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      • Trusted Partner
        The Arts
        December 2012

        A sense of place

        Regional British television drama, 1956–82

        by Lez Cooke

        This pioneering study examines regional British television drama from its beginnings on the BBC and ITV in the 1950s to the arrival of Channel Four in 1982. It discusses the ways in which regionalism, regional culture and regional identity have been defined, outlines the history of regional broadcasting in the UK, and includes two detailed case studies - of Granada Television and BBC English Regions Drama - representing contrasting examples of regional television drama during what is often described as the 'golden age' of British television. The conclusion brings the study up to date by discussing recent developments in regional drama production, and by considering future possibilities. Written in a scholarly but accessible style, the book uncovers a forgotten history of British television drama that will be of interest to lecturers and students of media and cultural studies, as well as the general reader with an interest in the history of British television. ;

      • Trusted Partner
        Television
        August 2002

        Adaptation revisited

        Television and the classic novel

        by Sarah Cardwell

        Offers a critical reappraisal of a prolific and popular genre, as well as bringing new material into the broader field of Television Studies. Surveys the traditional discourses about adaptation, unearthing the unspoken assumptions and common misconceptions that underlie them and explores the problems inherent in previous approaches, developing an original perspective that considers the particularly televisual nature of this genre. Examines four major British serials: 'Brideshead Revisited', 'Pride and Prejudice', 'Moll Flanders', and 'The Tenant of Wildfell Hall' revealing the genre's importance in constituting and moderating our understanding of the past and of television itself. The first sustained and coherent book on the subject in almost a decade.

      • Trusted Partner
        The Arts
        November 2007

        Alan Bennett

        by Kara McKechnie, Jonathan Bignell, Sarah Cardwell, Steven Peacock

        Alan Bennett is one of the UK's most well-known and successful writers. His oeuvre is one where populist art forms and intellectually complex arguments co-exist seamlessly, allowing the work to appeal to a wide audience. Bennett's familiar voice combines both an appreciation for the past with a critical assessment of contemporary Britain, often through relentlessly detailed observation of himself and of others. Bennett has acted, written, directed, presented or edited in almost every conceivable dramatic medium, including stage, television, radio, film and print media. This book is the first to focus on his often neglected work for television, from the mid-1960s right through to the present. It encompasses formats such as the single play (the rarely seen 1970s collaborations with Stephen Frears and Lindsay Anderson), the two Talking Heads series, perceived as a reinvention of the television monologue, and his autobiographical documentaries. While providing a context of television drama in which Bennett's output is embedded, this study also provides compact overviews of his work in other media. The book is intended for those interested in Alan Bennett, his many voices and the history of television drama. ;

      • Trusted Partner
        The Arts
        November 2007

        Alan Bennett

        by Kara McKechnie, Jonathan Bignell, Sarah Cardwell, Steven Peacock

        Alan Bennett is one of the UK's most well-known and successful writers. His oeuvre is one where populist art forms and intellectually complex arguments co-exist seamlessly, allowing the work to appeal to a wide audience. Bennett's familiar voice combines both an appreciation for the past with a critical assessment of contemporary Britain, often through relentlessly detailed observation of himself and of others. Bennett has acted, written, directed, presented or edited in almost every conceivable dramatic medium, including stage, television, radio, film and print media. This book is the first to focus on his often neglected work for television, from the mid-1960s right through to the present. It encompasses formats such as the single play (the rarely seen 1970s collaborations with Stephen Frears and Lindsay Anderson), the two Talking Heads series, perceived as a reinvention of the television monologue, and his autobiographical documentaries. While providing a context of television drama in which Bennett's output is embedded, this study also provides compact overviews of his work in other media. The book is intended for those interested in Alan Bennett, his many voices and the history of television drama. ;

      • Trusted Partner
        Television
        November 2015

        Entertaining television

        The BBC and popular television culture in the 1950s

        by Su Holmes

        Entertaining television challenges the idea that the BBC in the 1950s was elitist and 'staid', upholding Reithian values in a paternalistic, even patronising way. By focusing on a number of (often controversial) programme case studies - such as the soap opera, the quiz/ game show, the 'problem' show and programmes dealing with celebrity culture - Su Holmes demonstrates how BBC television surprisingly explored popular interests and desires. She also uncovers a number of remarkable connections with programmes and topics at the forefront of television today, ranging from talk shows, 'Reality TV', even to our contemporary obsession with celebrity. The book is iconclastic, percipient and grounded in archival research, and will be of use to anyone studying television history.

      • Trusted Partner
        Television
        November 2015

        Entertaining television

        The BBC and popular television culture in the 1950s

        by Su Holmes

        Entertaining television challenges the idea that the BBC in the 1950s was elitist and 'staid', upholding Reithian values in a paternalistic, even patronising way. By focusing on a number of (often controversial) programme case studies - such as the soap opera, the quiz/ game show, the 'problem' show and programmes dealing with celebrity culture - Su Holmes demonstrates how BBC television surprisingly explored popular interests and desires. She also uncovers a number of remarkable connections with programmes and topics at the forefront of television today, ranging from talk shows, 'Reality TV', even to our contemporary obsession with celebrity. The book is iconclastic, percipient and grounded in archival research, and will be of use to anyone studying television history.

      • Trusted Partner
        Television
        November 2015

        Cult british TV comedy

        From Reeves and Mortimer to Psychoville

        by Leon Hunt

        This book is the first sustained critical analysis of Cult British TV comedy from 1990 to the present day. The book examines 'post-alternative' comedy as both 'cult' and 'quality' TV, aimed mostly at niche audiences and often possessing a subcultural aura (comedy was famously declared 'the new 'rock'n'roll' in the early '90s). It includes case studies of Vic Reeves and Bob Mortimer and the sitcom writer Graham Linehan. It examines developments in sketch shows and the emergence of 'dark' and 'cringe' comedy, and considers the politics of 'offence' during a period in which Brass Eye, 'Sachsgate' and Frankie Boyle provoked different kinds of media outrage. Programmes discussed include Vic Reeves Big Night Out, Peep Show, Father Ted, The Mighty Boosh, The Fast Show and Psychoville. Cult British TV Comedy will be of interest to both students and fans of modern TV comedy.

      • Trusted Partner
        Television
        November 2015

        Cult british TV comedy

        From Reeves and Mortimer to Psychoville

        by Leon Hunt

        This book is the first sustained critical analysis of Cult British TV comedy from 1990 to the present day. The book examines 'post-alternative' comedy as both 'cult' and 'quality' TV, aimed mostly at niche audiences and often possessing a subcultural aura (comedy was famously declared 'the new 'rock'n'roll' in the early '90s). It includes case studies of Vic Reeves and Bob Mortimer and the sitcom writer Graham Linehan. It examines developments in sketch shows and the emergence of 'dark' and 'cringe' comedy, and considers the politics of 'offence' during a period in which Brass Eye, 'Sachsgate' and Frankie Boyle provoked different kinds of media outrage. Programmes discussed include Vic Reeves Big Night Out, Peep Show, Father Ted, The Mighty Boosh, The Fast Show and Psychoville. Cult British TV Comedy will be of interest to both students and fans of modern TV comedy.

      • Trusted Partner
        Television
        September 2015

        A loss of innocence?

        Television and Irish society, 1960–72

        by Robert J. Savage

        This book explores the evolution of Ireland's national television service during its first tumultuous decade, addressing how the medium helped undermine the conservative political, cultural and social consensus that dominated Ireland into the 1960s. It also traces the development of the BBC and ITA in Northern Ireland, considering how television helped undermine a state that had long governed without consensus. Using a wide array of new archival sources and extensive interviews Savage illustrates how an increasingly confident television service upset political, religious and cultural elites who were profoundly uncomfortable with the changes taking place around them. Savage argues that during this period television was not a passive actor, but an active agent often times aggressively testing the limits of the medium and the patience of governments. Television helped facilitate a process of modernisation that slowly transformed Irish society during the 1960s. This book will be essential for those interested in contemporary Irish political and cultural history and readers interested in media history, and cultural studies.

      • Trusted Partner
        Television
        September 2013

        Jimmy McGovern

        by Steve Blandford

        This, the first book length study of one of Britain's leading television writers, Jimmy McGovern, links his work to key changes in British television over the last thirty years. McGovern's versatility has meant that his work ranges from soap opera to crime series, studio based single drama to art house features for theatrical release. The book therefore acts partly as a survey of the way that drama for the small screen has mutated and changed over a key period in its history. Steve Blandford's percipient and readable book extensively examines some of McGovern's most influential work, including Brookside, Cracker, The Lakes, Hillsborough and The Street.

      • Trusted Partner
        Television
        June 2013

        Jimmy McGovern

        by Steve Blandford

        This, the first book length study of one of Britain's leading television writers, Jimmy McGovern, links his work to key changes in British television over the last thirty years. McGovern's versatility has meant that his work ranges from soap opera to crime series, studio based single drama to art house features for theatrical release. The book therefore acts partly as a survey of the way that drama for the small screen has mutated and changed over a key period in its history. Steve Blandford's percipient and readable book extensively examines some of McGovern's most influential work, including Brookside, Cracker, The Lakes, Hillsborough and The Street.

      • Trusted Partner
        Television
        November 2007

        Time and Relative Dissertations in Space

        Critical Perspectives on Doctor Who

        by Edited by David Butler

        Time and relative dissertations in space takes the reader on a rich and varied study of one of the greatest television programmes of all time: Doctor Who. This book is the first study of Doctor Who to explore the Doctor's adventures in all their manifestations: on television, audio, in print and beyond. Although focusing on the original series (1963-89), the collection recognises that Doctor Who is a cultural phenomenon that has been 'told' in many ways through a myriad of texts. Combining essays from academics as well as practitioners who have contributed to the ongoing narrative of Doctor Who, the collection encourages debate with contrasting opinions on the strengths (and weaknesses) of the programme, offering a multi-perspective view of Doctor Who and the reasons for its endurance.

      • Trusted Partner
        The Arts
        August 2005

        Popular television drama

        Critical perspectives

        by Jonathan Bignell, Stephen Lacey, Susan Williams

        'Popular television drama: critical perspectives' is a collection of essays examining landmark programmes of the last forty years, from 'Doctor Who' to 'The Office', and from 'The Demon Headmaster' to 'Queer As Folk'. Contributions from prominent academics focus on the full range of popular genres, from sitcoms to science fiction, gothic horror and children's drama, and challenge received wisdom by reconsidering how British television drama can be analysed. Each section is preceded by an introduction in which the editors discuss how the essays address existing problems in the field and also suggest new directions for study. The book is split into three sections, addressing the enduring appeal of popular genres, the notion of 'quality' in television drama, and analysing a range of programmes past and present. Popular television drama: critical perspectives will be of interest to students and researchers in many academic disciplines that study television drama. Its breadth and focus on popular programmes will also appeal to those interested in the shows themselves. ;

      • Trusted Partner
        Television
        January 2015

        Popular television in authoritarian Europe

        by Peter Goddard

        This lively and ground-breaking collection brings together work on forms of popular television within the authoritarian regimes of Europe after World War Two. Ten chapters based on new and original research examine approaches to programming and individual programmes in Spain, Greece, Czechoslovakia, Romania, the USSR and the GDR at a time when they were governed as dictatorships or one-party states. Drawing on surviving archives, scripts and production records, contemporary publications, YouTube clips and interviews with producers and performers, its chapters recover examples of television programming history unknown beyond national borders and often preserved largely in the memories of the audiences who lived with them. The introduction examines how television can be considered 'popular' in circumstances where audience appeal is often secondary to the need for state control. Published in English, Popular television in authoritarian Europe represents a significant intervention in transnational television studies, making these histories available to scholars for the first time, encouraging comparative enquiry and extending the reach - intellectually and geographically - of European television history. There is a foreword by John Corner and an informative timeline of events in the history of television in the countries covered.

      • Trusted Partner
        The Arts
        November 2013

        Popular television in authoritarian Europe

        by Peter Goddard

        This lively and ground-breaking collection brings together work on forms of popular television within the authoritarian regimes of Europe after World War Two. Ten chapters based on new and original research examine approaches to programming and individual programmes in Spain, Greece, Czechoslovakia, Romania, the USSR and the GDR at a time when they were governed as dictatorships or one-party states. Drawing on surviving archives, scripts and production records, contemporary publications, YouTube clips and interviews with producers and performers, its chapters recover examples of television programming history unknown beyond national borders and often preserved largely in the memories of the audiences who lived with them. The introduction examines how television can be considered 'popular' in circumstances where audience appeal is often secondary to the need for state control. Published in English, Popular television in authoritarian Europe represents a significant intervention in transnational television studies, making these histories available to scholars for the first time, encouraging comparative enquiry and extending the reach - intellectually and geographically - of European television history. There is a foreword by John Corner and an informative timeline of events in the history of television in the countries covered. ;

      • Trusted Partner
        The Arts
        August 2013

        Entertaining television

        The BBC and popular television culture in the 1950s

        by Su Holmes

        Entertaining television challenges the idea that the BBC in the 1950s was elitist and 'staid', upholding Reithian values in a paternalistic, even patronising way. By focusing on a number of (often controversial) programme case studies - such as the soap opera, the quiz/game show, the 'problem' show and programmes dealing with celebrity culture - Su Holmes demonstrates how BBC television surprisingly explored popular interests and desires. She also uncovers a number of remarkable connections with programmes and topics at the forefront of television today, ranging from talk shows, 'Reality TV', even to our contemporary obsession with celebrity. The book is iconclastic, percipient and grounded in archival research, and will be of use to anyone studying television history. ;

      • Trusted Partner
        The Arts
        September 2008

        Entertaining television

        The BBC and popular television culture in the 1950s

        by Su Holmes

        Entertaining television challenges the idea that the BBC in the 1950s was elitist and 'staid', upholding Reithian values in a paternalistic, even patronising way. By focusing on a number of (often controversial) programme case studies - such as the soap opera, the quiz/ game show, the 'problem' show and programmes dealing with celebrity culture - Su Holmes demonstrates how BBC television surprisingly explored popular interests and desires. She also uncovers a number of remarkable connections with programmes and topics at the forefront of television today, ranging from talk shows, 'Reality TV', even to our contemporary obsession with celebrity. The book is iconclastic, percipient and grounded in archival research, and will be of use to anyone studying television history. ;

      • Trusted Partner
        The Arts
        October 2013

        Paul Abbott

        by Beth Johnson, Jonathan Bignell, Sarah Cardwell, Steven Peacock

        Creator of television series such as Shameless, Clocking Off, State of Play, Reckless, Linda Green and Children's Ward, Paul Abbott is a British 'showrunner' and writer whose name and reputation for edgy, intelligent, successful and socio-political programmes holds significant weight both in the contemporary television industry and with the public. This is the first book-length academic study of the television programmes created, written by, and/or executive-produced, by Abbott. It is also the first academic study to attempt to consider his complete oeuvre. Within a broadly chronological structure this book elucidates, decodes and evaluates key examples of Abbott's output, exhibiting a vital evaluation of Abbott's work over the past three decades and assessing his contribution to British television. Engaging with thematic and ideological notions of the personal, the autobiographical, the honest, the shameless, the pleasurable and the painful recourse of the specificity of 'ordinary life', the volume seeks to combine close textual analysis of Abbott's work with archival research and specially commissioned interviews with Abbott and other important industry practitioners. ;

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