When Sam opens the wallet containing his police warrant Card and badge, the printed badge to the bottom of the warrant card clearly and correctly reads "North West District Police" around the centre. However the meta badge to the right is of Greater London's Metropolitan Police.
Ray and Chris both state that they'd have both taken 27p from the murder victims purse if they were mugging them. However 27p in 1973 only had the buying power of what approximately £2.26 had in 2006.
Toward the end of the first episode, Stockport Pyramid is clearly visible whilst Sam in on the roof with Anne. The Pyramid was not completed until 1992
When Sam's iPod is playing "Life on Mars" the time shown on the display is inconsistent with the section of the track that can be heard.
After being run over Sam Tyler wakes up in a deserted waste ground by a sign advertising the forthcoming construction of the Mancunian Way. The year is 1973 however in reality the Mancunian Way was completed and open to traffic by the year 1967.
In the scene where Sam and Annie are talking in the street, the record store's shop frontage reads "Vinyl Heaven", but in 1973 vinyl was the standard and, apart from audio tapes of various formats, was the only alternative when buying music media. Not until the mid 1980's when digital music in the form of Compact Discs became available, would a record shop emphasize "Vinyl" as part of their business name.
When Sam first wakes up in 1973 the cameraman and camera are visible reflected in Sam's eyes.