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The Guardian - AU
The Guardian - AU
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Emma Wilkins

Before the algorithm, we watched ‘surprise TV’, and it can still offer unexpected delights

family watching TV
When there’s just one TV and no streaming services, the whole family is engaged together. Photograph: Michel Bussy/Getty Images/PhotoAlto

I can see why kids who find themselves at a holiday shack where the only screen-based entertainment is an old TV would be perplexed. By the time you explain all the things the remote “control” doesn’t do, all you’re left with is a limited number of viewing options at any given time, and no control over when each starts or stops.

In the age of smartphones and streaming, you could call it “dumb TV”. Or you could sell it as unique, novel, a game: “surprise TV”.

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