A soap opera, daytime drama, or soap for short, is typically a long-running radio or television serial, frequently characterized by melodrama, ensemble casts, and sentimentality. The term "soap opera" originated from radio dramas originally being sponsored by soap manufacturers. The term was preceded by "horse opera", a derogatory term for low-budget Westerns.
My Family is a British sitcom created and initially co-written by Fred Barron, which was produced by DLT Entertainment and Rude Boy Productions, and broadcast by BBC One for eleven series between 2000 and 2011, with Christmas specials broadcast from 2002 onwards. My Family was voted 24th in the BBC's "Britain's Best Sitcom" in 2004 and was the most watched sitcom in the United Kingdom in 2008. As of 2011, it is one of only twelve British sitcoms to pass the 100-episode mark. In April 2020, BBC One began airing the series from the first episode in an 8 pm slot on Friday nights; along with this all 11 series were made available on BBC iPlayer.
Cosby is an American television sitcom that aired on CBS from September 16, 1996, to April 28, 2000. The program starred Bill Cosby and Phylicia Rashad, who had previously worked together in the NBC sitcom The Cosby Show (1984–1992). Madeline Kahn portrayed their neighborly friend, Pauline, until her death in 1999. The show was adapted from the British sitcom One Foot in the Grave.
Broadcast programming is the practice of organizing or ordering (scheduling) of broadcast media shows, typically the radio and the television, in a daily, weekly, monthly, quarterly, or season-long schedule.
The Paul O'Grady Show is a British comedy chat show presented by comedian Paul O'Grady, first shown on 11 October 2004. The programme is a teatime chat show consisting of a mixture of celebrity guests, comic stunts, musical performances, and occasionally viewer competitions.
A graveyard slot is a time period in which a television audience is very small compared to other times of the day, and therefore broadcast programming is considered far less important. Graveyard slots usually displayed in the early morning hours of each day, when most people are asleep.
The Graham Norton Show is a British comedy talk show presented by Graham Norton. It was initially broadcast on BBC Two, from 22 February 2007, before moving to BBC One in October 2009. It currently airs on Friday evenings, with Norton succeeding Friday Night with Jonathan Ross in BBC One's prestigious late-Friday-evening slot in 2010.
The Inbetweeners is a British coming-of-age television teen sitcom, which originally aired on E4 from 2008 to 2010 and was created and written by Damon Beesley and Iain Morris. The series follows the misadventures of suburban teenager William McKenzie and his friends Simon Cooper, Neil Sutherland and Jay Cartwright at the fictional Rudge Park Comprehensive. The programme involves situations of school life, uncaring school staff, friendship, male bonding, lad culture and adolescent sexuality. Despite receiving an initially lukewarm reception, it has been described as a classic and amongst the most successful British sitcoms of the 21st century.
The first series of BBC family sitcom My Family originally aired between 19 September and 7 November 2000. The first episode of the series, and the pilot episode, is entitled "The Serpent's Tooth". All eight episodes in the first series are thirty minutes long. The first episode introduces the five main characters that regularly appear in the series: Robert Lindsay, who plays Ben, Zoë Wanamaker, who plays Susan, Kris Marshall, who plays Nick, Daniela Denby-Ashe, who plays Janey, and Gabriel Thomson, who plays Michael. A further regular member of the cast is Brigitte, played by Daisy Donovan, who appears in nearly every episode of the series. The series was produced by Rude Boy Productions, a company that produces comedies created by Fred Barron. The series was filmed at Pinewood Studios in Buckinghamshire, with a live studio audience.
The second series of the BBC family sitcom My Family originally aired between 31 August and 30 November 2001. The second series was commissioned after good ratings from the first series. The opening episode, "All Roads Lead To Ramon", re-introduces the five main characters from the first series, with the addition of Brian, played by Kevin Bishop, who appeared in nearly every episode in the series. All thirteen episodes in series two are thirty minutes in length. The series was produced by Rude Boy Productions, a company that produces comedies created by Fred Barron. The series was filmed at Pinewood Studios in London, in front of a live audience.
A television show, TV program, or simply a TV show, is the general reference to any content produced for viewing on a television set that is broadcast via over-the-air, satellite, or cable. This includes content made by television broadcasters and content made for broadcasting by film production companies. It excludes breaking news, advertisements, or trailers that are typically placed between shows. Television shows are most often scheduled for broadcast well ahead of time and appear on electronic guides or other TV listings, but streaming services often make them available for viewing anytime. The content in a television show is produced by one of two production methodologies: live taped shows such as variety and news magazine shows shot on a television studio stage or sporting events The other production model includes animation and a variety of film productions ranging from movies to series. Shows not produced on a television studio stage are usually contracted or licensed to be made by appropriate production companies.
The third series of the BBC family sitcom My Family originally aired between 6 September 2002 and 25 December 2002. The series was commissioned following consistently high ratings for the second series. The opening episode of the series, "Absent Vixen, Cheeky Monkey", re-introduces the five main characters, but also writes out the character of Janey, who plays only a recurring role in this series. In Episode 3, Abi Harper, played by Siobhan Hayes, is introduced to replace Janey. All fourteen episodes in the third series are thirty minutes in length, including the Christmas special. The series was once again produced by Rude Boy Productions, a company that produces comedies created by Fred Barron. The series was filmed at Pinewood Studios in London, in front of a live audience.
The fourth series of the BBC family sitcom My Family originally aired between 21 March 2003 and 25 December 2003. The series was commissioned following consistently high ratings from the third series. The opening episode of the series, "Fitting Punishment", re-introduces five of the main characters, with the exception of Janey, played by Daniela Denby-Ashe. The episode also introduces a further main character into the fold – Roger Bailey, played by Keiron Self. All fourteen episodes in the fourth series are thirty minutes in length, including the Christmas special. The series was once again produced by Rude Boy Productions, a company that produces comedies created by Fred Barron. The series was filmed at Pinewood Studios in London, in front of a live audience.
The fifth series of the BBC family sitcom My Family originally aired between 19 March 2004 and 25 December 2005. The series was commissioned following consistently high ratings for the fourth series. The opening episode of the series, "The Mummy Returns", re-introduces the six main characters from the previous series, as well as Janey, played by Daniela Denby-Ashe, who had not been seen on-screen since December 2002. The fifth series includes four specials: two-hour long Christmas specials, a 30-minute "best-of" special, and an exclusive 5-minute Comic Relief short. All thirteen regular episodes from the fifth series are thirty minutes in length. The series was once again produced by Rude Boy Productions, a company that produces comedies created by Fred Barron. The series was filmed at Pinewood Studios in London, in front of a live audience.
The sixth series of the BBC family sitcom My Family originally aired between 10 March 2006 and 25 December 2006. The series was commissioned following consistently high ratings from the previous series. The opening episode, "Bliss For Idiots", re-introduces the six main characters, with the addition of Alfie Butts, played by Rhodri Meilir. All episodes from the sixth series are thirty minutes long, excluding The series was once again produced by Rude Boy Productions, a company that produces comedies created by Fred Barron. The series was filmed at Pinewood Studios in London, in front of a live audience.
The seventh series of the BBC family sitcom My Family was originally broadcast between 6 April 2007 and 26 December 2007. It was commissioned following consistently high ratings from the sixth series. The opening episode, "The Ego Has Landed", re-introduces the seven main characters. All episodes from the seventh series are thirty minutes in length, with the exception of the Christmas special. The series was once again produced by Rude Boy Productions, a company that produces comedies created by Fred Barron. The series was filmed at Pinewood Studios near London, in front of a live audience.
The eighth series of the BBC family sitcom My Family originally aired between 11 April 2008 and 24 December 2008. The series was commissioned following consistent ratings from the seventh series. The opening episode, "The Parent Trap", re-introduces the seven main characters. All episodes from the eighth series are thirty minutes long, excluding the Christmas special. The series was once again produced by Rude Boy Productions, a company that produces comedies created by Fred Barron. The series was filmed at Pinewood Studios in London, in front of a live audience.
The tenth series of the BBC family sitcom My Family originally aired between 9 July 2010, and 27 August 2010, with a Christmas special that went to air on 24 December 2010. The series was commissioned following consistent ratings from the previous series. The opening episode, "Wheelie Ben", re-introduces the six main characters, with the addition of regular appearances from Kenzo Harper, played by Tayler Marshall. However, the character of Roger Bailey only made an appearance in the series finale. All episodes from the tenth series are thirty minutes in length, with the exception of the Christmas Special. The series was once again produced by Rude Boy Productions, a company that produces comedies created by Fred Barron. Unlike previous series of the show, which were filmed on a yearly basis, both Series 10 and 11 were filmed back-to-back. For the first time in the show's history, two episodes of the series remained unaired for some time. At the time of release, the DVD of the series contained two episodes that had yet to be broadcast on television. On 17 June 2011, one of these two episodes were aired, and the remaining one aired on 22 July 2011. The series averaged 4.55 million per episode; however, they managed to get over 6.00 million viewers for the Christmas Special.
The eleventh and final series of the BBC sitcom My Family began airing on 1 July 2011, and concluded on 2 September 2011. The opening episode, "Labour Pains", re-introduces the six main characters. All episodes from the eleventh series are thirty minutes in length. The series was produced by Rude Boy Productions, a company that produces comedies created by Fred Barron. Unlike previous series of the show, which were filmed on a yearly basis, both Series 10 and 11 were filmed back-to-back. The series has been released on DVD on 15 August 2011, meaning the last three episodes of the series was released before they were broadcast on the television.
