I happen to recall that in this scene, she’s speaking nonsense Italian words (she doesn’t actually know Italian) but the first time they show it (and the viewer doesn’t know she can’t speak Italian) they show Speaking in Italy… and later when they’re showing that she’s saying words, but they’re nonsense, it still says ‘Speaking in Italy’!
This is not a big deal but it is entirely wrong. Why do I care so much about this?!
(The close caption is wrong in a lot of places on this copy of The IT Crowd, but that’s the most ridiculous.)
Edit: Later in the episode they show a speakerphone, on which, an Italian man is speaking. The caption for this? “Voicemail in Italy.” What!
IMO it is a big deal, and you’re right to care.
Most obviously, and most importantly, this is a big deal because it excludes people who may require the subtitles in order to watch the show.
But it also points to some sort of speech to tech automation being used and then not checked by a human. Which implies poor quality control and a reliance on machine learning instead of employing someone.
Maybe it’s a wink to deaf people? They might think she’s speaking actual Italian without the mistake.
It would have been funnier to say ‘speaks random Italian words’ for the people relying on CC