DRW50

I keep hoping something of Behind the Screen will show up. Thanks again @Paul Raven.

You're right. I think she was seen as too subtle or reserved. As @soapfan770I liked Sheila on LA Law but she wasn't needed here, especially as Charley as a character only made sense with a more reserved and less conventionally attractive actress.

That's certainly one way to put it! What blather. Kind of tells you they knew it was going to fail. I guess they were just throwing anything at the schedule and hoping they would be pleasantly surprised. Thanks for the article.

I would guess it's down to Kate Oates. Bowden is very much her type of leading man. She repeated all the stories she did on Emmerdale with his Ben. I also think EE has become conservative enough that only a white, straight-acting gay man is going to get story.

Thanks. Wish those appearances were available.

I watched some of Friday's show. It was sweet to see Julie celebrate her wedding anniversary to Doug (their second - kudos to the writing team for remembering). Those moments with Julie are always so moving to me because you can tell they are straight from Susan's heart. I know Patsy Pease hasn't been on DAYS in 15 years, but I still miss Kim in weeks that are so important for the Bradys and their history on the show. Michael Dietz was always a very likeable presence onscreen, even if he was never the greatest actor. That hasn't changed. I was impressed with how well put together the montage was of John's various identities/memories. A number of those stories were ludicrous, and several of them never should have existed, but the way this was all crafted you could see just what a unique character all those parts made John...and how much Drake played the material as best he could, no matter what. The mirror scene was a great inclusion as that really wrapped everything of John together - viewers never truly knew who he was, nor did the people in Salem, but it didn't matter, as everyone loved him anyway.

Thanks @Paul Raven Amidst these terrible stories I see we get the arrival of Heather. I never knew Alice forged references for her. No wonder she later became a murderer. She was a criminal all along. The Jeff/Monica/Rick story always seems so brazen and so depressing all at once - I can't imagine how people would have talked about it in the Internet/Twitter era. I don't understand the choice to put Audrey and Steve through even more misery after they had been separated for almost a decade. The sudden inclusion of magazine stories is fascinating...and I'm not sure if it is ever a huge story narrative for GH after this point, even when characters on the show ran magazines. The end of the Leslie and Cam story did not need to be like this (and feels a little rushed). Had every woman on the canvas at this time been raped?

I am bewildered and fascinated by the choice to have John Loprieno and Adam Storke play out all their dramatic sequences here in clown makeup. They really took that circus motif seriously.

Happy belated birthday to Joan. Here's an interview with Jackie Collins at about 39 minutes.

Neighbours didn't seem to be doing well enough, although I wish they had given it another year. I am happy for DAYS. Peacock seems to have a shaky future, especially with all the problems NBC and Comcast are having, but I hope the show gets a few more years at least. DAYS has always been a survivor.

That would have made more sense than Brooke's other love interests in those years (including the man who killed her daughter).

When watching the clip of Michael returning I wonder if the announcer set a record for fastest "the role of..." I've never really connected to any of LLC's characters in her soap career, but I will give her credit for always knowing how to make a reaction and scene count. She did when Gio stormed out of the room, and her reaction to Michael returning and walking off with Miley, even in the background of a scene, was great. (and how is today the day I just realized Lisa is married to Michael Patrick Jann, of The State fame).

I'm speechless too as the Abbott home looks like something my great aunt might have loved...not Diane. Why is Victoria dressed like Miss Piggy in the Muppets Take Manhattan?

Billy Magnussen is in the live action Lilo & Stitch.

Nice to see such an early clip of Meg Bennett. I could see Janice fitting into the more neurotic type Patti had been. And she was also closer to the right age range.

May would have been very good as Lloyd. I'm still not sure why they didn't do a better job casting that part, aside from Joe Lambie. Who thought hiring Robert Reed made any sense?

That would make sense. I should try to look for one of the interviews Toni had around then (I think there was one somewhere).

Facially they don't look that similar. I don't think anyone would compare Rory, Giovanni and Van aside from their hair. Van is also 43, so...I'm sure he would find being compared to some of these guys flattering. Rory reminds me a little of that unsettling actor who played that godawful son on Nip/Tuck. I doubt it was intentional to go that route with Michael, but it would be interesting if they do try to bring back how deeply unsettling Michael was as a child.

True. Maybe Jonathan was willing to perform and Frank just didn't care. I hope not, as they had to spend money they don't have by hiring some other artist to come in and perform one number. (maybe that's where Blaze would have gone if she were still around)

I am glad you brought this back up as it made me remember that the story was about Daran Kelly (Dan Kennicott). Sorry. I guess Dan didn't exactly set the world on fire either. I see that three actors played Wally, one of whom (Nigel Reed) would go on to play an even more thankless role on GL...no wonder he left the industry. Was his 1984 return for any reconciliation with Devon? They don't mention the reason on here. Wally McFadden

I wonder what went on there. Liz has been at a number of Nurses Balls even in the Valentini years, although I don't remember if she was at the last one. You'd think Lucky singing would be a no-brainer, and he has sung once or twice since his return. Maybe Jonathan didn't want to be involved in all that lengthy taping.

Thanks again @Paul Raven . With Denny we now get the arrival of Toni Bua. If the show had been renewed, I wonder if she would have stayed on. Given the influx of new female characters in her age range, I don't know.

It was interesting to peruse Twitter and seeing some fans who were very upset Anna didn't get to do a tango with Chase, while others were glad because they felt that was her special dance with Duke. A good reminder of how long-lasting soap fanbases can be, even as the show has tried to move Anna on. How any Duke/Anna fan did manage to stick with the show I don't know, but points for will power, I suppose.

It's probably a good thing most of us don't post here often now as the shameful conduct of the "legacy media" enabling the attention seeking and grudge holding of Tapper and Alex Thompson would probably have broken the servers. I avoid CNN as often as I can, so I had no idea that every anchor on CNN, probably even an AI Larry King, was plugging the book 24/7. The wagons truly are circling, as even some journalists who love to pretend they aren't like the rest, like Dave Weigel, have joined in. I am at the point where I have no use for any major reporters or media figures. I find it especially disgusting when I see reporters who talk about losing loved ones supporting this book after the reports you posted.

Oh you are probably right. I thought Marland brought him back but that must have been an interim writer. Tex somebody...?