Chris B

It's linked in Errol's original story. You do have to pay to watch. Not sure if it'll become available for free in the future though.

I just finished watching this. It was a nice reunion and everybody got a chance to speak. Unfortunately, no talk about what could come of the future but they did briefly mention the Prospect Park version. They did a really good job of picking who would appear. I'd love to see them get a televised special with a few more people. Watching it reminded me of just how shocking it is that such an iconic show is no longer on the air. One of ABC's biggest mistakes was cancelling this show.

I came across an interesting failed primetime soap pilot. It's produced by Paul Rauch and Steve Kent and written by Dominic Dunne. Looks like a mix of a crime series and a soap. Michelle Phillips, Noelle Beck and Denise Richards are all in the cast.

I felt like Donna Mills role was a waste of her talents. She probably would've been better cast in Linda Gray's role on Model's Inc.

Bill Bell joined 7 months into the shows run so it would've been his material.

Michelle Stafford and Eric Braeden both posted about evacuating their homes. Braeden posted a video in his backyard and the fire was so close that it was scary even looking at the video. I hope he was able to get to safety.

Jennifer Gareis posted on Instagram that she lost her home in the California wildfires. Considering how bad it is, I wouldn't be surprised if we hear about this from more soap stars. I really feel for them because I know how hard they have to work for what they have without getting paid like their primetime counterparts.

It was mentioned on the SOD podcast that Days lost season two in a fire.

He has soap experience. He was on A World Apart with Susan Sarandon.

Oh that was lovely! We got out eyes on another set as well which looks nice. Based on this I'm guessing they will likely have some of the cast attend/present at the NAACP Awards. Hopefully they also run promos for it as well.

Courtney was smart to leave considering it left her open to Ally McBeal. I did find it interesting to hear Daphne confirm she was fired. I always assumed she decided to leave after season 4. Considering her movie success prior to the show, it's not surprising to hear she was the second highest paid.

I wonder if they won't hold an extended trailer for February. Whatever the case I'm just so excited for the next couple months. Of course, the premiere is the most important date but I'm so excited for all of the interviews and promotion we get for the project. I can't wait until they start sending the cast out for interviews.

It's good that they aren't filming too far ahead so they'll be able to make those adjustments as needed. Can you imagine if they filmed ahead like Days and something wasn't working? That could be the end of a new soap.

Ben and Cathy was such a bizarre story. I felt Cathy long outstayed her welcome, but surely they could've come up with something else to run out her contract. Val risked Joshua potentially hurting her or her kids to defend Cathy and that's how she repays her?

When it comes to past soaps and old episodes, I do think there is value for them in streaming. The amount of content is perfect for a binge and long term subscriptions. Dark Shadows has been a staple since streaming began, B&B has been a success on YouTube and The Doctors has been trucking along. I feel like that should be the future of most of the cancelled soaps. In terms of reboots, I think AMC is the only one that I could see coming back and having potential to be a real success. I could maybe see a form of GL returning, but the problem any returning soap is going to have is endless complaints about things that are different, people who aren't there, continuity, etc. Launching a new soap that has something new to say was definitely the best thing they could've done.

Well, Michael Filerman also suggested Val only get one baby back lol. We just have to be thankful that David Jacobs was around to push back on his more over the top ideas.

2024 saw some exciting finds and I'm hoping 2025 continues the trend! My ultimate hope is one day seeing a episode of Return To Peyton Place. I've been waiting so long for this. One of the soap highlights of 2024 for me was discovering there was a pilot shot for a show called Peyton Place '79 and I even managed to find clips. Hopefully that is a positive sign and Return To Peyton Place isn't far away.

Mack was supposed to cheap on Karen with Anne during her first run but Michele Lee put a stop to it and Anne was written off. Other than that, the only thing I can think is Donna Mills changing the baby story which had her kidnapping the babies. Something that always makes me chuckle is Joan Van Ark's dislike of Lynn Latham and Bernie Lechowick turning Val into "the village idiot." She mentioned wanting to talk to them but they did not allow any communication with the cast.

It's sad to see this trolling in this thread but we need to get used to it. I'm sure once the show premieres the vultures will be out. I'm just going to continue to ignore that negativity.

Wow! Karla Mosley looks *amazing* and I love that they have Karen Huger in a guest spot. Not the best time in her life, but it definitely makes sense to include one of The Real Housewives of Potomac and can bring more eye balls to the show.

Jamey is still at Days because he's mentioning being there within the last couple weeks.

Oh I 100% agree on both of those! Rebecca Elmaloglou is amazing even in the smallest throwaway scene. She is one of the main reasons I got hooked on Neighbours.

I'll admit, I'm not worried either. On the subject of Emmy nominations, I do hope they really go for it this year. I recall an interview with someone involved in the show (I'm guessing the EP or Headwriter) and they said they didn't find out until the last minute that they were even eligible so they didn't submit in many categories. I'd love to see them get nominations across the various categories. Things like Writing and Directing seem like no brainers and with the right reel I could see multiple actors getting nominations. I feel like Georgie Stone and Majella Davis would be the two women I'd really push and Ryan Moloney and Stefan Dennis for the men.

I absolutely crashed out when I saw the end of the Christmas episode with Cindy appearing dead. While I'm thankful she is alive, that is such a ridiculous way to handle the character. I've disliked a lot of the writing for her since she returned, particularly surrounding the fact that she wasn't around for her kids. As I recall it, this was some sort of witness protection thing so what do they expect? The Junior affair reveal was strong enough on it's own. Why did they have to throw in an attempted murder? She is a soap vixen, hardly someone worthy of being beat over the head with a shovel. I feel like Eastenders had a strong 2023 but 2024 has felt very disjointed like they're just throwing anything to the wall and seeing what sticks. There is too much going on and it doesn't feel like it's that well thought out. We have some fantastic episodes here and there, but overall I have been disappointed. I'm at a place now where I'm excited for the anniversary only because it means the new writers will be starting shortly. The show isn't in a terrible place but it definitely has room for improvement.

I was pleasantly surprised to see Brittany Allen from AMC on the new Dexter prequel as his mother. I know she wasn't the most popular on AMC, but I enjoyed her on that show and have enjoyed watching her in projects since then. I love horror films and she's taken a focus on that area and has done some great work.