Okay, let’s be honest. There is a big difference between public television, where the members pay to support the shows, and stations like ITV, where advertisements from paying vendors help pay the bills.

As the first episode of season two aired today, July 22, 2022, on ITV, small scenes were cut here and there to allow for advertisements. The PBS showing was uncut, with no ads and a full 54 minutes.

Hello Magazine reported that ITV cut 14 minutes from episode one! That’s right, 14 minutes! Fans were furious, and rightly so! If they continue to cut 14 minutes each episode, 84 minutes of season two will be left on the cutting room floor and denied the public’s viewing.

Twitter fans report more cuts on subsequent episodes involving the following:

  • Alexander apologizes to Charlotte in the study the day after the garden party.
  • Lennox getting ready for the ball, hoping Charlotte accepts his proposal.
  • Augusta’s lines at the ball.
  • Fraser and Alison’s lines while walking on the beach.
  • Fraser tells Carter he needs to apologize to Alison.
  • Conversation between Alison and Charlotte on the balcony.
  • Charlotte demands answers from Colbourne at the ball.
  • Mrs. Wheatley conforming Alexander after he dismisses Charlotte.
  • Colbourne’s horse ride on the beach shortened.
  • Tea room scene with Arthur and Georgiana
  • Lady Denham arrives at the fair and discusses with Georgiana the sugar boycott.
  • Charlotte arrives in E6 to find out that the family is having breakfast outdoors together.

Justin Young, the head writer on Sanditon season two, said this on Twitter, “And again, for clarity – Masterpiece and ITV have different slot lengths, so there were edits. Our team worked very hard to lose as little as possible while maintaining the integrity and clarity of the stories, but alas, the slot lengths are non-negotiable.”

Naturally, I encourage people to stream elsewhere, such as on BritBoxUK, for a mere £5.99 per month after a 7-day trial, where you can cancel anytime. At least you will see 14 minutes more of each episode and critical scenes that were cut!

It also appears that the UK DVD version advertised on Amazon UK is 30 minutes shorter than the US-released version by PBS. The run-time for the UK version shows 5 hours and 6 minutes, while the US version runs for 5 hours and 30 minutes.

Frankly, it’s heartbreaking that the general public, viewing Sanditon season two on ITV, is losing out on critical scenes woven throughout the story. Here are a few below; some may be out of order.

Luna runs out of Colbourne’s office and follows her.
Charlotte pets Luna; she returns barking.
Lady Denham telling Georgiana her sugar boycotte is nonsense.
Georgiana and Arthur talk about their hurts on how people few them.
Lennox readies himself for the ball, telling Fraser he will propose.
Augusta wonders what Charlotte said to Colbourne to make him change his mind about the ball; asks her to never leave.
Fraser insists Carter apologize to Alison; he refuses.
Fraser and Alison walk the beach, and he conveys to Alison he’s sorry he did not tell her about Carter.
Extended scene; parts deleted.
Mrs. Wheatley tells Colbourne he will regret sending Charlotte away.
Colbourne tells Mrs. Wheatley, “It’s better this way. For her sake.”
“Alexander, do not shut yourself away again, please.”
Alison asking Charlotte what is the matter. Charlotte says she doesn’t understand.
Dancing right now I haven’t felt alive since . . . Alison tells her it’s not betrayl to have feelings for another man. Charlotte says, but why him? Alison, thinks it’s Lennox as he arrives on the balcony.
Conversation between Georginana and Charlotte before the ball. “I will never love anyone as I loved Otis. That doesn’t mean I can’t find different kinds of passion.”
Lady D. telling Mary Parker that Lennox has run up debts and skipped town in other places.
Tom telling Mary that he lost at dice and owes the Colonel money.
Mary angrily telling him that he never figured out what Sidney sacrificed for him and that he and Charlotte were in love.
Charlotte arriving to discover the family is having breakfast outdoors together. Mrs. Wheatley says, “Miracle of miracles.”
Next scene where Colbourne tells them he is thinking of getting another dog. Leonora wants a Mastiff.
Visits Alison, “Thought I might have missed you.”
Doesn’t say what he wants and leaves uttering, “Damn.”
Dr. Fuchs saying Edward has a right to be concered about Ester.
Fuchs saying she’s at the point of no return and it’s time for drastic action. An institution.
They’ve searched all the house and estate for Leo.
Clara confessing to her eternal shame she remained silent about Edward’s terrible deed.
“I chose to believe your remore was genuine!”
“Clara deserves no punishment.”
Missing scene where Alison packs her trunk.
“Your not fit to speak their names.”
Charlotte returning to the estate, leaving Colbourne with Lennox.
Charlotte & Alison going to the camp so Alison can tell Fraser she loves him.
Returning and Alison saying, “We missed him.”
Georginana with Arthur, I don’t suppose you’ll change your mind about marrying me. Then I would never have to consider the subject again. Thank you, but I must decline again. I am more convinced than ever that marriage is not for me.
Anyway, I firmly believe the right man is waiting out there for you. In the middle of the sea? I meant figuratively.
Where’s my son? He’s on his way to a better life, far removed from his wretched father.
“I do wish you would stay.”

Other missing scenes.

via GIPHY

via GIPHY

3 Comments

  1. Which scenes have been cut & what can we viewers do about it??

    1. Author

      After Charlotte’s interview with Colbourne, they only showed when she left his office. They cut out the dog getting up and running after her, Charlotte hugging Luna, and Luna running back to the house barking. Episodes will stream on ITV Hub, a paying on-demand ad-free service. In the meantime, ITV will probably continue to cut small portions in order to place paid advertising.

  2. From my reading of the Hello magazine article, ITV has 14 minutes of adverts in each hour. This leaves 46 minutes for the episode, compared with a full episode of 54 minutes (quoted above), losing approximately 8* minutes per show on average, or 48 minutes in total (not 84 minutes as calculated above). Indeed, the difference between the UK and USA DVD quoted times is only 24 minutes in total, though that is still a disgrace. I originally watched the episodes on Britbox and if I’m shortchanged timewise on the Amazon UK DVD, then I’ll send it back. (*my previous calculation from reading the Hello article was 7 minutes). Thought : could it also be that the DVD time diffrences are due to different running speeds for different codes ? The UK system is PAL.

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