I phoned Sky+ Tech help on 08702 435000 (they are open till 10pm) i didnt have to wait long (less than 2mins) told the guy at Sky the epic story of the problem & he said that sounds like a macrovision protection prevention Sky only broadcast that on Box office films.. Anyway after saying obvously you have checked everything before phoning it sounds like the Sky+ box is faulty, he asked me how long i had been a Sky+ customer i told him it must be about 2yrs at least, then he came back with the reply "try 5yrs"
(so i have had my moneys worth out of the box) anyway i asked how much to replace it, (thinking he would say £99 as
sky have an offer on at the moment) that expires in November, Free installation & Sky+ box for £99.
Anyway he quoted me £65 & free installation, & i said to him is that for a standard Sky digi-box & he replied "No" a Sky+ box an updated model than the one you have at the moment, i then said would it be a refurbished one? & again he came back with the answer "No" brand new in the box, of course we would have to take away the old one & an engineer would have to come & install it, then i asked how long would that be (for delivery & installation) thinking he would say within 2 weeks because thats how long i had to wait when i first became a Sky+ customer, the reply was 2-3 days & he said that he could book it in for Friday afternoon this week "Sky have come along way in 5 years" hehehehe.
While he was booking the delivery/installation i asked him about Sky+ 160 which is the new Sky+ box coming out on the 1st of November this year for £399 you get a
bigger 160 hd which you can record 80hrs of tv programmes plus it has a few more inserts on the back than the standard Sky+ box.
So £65 for a new replacement for my 5yr old Sky+ box thats not bad at all.