some time back, which was fascinating.
>
Isn't there also a movie?

 How long was this documentary that you saw? Mr. Bates vs The Post
Office has 4 hour long parts (45 minutes each minus the commercials).
Is that what you saw? If not, then I think Mr. Bates *is* the movie
you're talking about. (I assume the documentary featured interviews
with the actual participants in the events but Mr. Bates is essentially
a re-enactment of the events with actors in place of the real
participants, just as the Erin Brockovich movie was.)