The Simpsons on Sky One

Sky One are showing new episodes of The Simpsons on Thursdays now. The latest two episodes had two breaks within the half hour programme. Last Thursday they showed the episode 'Gone Maggie Gone'. This episode has a question before each break with the answer being revealed after the break, so I assumed that Sky One had put an extra break in so that it made more sense, although they didn't do this last time there was an episode with a question before the break but that several years ago and Ofcom rules were different then. Anyway imagine my surprise when this week the episode ('Coming to Homerica') had no such break bumpers but still had 2 breaks within the show. The show still runs to 30 minutes as they don't have adverts after The Simpsons now.

Is this the first time a half hour show has had two breaks in this country? It may be that Sky One have shown others things in this way since the new rules came in but I don't watch Sky One so this is the first one I have noticed.

ABC1 did that all the time, there had ad break just after the titles and 2mins form the end.

Credits, straight to the next show,

Fiver does the same with Home and Away and has done for months. Not very happy about it, but the regulations must have been relaxed.

It's been allowed for a number of years, but up until last September they had to follow the 20-minute rule, meaning from the start of the second part to the start of the final part a 20-minute period had to pass, which would mean very short first and last parts as we saw with ABC1 (they took a break after the credits and before the final scene).

That rule was scrapped last year though, and although annoying at first, you soon get used to it - and as the ads are scrapped at the end instead, it doesn't really bother me (indeed I find it odd now when I watch Home and Away on Five with just the one break), unlike the more recent changes to shows over an hour-long being allowed an extra ad break, which IMO hasn't worked as seamlessly at all.

And don't forget also that US (network) shows are intended to be shown with more, rather than less breaks.

Yes, that's true. I noticed Neighbours starts immediately after Home and Away on Fiver.

Great, because we really need more advertisements just like American television.

I think its better for things like The Simpsons that have obvious pauses during the show that are intended for ad-breaks.

Sky One in the early days (late 80s/early 90s) had two adbreaks in most 30 minute shows. When they produced their own version of Sale of the Century they had two adbreaks (one for the middle of the game, the other before the winner enter the saleroom). Also when they had The New Price Is Right (with Bob Warman) they had multiple breaks to look like the US version.

Ad breaks are annoying at the best of times but 2 is just crap. I gave up watching the Simpsons on Sky 1 years ago after they kept shunting new episodes around and I kept missing them. I just wait for them to come out on DVD.

you will be waiting about 5 years then

Can't you set a series link?

Not any more - Season 20 (21 has just started on Sky 1) is being rush released to DVD and Blu-Ray in January - in R1 at least