VirginPlus - On Demand - Edits to programmes

just curious about something . . . .

I have been watching Life On Mars from Virgin Plus TV Choice On Demand.

All the epsodes are 50 minutes long - but were originally transmitted as 60 minute episodes.

Why is it necessary for Virgin to offer an edited version with 10 minutes of the original broadcasts cut out?

Who edits them? the BBC or Virgin?

Are these the same edits as the DVD releases?

AUI They are edited by Kudos for the DVD release. So maybe they are the same as the Virgin TV OD service.

Why are the DVD cut?

I don't know.

I think the 50 mins shows are the same to those that have been broadcasted on Bravo in the past.

Nope - I have both series and they both contain the full hour long versions

Were they cut for airing on UKTV - they seem to cut shows to fit the hour long slot now rather than running them for an extra 15-20 minutes like they used too.

That's the most likely explanation, Bravo signed up for the repeat rights straight away, and they're being shown again on Virgin 1 next week. They could also be for International use aswell.

does that not cause problems cutting about 10mins out of the programme?

I guess it does if you know it's been cut, but I think most BBC programmes are made with enough slack to lose 10-15 minutes so they can be sold to commercial channels abroad.