EastEnders: Discussion Thread

[Ben]

The omnibus used to have a fixed slot on a midday Sunday, which used to pull in a decent figure for that time of day. Occasionally, it would be moved to BBC2 for sporting events, like Formula 1 or the tennis, etc. But, over the last few years the ratings fell, and more and more sport occupied the slot, pulling in better ratings, so from a business perspective, the omnibus had become kinda pointless (especially with DVRs/PVRs/iPlayer/BBC3 rerun). It did disappear all together for a few weeks, but people complained, so they brought it back in a Friday graveyard slot, which seems to rate similar to what the Sunday episode used to (it could be that it's helped by Graham Norton being its lead-in some Friday nights).

I get why the actors would be upset, but the fact is, the whole notion of an omnibus is kinda outdated in the age of on demand services and catch-up TV. iPlayer episodes pull in more viewers than the omnibus does sometimes (I realise there's no way of knowing how many viewers are watching more than once).

Where did you hear/read about the change in pay, Tim? Will being paid weekly instead of by the episode be a negative thing?

[TimWil]

Someone who works on the show told me about the pay thing back in December, Ben. Yes, it's definitely considered a negative thing for reasons I couldn't quite understand. The cast have been having company meetings about it and there are ruffled feathers. Apparently it will be good for production in some ways in terms of sets being made more available and less SAs (their term for extras/background actors) being needed. I'll be getting in touch again with this person for clarification. It really does seem to be a problem and a few actors might even choose to walk rather than put up with the new wage system.

Just got confirmation that the omnibus ends forever in April. That alone will affect wages.

[BetterForgotten]

I'm always surprised they never did anything more with Mark and Mandy. I think this is one of my favourite uses of Julia's Theme - just the celebratory and welcoming environment in the Fowler house.

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I guess this was the trailer the BBC ran for the Christmas Eve episode that year:

I think the 1990-1995 period is kinda underrated in retrospect. Yeah, even if the Mitchell's sort of changed the DNA of the show a bit, I think the producers for most of the 90's did a wonderful job of carrying on Tony Holland and Julia Smith's vision, while updating it a bit to match a more 90's sensibility.

I really wish there was some place we could see these years again. So much is available from the 80's, late 90's, 00's, and present, but this era should be remembered more, from everything I've seen and read, it looked consistently good.

Edited March 2, 2015 by BetterForgotten

[DRW50]

I guess she just lived with him so viewers could see her pushing even the kindest man away, but I agree I wish they'd done more. Mandy was a great character. Even now I think they could bring her back one more time, at least if some of their current ladies quit.

It's weird seeing Phil throwing food and being jovial. I can never reconcile that with the sour man I saw by the time I started EE in '97.

[TimWil]

I always hoped that if Mandy were ever to return it would be with Mark's son. Of course Mark's HIV status would play into this. Of course they went in a completely different way by having it turn out she'd gotten pregnant by Ricky...blecch.

I'd be all for another Mandy return.

Edited March 2, 2015 by TimWil

[BetterForgotten]

God, all the Carter crap was just terrible in today's episode. This family is really a massive failure, and the next EP really needs to give them the di Marco treatment. This one family weights the entire show down. No one cares and they are so badly fleshed out.

[NothinButAttitude]

I hate that Dean was brought back to be the black sheep for the Carters. This whole family has been an anchor for him. And I agree that they need to be given the boot. None of them excite me. Especially Mick and Linda.

I would've preferred for Dean to return to the Square alone or with Chelsea [Fox], his co-conspirator. I always felt that Matt DiAngelo & Tiana Benjamin had stellar chemistry.

[BetterForgotten]

The Sharon and Shirley scenes were the only thing worth watching, even if I hate Shirley. Sharon's finally being treated like a core character again, and it really works.

[NothinButAttitude]

Glad to hear that. I haven't been able to watch since Peter left last week. I just don't have the energy to. EE has disappointed me these past two years. First with killing Lucy, criminally back burning Denise and Patrick, having Bobby kill Lucy [w/ Ian and Jane being content with hiding it], and poor Peter leaving the Square with Lauren b/c he's too distraught over his twin's death.

[TimWil]

I agree that the Sharon/Shirley scene tonight was good. It was underplayed just right by Henry and Dean. So now it looks like Sharon will be searching for her "real" father. I'm surprised he was referred to in that way in Friday's episode.

[BetterForgotten]

The scriptwriters need hell for that. Den and Angie are her "real father and "real mother." Gavin and Carol are her "birth parents."

I wonder if Sharon's Gavin is the same Gavin Kathy was/is married to.

It seems like her birth father has been searching for her for years too...

[TimWil]

I agree, BetterForgotten, I was certainly annoyed when Sharon referred to Carol as her "real mother" and Gavin as her "real father." Were the writers afraid that "birth mother" and "birth father" would sound too technical?

I don't think Sharon's birth father Gavin is the same Gavin who Kathy was married to. That would be stretching credibility quite a bit. But then again...

Edited March 3, 2015 by TimWil

[DRW50]

I would hope all the hate threads about annoying howler monkey Nancy on DS might mean she won't win the Best Newcomer BSA that she does not deserve, but it's probably just the same two or three people, sadly. I guess if Rita Symons won it the bar is very low indeed.

[BetterForgotten]

The seemed to update the Sharon clip a lot compared to the others from the 25th anniversary version on the recent cliffhanger special.:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rPS0YtJdhRk

There's also this:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0N79S_JFoXU

Edited March 3, 2015 by BetterForgotten

[DRW50]

I finally finished the end of last week's episodes...

I don't think Tameka is a good dramatic actress but the Kim baby drama is a relief compared to some of the other repetitive stories in the Square. It's also nice to see Denise supporting her, and some of Patrick's own mixed emotions.

The Sharon stuff was very good - it reminded me a lot of old school EE, complete with her brother following her back home. I thought the scene with Linda where she talked about not knowing what she wanted out of life was one of the best scenes on the show in quite some time, as were the followup scenes where she tried to support Jay, Abi and Roxy. It was nice to actually SEE something instead of it just being inferred.

Carters - no care.

Roxy/Charlie - no care.

Does Elaine remind anyone else of a bad drag queen?

I care more about the Ben/Jay/Abi mess than I probably should, as it's clearly being written on the fly and the characters all seem to be written like they're hopped up on drugs.

I was pleasantly surprised they had Carol, and her history, in use to help Sharon try to reconnect with her mother before it was too late.