The "foreign soaps" topic

[dannigold]

There are clips of the entire episode on you tube. Also here is a clip of Laurie Brett talking about Jane and Ian's current storylines. This is filled with spoilers http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=J0XX9j5vDK4

[Sylph]

Thank you, KS, I forgot what he said. And I didn't search for it on YouTube. When you listen to it, let me know.

[KSlater]

We'll do Sylph.

[Faulkner]

Sorry for the delay in getting back to you...I believe it all started on Monday the 10th in the UK.

[KSlater]

Here you go Sylph. Might be more than you need.

At the church:

Phil: I can't believe I let this happen. I let this happen in my own house. (To Peggy) Did you hear anything?

Peggy: Didn't you?

Phil: You're the one who said she was alright, didn't ya?

Peggy: Oh let's not start blaming each other. Phil, I'll look after Ben.

Phil: What am I supposed to do?

Peggy: Make her pay.

Outside the church

Phil (to older man and young woman): Have you seen the bride?

Older man: Yeah, she nicked my mobile.

Phil (looking at the woman): Who is she calling?

Older man: Old bill.

(Phil grabs the mobile and throws it into the distance)

Phil: Phone them back in an hour. In an hour!

Phil runs outside the Vic after pushing Ian down and saying something to Ian that I couldn't understand (sometimes I need subtitles for Phil)

Phil (watching Stella speed off in a car): I'm going to kill you.

Hope this helps!

[Sylph]

Thanks, KS!

P. S. I also needed subtitles when he said something like "What happened to your nails?" and then "Did she earn it?" If that's what he said... I'm not sure... Who the hell is she?

[Sylph]

Thanks, F, I'll check it out!

[Sylph]

'Hollyoaks' is first TV soap to highlight deadly risks of anorexia

Published: 30 July 2007

They are two stunning teenage girls who should be arguing about their favourite bands, swapping clothes and discussing boys. Instead the pair are involved in a deadly game of competitive dieting that spirals into self-starvation. And by the end of the summer one of them will be dead.

For the first time a television soap, Hollyoaks, is taking on the subject of anorexia in its most extreme form. As the debate about size zero models rages, the Channel 4 show is to explore the consequences of the social pressure to lose weight.The series is likely to attract charges of exploitation and sensationalism to bolster its two million-strong audience.

Anorexia has been explored in the The Archers on Radio 4 and in BBC1's Australian soap Neighbours, though never before presented as a fatal illness. But the producers of the Chester-based series insist that raising awareness of the dangers is crucial to protect young people from a condition with the highest death rate of any mental illness.

One in five people diagnosed with anorexia dies from starvation or by suicide, according to Beat, formerly the Eating Disorders Association, which has advised Hollyoaks on its story. A disturbing feature of the condition is the rivalry that can develop between "anorexia buddies", who vie with each other to starve themselves to the point where their lives are in danger, the theme explored graphically in the series.

Anorexia usually begins in adolescence affecting 1 to 2 per cent of teenagers and university students, though it can occur at any age. It is defined as a bodyweight at least 15 per cent below that expected for the individual's height and weight.

At the centre of the Hollyoaks story is one of the show's most popular characters, the vivacious Hannah Ashworth, played by Emma Rigby. She forms a friendship with a model, Melissa, played by Carla Chase, who is suffering from anorexia.

Melissa recognises in Hannah someone who is going through a vulnerable phase with family problems whom she can control and manipulate. She encourages her to lose weight and shows her how to go about it.

They become classic anorexia buddies who develop a growing obsession with avoiding food while keeping friends and family in the dark. In the process Hannah metamorphoses into a withdrawn, deceitful girl who flies into sudden rages with her friends.

Both girls spend two hours in make-up before each shoot to accentuate bruised eyes and parchment skin, and to highlight the veins on the backs of their hands, which is a tell-tale sign of the condition.

Emma, 17, said: "My skin has a blue tinge to it, almost corpse-like. I have red and blue grease around my eyes to make them look tired and scars built up on my face from spots. I look really horrific." Playing Hannah's descent into anorexia had been her toughest challenge since arriving in the series two years ago, she said. But having known friends with the eating disorder, she was delighted to be involved because of the devastation the illness can cause.

"The magazines show the glossy side of size zero models but this shows the unglossy side, the reality of what being ultra-thin can lead to," she said.

Bryan Kirkwood, the producer, said the show was wary of giving a how-to guide to vulnerable viewers. "But we are telling a tough story and showing the consequences in every episode. I defy anyone to say we are glamorising itin the series," he said.

A questionnaire published on the Hollyoaks website had attracted more than 1,000 responses, he said. "If a single viewer gets help as a result of this storyline, it will have been worthwhile," he added.

Soap firsts

* Melanie Harper became soap's first regular black character when she arrived in 1970 as the adopted daughter of the Crossroads motel owner Meg.

* In 1972 Meg's son Sandy became soap's first paraplegic after a car accident left him in a wheelchair.

* The Brookside siblings Georgia and Nat sparked controversy when their 1996 affair made them the first case of soap incest.

* Hayley Patterson arrived on Coronation Street in 1998 as soap's first transsexual. In 1999 the one-time Harold became engaged to the Street's Roy Cropper.

* Mark Fowler of EastEnders became the first regular HIV-positive character following the death in 1991 of his wife Gill from an Aids-related illness.

* In 1993, Brookside's Beth Jordache and Margaret Clemence, left, shared television's first pre-watershed lesbian kiss.

[Sylph]

Corrie producer's fury over gun plot claims

Tuesday, September 11 2007, 15:00 BST

By Kris Green, Soaps Editor

Coronation Street producer Steve Frost today slammed a Sunday newspaper report suggesting that troubled teen David Platt (Jack P. Shepherd) is to become involved in a firearms massacre storyline.

It was reported in the Star on Sunday that anti-firearm campaigners were furious with the "sick plot" following the tragic murder of Liverpool schoolboy Rhys Jones.

However, the suggested plotline – branded as "filth" and "absolute madness" – will not, nor was it ever intended to, play out on screen.

Mothers Against Murder and Aggression claimed that the Weatherfield soap would be "almost as bad as the killers themselves" if the rumours proved to be true, while anti-gun campaigner Linda Mitchell suggested that the alleged plot beggared belief.

In today's rebuttal, Steve Frost told DS: "The Star on Sunday's report that Coronation Street is planning to run a story in which 'David Platt tries to massacre his family with a gun' and that scriptwriters have 'studied mass murder cases involving 'family annihilators' is wholly untrue."

He continued: "David will be seen shooting cans with a low-powered air-rifle but there has never been any intention that he uses the gun in a threatening or irresponsible manner. David is a much-loved and important long-term character and there would be no sense in turning him into a murderer and hence foreshortening his life in the show.

"False reporting such as this misleads viewers and damages and defames the programme. The producers and writing team take their responsibilities to the viewers extremely seriously and always handle stories sensitively and suitably for the time slot."

He added: "The story suggested by the Star on Sunday would never have been considered suitable. What is, in fact, an intricate and on-going story of damaged filial relationships has been misrepresented and sensationalised in the Star's report."

[Sylph]

Another Great Win For Home And Away Writers

For the second year running Sam Meikle has won the coveted 2007 AWGIE award for writing an episode in a television serial. This year there were two entries from Home And Away and one from Neighbours. The winning entry was the script for episode 4212, which dealt with the aftermath of Jack and Martha's explosive wedding.

BttB extends many congratulations to Sam on a well deserved win.

SAM MEIKLE

Master of Arts

Scriptwriting

Sam enjoyed a background in acting before beginning at the AFTRS in 1999. Since being at the School he has written across film, television and documentary, also venturing into directing with The Money Shot and Melancholy. While completing his Masters during 2000 he also participated in the NIDA Playwrights' Studio, culminating in his first play Rain being invited to the Student Lab of the 2001 Australian National Playwrights' Conference. Also 2000, he wrote and co-directed Wandering Spirits, a documentary screened on Channel 7 in September. He looks forward to a continuing broad diversity of work with the fantastic collaborators he has had the privilege of working with in his time at the school.

Nominated writers for television serial

Cop Ya, Neighbours (Episode 5175) by David Hannam

Home and Away (Episode 4227) by Fiona Kelly

Home and Away (Episode 4212) by Sam Meikle

He won last year for episode no. 4121 (look at the numbers of episodes, interesting!).

[JamesF]

Sam Meikle's win for 2006 was very well deserved. I don't watch H&A regularly but the episode in question surrounding Flynn's passing away from cancer was one of the most gut wrenching soap death episodes I've seen. There's one scene in particular which made me well up when Sally was staring into the ocean and her friends arrived on the beach to support her carrying candles. It could have been cheesy but it was very well handled.

The 2007 win however is pretty much apropos of nothing. The script wasn't bad per se but the story it was involved in was stupid and ill conceived and the same can be said for Fiona Kelly's which was part of the dumb Lost rip off.

David Hannam's episode for Neighbours wasn't perfectly executed but the script was sound and probably the more deserving winner of the bunch.

[KSlater]

I think that is what Phil said about Stella's nails. The other line, I haven't a clue. My nickname for Phil is "mumbles."

I watched the next omnibus --- loved it. Phil's reaction to everything that happened with Stella and Ben -- outstanding. The arrival of Ronnie and Roxie -- I'm hoping they are going to be a good addition to the show. I already like them--they fit. And I also think Jay's father will be a good addition.

Do you know if Bert is gone permanently? I was surprised that he left.

And thanks for the articles on Hollyoaks, Corrie and Home and Away. Interesting reading.

[JamesF]

Bert's gone permanently and I'm glad of it. I think it works better with the new guy - he seems to fit into the canvas a little more easily. You should enjoy the next few weeks. As I said before, the episode after Stella's death is when everything suddenly clicked into place for me.

[KSlater]

Thanks for the info James. I'm glad Bert is gone too. He grated on my nerves from day one. He only became tolerable when his grandson, who I think is very good, entered the picture. I'm looking forward to seeing the new episodes.

[Sylph]

Are there any respected soap columnists in the UK?

P. S. I didn't know Darran Little was writing for Hollyoaks!! Was he fired from Coronation Street?