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The show is based round a character called Jack Bauer played by Kiefer Sutherland. Jack works for a law enforcement agency called the Counter Terrorism Unit (also known as CTU) based in Los Angeles. This might not sound as something that is different from the norm. But what makes this special is the way the program is filmed. Each series of the show is made up of 24 episodes, the episodes are 1 hour long. Each episode represents one hour of time within a day, the whole series making up 1 whole day. This type of filming is called Real Time.

It is different from other shows, It has a loyal fanbase and merchandise is available, it also has the love/hate relationship with people.

Cult Rating 3/4

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Prison Break

Currently in it’s 2nd series, with a 3rd rumoured to be on its way. Series 1 is about a guy called Michael Schofield who plans to break his brother out of prison. The brother is on Death Row for a crime he did not commit. Michael knows he can’t break his brother out of prison from the outside. So being an architect he gets the plans of the prison tattooed on to his body and then goes and gets himself arrested for a bank robbery so he can get himself thrown into prison. Once in prison he can put his plan into action, but along the way other inmates get wind of his plan and decide to tag along. The season 1 finale sees 8 inmates escaping.

Series 2 is all about going on the run, and finding evidence that will clear Michael’s brother’s name.

This show doesn’t fit many of my Cult TV rules, but for some reason has picked a loyal cult following. I think partially due to being shown on channel 5 late at night, so is not viewed by the masses. The merchandisers have caught on to the status of the show, so you can now find Prison break magazines and apparel in certain stores.

Cult Rating 1/4

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Monty Pytons Flying Circus

An off the wall surreal comedy sketch show starring, Graham Chapman, Eric Idle, Terry Jones, Michael Palin, Terry Gilliam and John Cleese. MPFC was first made in October 69 and run for 45 episodes.

This show definitely ticks all the boxes, Its format was the first of its time, there has been several shows made since that have adopted this format, take The league of gentlemen and Little Britain for example.

Sketches often quoted would be: The dead parrot, Spam,  and the 5 minute argument sketch.

Cult Rating 4/4

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Angel

The character Angel originally appeared in the Buffy the Vampire Killer show. Angel is a vampire with a soul, and has dedicated his like to hunting down and killing evil, don't get me wrong Angel does have an evil past but since being cursed with a soul by a gypsy he has tried to be a hero instead of a villain. Angel heads up a detective agency called Angel Investigations which tackles the jobs that the police don't want or understand. Although Angel played by David Boreanaz is the star of the show it's the integration he has with the rest of his team that makes the show.

Although the Vampire turning good scenario is not a new format (don't forget Blade), Most supernatural/horror shows can fall into a cult status due to the love hate theory. Angel has gained quite a good fan base and you can find quite a lot of merchandise if you look around. Angel is also given some funny/quirky lines which will be repeated in conversation by the true fans.

Cult Rating 3/4

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Lost

Lost is about the lives of a group of people that were survivors of a plane crash on a mysterious tropical island. The format for this show is to show the conflicts/interactions of the different  people on the island. They do show recaps of individual's life prior to the plan crash, highlighting the events that drove them to be on the plane in the first place.

The show is currently in it’s 3rd series but a 4th series has been planned for 2008. The show was originally shown in the UK on channel 4. The show didn't take long before it started gathering a small loyal fan base. Sky tv realised that this show had a fan base which was growing and growing, which led them to poach the show from channel 4 and put it on their Sky One channel.

Although as mentioned the show has got a loyal fan base, it is not loved by everyone. This could be down to the many characters in the show, making it sometimes hard to keep up with the individual story lines. There is a lot of merchandise available to keep them fans happy.

Cult Rating 3/4