The "foreign soaps" topic

[dannigold]

British soap award nominations

Best Comedy Performance (Last year won by Gemma Merna, Hollyoaks)

Coronation Street: Katherine Kelly (Becky Granger)

Coronation Street: Maggie Jones (Blanche Hunt)

EastEnders: Cheryl Fergison (Heather Trott)

Emmerdale: Charlie Hardwick (Val Lambert)

Best Dramatic Performance (Last year won by Lacey Turner, EastEnders)

Coronation Street: Jack P. Shepherd (David Platt)

EastEnders: Jo Joyner (Tanya Branning)

Emmerdale: Charlotte Bellamy (Laurel Thomas)

Hollyoaks: Emma Rigby (Hannah Ashworth)

Spectacular Scene Of The Year (Last year won by the house collapse storyline in Emmerdale)

Doctors: George and Nick's car crash

EastEnders: The Landrover rolls into the lake

Hollyoaks: Claire drives her car off a cliff

Hollyoaks: Justin run over

Best Dramatic Performance From A Young Actor Or Actress (Last year won by Eden Taylor-Draper in Emmerdale)

Coronation Street: Brooke Vincent (Sophie Webster)

EastEnders: Jamie Borthwick (Jay Brown)

Emmerdale: Eden Taylor-Draper (Belle Dingle)

Hollyoaks: Ellis Hollins (Tom Cunningham)

Best Single Episode (Last year won by Shreds and Aftermath, Doctors)

Doctors: Tread Softly/Up Close and Personal

EastEnders: Christmas

Emmerdale: Daniel’s Death

Hollyoaks: The Revelation

Best Exit (Last year won by Bill Ward, Coronation Street)

EastEnders: Sophie Thompson (Stella Crawford)

Emmerdale: Peter Martin (Len Reynolds)

Hollyoaks: Guy Burnet (Craig Dean)

Hollyoaks: Gemma Bissix (Clare Cunningham)

Best Newcomer (Last year won by Kym Ryder, Coronation Street)

Coronation Street: Michelle Keegan (Tina McIntyre)

EastEnders: Stephen Lord (Jase Dyer)

EastEnders: Rita Simons (Roxy Mitchell)

Hollyoaks: Nico Mirallegro (Barry ‘Newt’ Newton)

Best On-Screen Partnership (Last year won by Stirling Gallacher and Sean Gleeson, Doctors)

Coronation Street: David Neilson (Roy Cropper) & Katherine Kelly (Becky Granger )

EastEnders: Cheryl Fergison (Heather Trott) & Linda Henry (Shirley Carter)

EastEnders: Samantha Janus (Ronnie Mitchell) & Rita Simons (Roxy Mitchell)

Hollyoaks: Matt Littler (Max Cunningham) & Darren Jon Jeffries (Sam OB O’Brien)

Best Storyline (Last year won by Tracey’s revenge, Coronation Street)

Doctors: Nick in a wheelchair, George’s guilt

EastEnders: Max and Stacey’s affair

Hollyoaks: Hannah’s anorexia

Hollyoaks: John Paul and Craig’s affair

To be announced on the night:

Lifetime Achievement Award

Special Achievement Award

Best Soap

[Huntress]

Gute Zeiten, Schlechte Zeiten celebrates 4000 episodes on June 2nd, 2008

Jessica Ginkel as Caro, Anne Menden as Emily, Susan Sideropoulos as Verena, Josephine Schmidt as Paula

Torn between her feelings for her husband John (Felix von Jascheroff) and her friend Franzi (Jasmin Weber), Paula (Josephine Schmidt) finally realizes that she loves Franzi. Meanwhile Franzi and Emily (Anne Menden) have become so much addicted to cocaine that they'd do anything to earn money. While Emily is ready to sell her body, Franzi breaks into the "Fasan" restaurant in order to steal money. Accidentally she sets the place on fire and dies. Afterwards Paula is haunted by Franzi's ghost. At Franzi's funeral Paula has a nervous breakdown and John realizes that their marriage is over. The whole Gerner family - Jo (Wolfgang Bahro), Katrin (Ulrike Frank), Jasmin (Janina Uhse), Dominik (Raul Richter) and little Johanna (Finja Kielkowski) - can be rescued from the fire. However, Jasmin is still unsure if she can trust Katrin's motives. Sandra (Maike von Bremen) and Marc (Arne Stephan) finally decide to leave Berlin.

[Drew]

One of my torrent sites posted torrents for the first week's 6 episodes. So far I'm at episode 3, its definitely interesting and has potential. The production values are stunning compared to the likes of Home and Away or Neighbours. I also recognized Charlotte Gregg, who played Charity on H&A back in 2006 - a member of Mumma Rose's cult that tried to steal Tasha's baby.

[JamesF]

I have to admit I watched the whole first week of Out of the Blue and I'm hooked. It's my new guilty pleasure. It's nice to have an Aussie soap that doesn't give much time to teenage stories and they've done a good job of writing a convincing friendship group.

Loads of ex-Neighbours and Home and Away writers are on staff which is no surprise. Maggie Dence (Olive) was a Neighbours icon in the early 90s and Diane Craig (Deborah) has been in various soaps too.

[Matt P.]

I know I'm a month behind but I'm so happy to see Bianca and Ricky return. They are such a great couple and I think the story plot is fantastic.

[Sylph]

So this Out Of The Blue soap, it's shot in Australia, but it's BBC's property?

[JamesF]

Yep. A very strange and perhaps slightly ill advised arrangement. It's owned and funded by the BBC through an Australian production company I believe. Technically I suppose it qualifies as a British production.

Ratings have halved in the first two weeks and it's been relegated to play out the remaining episodes on BBC 2. I'm not quite sure what they expected for ratings given the lack of promotion but hey. It's been replaced by more repeats of Diagnosis Murder.

[Sylph]

Oh, I see. I've seen the news about the relegation. In your opinion, has it deteriorated in those two weeks or are the reasons for the ratings dive to be found elsewhere?

[JamesF]

Oh no I don't think the quality has deteriorated. It's never misrepresented itself as anything other than a fun little bit of sunny escapism and it certainly lives up to the tag. The scripts are okay, the acting is fine and the characters are generally likeable.

The audience just doesn't exist for a purely daytime soap with no repeat (Doctors being an exception largely based on its semi-episodic format and the fact that it rode to success on Neighbours' coat-tails for its first 7 years). Coupled with the fact that OOTB was scheduled against the lunchtime showing of Home and Away on Five and it really didn't stand much of a chance.

[Drew]

ah, then i guess i'm not missing anything then with OOTB. Torrentleech isnt posting torrents of new eps, and cause uknova seems to feel its an australian soap despite being paid for and produced for the BBC, they're not capping it for download.

[Ben]

I was under the impression that it was a co-production between the BBC and an Australian company for Network Ten. Out of the Blue is airing on Ten in the summer-ish. Maybe I'm wrong...

As for the ratings, I have no idea what they are thinking basing their decisions solely on the first week. Don't they realize that it takes time to build a soap audience, especially one solely for daytime? It's a good little show, with a sold mystery, and several other plots to back it up. Plus, this is one show that knows the meaning of the word 'cliffhanger'. And it must be the first soap (outside US soaps) to feature a lesbian couple, in a straight-esque way. Does that make sense?

[JamesF]

Oh yeah I like the representation of the lesbian couple and the cliffhangers are not only genuine but also borne from the action. I'm astonished the BBC (of all people) have just tossed it aside. I can't believe they mishandled the show so badly given the money they put into it. Not to mention the backlash with regards to the locally produced soap ideas they turned down in favour of OOTB.

The situation as I'm aware of it is that Network Ten just bought the show. They don't have anything to do with the production or ownership. So despite not putting any money into it, they'd be able to use it to fill quota points for local programming because it was filmed on Australian soil with an Australian cast and crew. Apparently now the BBC's relegated it and obviously won't order any more episodes, Ten most likely won't even bother to show it. I could be wrong but that's my understanding.

[Sylph]

Re. the Doctors – is Dr Greg Robinson still around and was that character gay? I can't remember.

As for OOTB, BBC definitely pulled the plug on that one? After 130 episodes, it's kaputt?

[JamesF]

Not officially but they won't shell out money to keep a soap running on BBC 2. The only reason it's moved to BBC 2 instead of being dumped is the fact that they've paid for the 130. Real shame. Funnily enough about 10 years ago they tried the same stunt (though it was an Aussie production) with a new soap called Breakers. Similar setting, similar timeslot. Within weeks it was relegated to a digital channel. No lessons learned.

Re: Doctors, I can't stomach it so I couldn't tell you. I know until a couple of years ago there was a regular gay character. A doctor with dark, slightly wild hair.

[Sylph]

That's the one! And yes, the soap was awful... I only watched 2 or 3 episodes and just couldn't continue watching it any longer...