Vigil has had BBC viewers gripped to the latest military murder mystery series, but for RAF observers some things just aren’t quite right.
The drama follows police officers attempting to unravel who is responsible after air force personnel are shot dead by a hijacked drone.
It is set on a fictional air base in Scotland as well as a fictional country Wudyan, purported to be in the Middle East.
However, many who have been in the military have been annoyed the artistic licence adopted for geography has been extended to depicting the air force.
There has been a furious reaction on social media about “unforgivable” inaccuracies between the real RAF and the one in the BBC series Vigil.
The Press and Journal spoke to Dan Chorley, who served in the RAF for 10 years in various postings, including at RAF Lossiemouth, about what the BBC got wrong and right about the military in Vigil.
Different cap badges used by BBC in Vigil
Vigil makes no secret about the fact that it is supposed to be fiction. The air force is called the British Air Force instead of the Royal Air Force and the officers on the murder trail are from the Scottish Police Service, not Police Scotland.
It means some things about the look of the military are subtly different.
And Mr Chorley believes it’s one aspect about Vigil being different from the real air force that is understandable.
He said: “The RAF caps are very distinctive. Officers and warrant officers have a brass badge with an eagle and a crown. The ones in Vigil are completely different.
“I think the people picking up on that though are missing the point a little bit.
“It’s going to cost money to get the proper licences and for something like this the MoD isn’t going to authorise that. It’s not trying to say this can happen for real, it’s a drama.”
Zip up that jacket!
However, there are some things about the BBC depiction of the fictional RAF in Vigil that viewers believe would have been simple fixes.
The show’s producers have stressed they had military experts advising them about certain aspects to make it seem authentic.
However, Mr Chorley says there is one thing that would have got you in trouble with senior officers on any RAF base.
He said: “The main things is the uniforms. There are blue jackets called GPJs, general purpose jackets. You would get pulled up if you’re wandering about camp with them open or unzipped.
“In the show they’re consistently open. It’s not like it’s just once or twice, they’re open in every single shot.
“It seems like a pretty obvious thing not to pick up.”
Fix your beret!
Headwear is probably the main point of contention under the microscope from experienced military observers.
Some have described the shapes of the berets as “appalling” on social media.
It turns out there is actually something worse than military Elf-on-a-Shelf. https://t.co/IAEpZQyyon
— RAF Lossiemouth (@RAFLossiemouth) December 7, 2023
Mr Chorley said: “They’re misshapen, they’re just not moulded. We would say you’re almost wearing them like you’re French.
“You have to put them in hot and cold water again and again to relax the material to give it that characteristic shape.
“It seems like a key thing to get right.”
How to mould a military beret
What BBC got right in Vigil
It’s not all bad though. Many have enjoyed trying to identify the location of scenes filmed in Scotland.
And some reviews have praised it as an “extremely good crime drama” and a “thrilling watch”.
Mr Chorley added: “The look and feel of the base was reasonably authentic.
“When you go into the squadron’s headquarters too and see all the boards on the wall too it definitely feels like it actually would.”
Vigil can be watched online on the BBC iPlayer HERE.
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