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Dinosaur with Stephen Fry

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Dinosaur with Stephen Fry

Dinosaur with Stephen Fry is a 4-episode documentary series starring Stephen Fry produced by Channel 5, first airing on February 12, 2023, and ending on March 05, 2023.

Episodes[]

E1: Dawn of the Dinosaurs[]

"Stephen tells the 180-million-year story of dinosaurs, traveling back in time via amazing computer-generated worlds. In this edition he encounters the Diplodocus and the Allosaurus."

E2: When Dinosaurs Ruled the Earth[]

"Stephen finds himself in the Early Cretaceous period, 125 million years ago - the era that saw an explosion in dinosaur diversity - and encounters the terrifying Utahraptors."

E3: Killer Dinosaurs[]

"Stephen lands in a huge forest 68 million years ago - in the Late Cretaceous period - home to the deadliest of all dinosaur predators: the cunning hunter and terrifying scavenger T-rex."

E4: The Struggle of Survival[]

Stephen Fry heads back 66 million years, to the apocalyptic end of dinosaur life, and uncovers secrets of the era to see how plant eaters fought back against predators like the T-rex.

Fauna Featured[]

Scientific Inaccuracies[]

Episode 01:[]

  • The documentary states that Pangaea existed during the Jurassic period, where in reality Pangea had broken apart into several other continents by then and no longer existed.
  • Diplodocus is stated to weigh 15 tonnes, but is later stated to weigh 30 to 40 tonnes. This is possibly confusion between two of the three Diplodocus species as Diplodocus carnegii was smaller at the stated size while D. hallorum was much larger, weighing at the later sizes stated. The same mistake is done with Allosaurus, as it is first stated to be 2 1/2 tonnes (Although this size is only reached by one specimen we have so far so it would be unlikely for the individual to reach that size) but is later stated to weigh 15 tonnes. This could also be a mistake and instead it could be the often thrown around 1.5 Tons for Allosaurus. (Although this is also too small for A. fragilis as the average would likely be ≈2 Tons)
  • The series pushes the Allosaurus axe bite theory, despite that theory being debunked. It also states Allosaurus has a bite force of less than 800 PSI (Less than 3,558 Newtons), which was found by the Big Al specimen, a juvenile of a smaller species of Allosaurus.
  • One scene shows the Diplodocus eating flowers, which didn't exist in the Jurassic period yet.
  • The Nyasasaurus is stated to be two meters long yet is shown to be three meters long when it is presented.
  • Titanosaurs aren't closely related to Diplodocus, as briefly claimed.

Episode 02:[]

  • This episode takes place 125 million years ago, yet numerous dinosaurs featured didn't exist in this time period:
    • Utahraptor existed 135 to 130 million years ago.
    • Although iguanodonts themselves existed throughout this time, Iguanacolossus itself existed 139 to 134 million years ago.
    • Velociraptor existed 75 to 71 million years ago.
  • Utahraptor is wrongly claimed to be discovered in 1995, when it was first truly discovered in 1975.

Episode 03:[]

  • Argentinosaurus is wrongfully claimed to be 100 tonnes, when in reality it was more likely 60 to 75 tonnes.
  • It is unlikely a full-grown T. rex would actively hunt a Quetzalcoatlus. But it is not implausible.
  • Spinosaurus is shown as a now outdated reconstruction before the redesigns in the mid-2010s.
  • The speed of the T. rex is stated between 5, 10, and 20 miles per hour. Modern studies suggested that it could run at around 15 miles per hour and possibly slower.

Episode 04:[]

  • Talarurus was shown to live 66 million years ago, but in reality, had become extinct of years before the K-PG mass extinction event. (Talarurus lived during the Campanian stage)

Trivia[]

  • The documentary claims that the Utahraptor inspired the Velociraptor within the Jurassic Park franchise, which isn't true, since Utahraptor was discovered after the first novel and movie were made.
  • Numerous episodes in the series use stock videos using models directly from the video game: ARK: Survival Evolved, namely the Titanosaurus, Stegosaurus, and pterosaur models can be seen within the series.
  • Despite being very inaccurate it states that the K-PG extinction event happened 66 million years ago, while most low budget shows stay it was 65 million years ago.
  • Several models are similar in appearance to those of ARK: Survival Evolved, it is unknown whether they were pirated or not.
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