TV over open fireplace, yea or nay?

[CowCuddler]

Just that really.

I really want to hang the TV over the fireplace to free up space in our small living room. We light fires occasionally over the winter, it's an open cast iron victorian fireplace with a cast iron mantle.

Am worried about...

1. heat from fire, though there is candle wax that's dripped off candles on the mantle currently and that's never melted further, still stuck solid.

2. viewing angle, as in will the picture be distorted? Not worried about neck ache as lean head back on sofa anyway. It will be half the TVs height higher than it is now.

Would love to know your experiences, the Internet says it's a bad idea but so many people seem to do it.

Personally I hate how this looks and wouldn’t the TV be too high up to be comfortable to watch?

Too high & dangerous to have it above a fire in my opinion. Could you put it on the wall next to the fireplace?

Unless you've got a very big room and telly I think it will be too high, and you say your room is small. I also dislike this look in a room, even without a real fire. I'd get a smaller telly rather than do this (we have a small living room too).

I think it would be too high up to watch comfortably and also looks a bit tacky if I’m completely honest

No - simply because there is eventual soot ingress into the TV and within a short space of time you’ll get patching which is visible on pale backgrounds.
I can send you photos of ours if you want to judge. I wouldn’t do it again.

Personally I hat any tv on a wall - too high and just odd looking to my eye.
If I did like TVs on walls - when watching I’d be very aware of the fire whether being used or not. In particular when fire being used it would be odd to have divided attention.

Well that was fairly unanimous Thanks for the responses, appreciate it!

Mykittensmittens I did wonder about soot and smoke too.

Our room is almost square. One wall has the window, one wall has the stairs, one the kitchen wall/door, one the front door and fireplace and chimney with two narrow alcoves. Currently the sofa is under the stairs (opposite fireplace wall) and the TV on an ikea Kallax unit against the kitchen wall to the right of the sofa so already quite high, and we're always sat at an angle to watch it, plus the sun shines on it at in the evening. Fairly limited on placement hence the over fireplace idea. Room is an awkward layout but that's old houses I guess. Was never planned for modern life!

Back to the drawing board!

Theres also the risk of damaging the chimney lining, which matters if you use the fireplace.

I have a similar small room, only wall space would be over the fireplace for me too. I've got it on an arm bracket in one of the alcoves (well just outside as TV is wider than the alcove) instead. Would something like that be better?

I also have a square front room with a cast iron fireplace, I managed to get a triangular tv stand from John Lewis which fits in the narrow alcove perfectly and there's no sunlight hitting the tv

I had a slate fire surround with an open Victorian fireplace. I stood my 42 inch tv on the mantelpiece and it was fine.
It was slate though and it only ever got warm to touch, never hot.

No not above an open fire and an uninsulated chimney op. You’ll need to find another solution.