Thursday, 20 December 2012

Settings: British Soap Operas

 Many British soap operas use common/public areas for their settings. Most sets used for soaps contain houses where the local characters reside and a communal area such as a pub. The use of these communal areas helps to create a multi-strand narrative as well as interlink characters and storyline of a single episode.  We see many times where a vast amount of characters within one episode, are all in one communal area.  A good example of this would be Eastenders where characters meet at the Queen Vic.

Another key reason for having these types of settings is in order to create a sense of realism. This is because they are places which we; the viewers can relate to, and is where we also go for family or friend gatherings.  Examples from British soaps of these types of settings include; Eastenders (Queen Victoria), Hollyoaks (Dog in the Pond), and Coronation Street (The Rovers Return). Below are images of these settings.

 Eastenders: The Queen Victoria

 Hollyoaks: The Dog in the Pond

 Coronation Street: The Rovers Return


Other settings within soaps usually include profession; an example may be a corner shop, salon, restaurant or a club. These also add to the realism of soaps, as they gives us more information on the characters and what they do for a living, which makes their personality and lifestyles more believable.

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