‘Fringe’ series finale to be simulcast; ‘Downton Abbey’ fans immedately jealous

While there are some shows from the UK that American fans have to wait a ridiculously long time to see after they first air overseas (we’re looking at you, “Downton Abbey”!), fans of “Fringe” across the pond are not going to be put through the same sort of suffering for the upcoming series finale set to air on Friday, January 18. With that being said, let’s just hope that some of these people are willing to stay up rater late at night in order to watch it.

Sources have confirmed that British station Sky1 will in fact broadcast the end of season 5 at 1:10 a.m. local time on Saturday January 19, that way super-excited fans are not going to be spoiled on what happens from their American pals. This is something rather similar to what Britain did with another product of J.J. Abrams in “Lost,” which aired on American and British shores at the same time.

So why can’t some other series like “Downton Abbey” figure this out? The basic way in which to say it is that there are certain rules that have to be followed here, as the situation is slightly different. The ITV period drama airs overseas with commercials, and it has to be re-cut for a public-access network like PBS, which airs the show without advertisements. We have a feeling that the folks who pay money to air spots during the show in Britain would probably not be thrilled if the show was not only airing at the same time in America, but was doing so without ads scattered throughout.

In going back to “Fringe,” do you think this is both a smart and cool move by Sky1? If you want to check out the latest poster teasing some of the final episodes of the show, you can do so over at the link here.

Photo: Fox