Two thirds of Brits admit to snooping on what fellow passengers watch on public transport, a study has found. The study revealed that 62% of Brits admit to looking over their fellow commuters' shoulders and peering at their smartphone screen.
In light of this, UK train operator Grand Central has conjured up a list of the most public transport-friendly TV and film options unlikely to cause your neighbour to raise an eyebrow, gasp or tut - along with those that might be best avoided.
To prepare their list, data-crunchers compared key stats for top-rated films and TV shows from the past five years to see which are the most suitable for public viewing, factoring in their overall rating, genre, age certificate, if there are any adult scenes, violence rating and profanity rating. They also noted down the total length of film / a single episode, to see how this compares with its popular train journeys.
Wholesome Yorkshire-based veterinary drama, All Creatures Great and Small, scooped the gong for being most public transport friendly. The 2020 TV series, based on the autobiographical books by James Herriot, claimed the top spot thanks to its high viewer rating of 8.5 out of 10 on IMDB, as well as the fact it boasts no naughty words and no adult scenes.
Additionally, the popular TV series gained just a 'mild' warning in reference to violence. Thanks to its running time of just under an hour per episode, those travelling on the popular York to London Kings Cross Grand Central route (taking one hour and 52 minutes) could squeeze in two episodes of the series while on their journey.
Other titles that ranked high in the table included the British sitcom Ghosts (2021); 1950s medical drama Call the Midwife (2012 - ); US historical drama The Gilded Age (2022); and British sci-fi series Doctor Who (2005 - ). For those embarking on a longer journey in the coming months, the film deemed to be most public-transport friendly was the Oscar-winning documentary My Octopus Teacher (2020).
Suitable for adults and children alike thanks to its 'U' rating, the educational documentary contains just mild references to violence, with no use of profanities or adult scenes throughout. With a running time of one hour and 25 minutes, the movie could be comfortably watched in its entirety when travelling along the Sunderland to York route with Grand Central (one hour and 36 minutes). It could also be watched on the Northallerton to Kings Cross journey (two hours and 24 minutes), and the Doncaster to London Kings Cross route (one hour and 37 minutes).
Kids' shows that ranked highly on the list to entertain younger passengers include Luca, Sing 2 and Encanto.
On the flip-side, Netflix's The Harder They Fall, a revenge Western movie topped the bill for being the least transport-friendly, followed by Amazon Prime's The Hitman's Wife's Bodyguard. Scream 5, Nightmare Alley and Munich: The Edge of War also featured on the list of least transport-friendly shows and movies.
Head of Commercial at Arriva UK Trains Nick Clarke said: "We're excited to see a UK series with filming locations based so close to some of our train routes claiming the top spot in our train-friendly TV series and film study. For those keen to learn more about the real James Herriot, you can even travel with us to the North Yorkshire market town of Thirsk to visit the World of James Herriot museum."
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