Soap operas are cultural punctuation points. Big plot lines unite colleagues, neighbours and distant family members in shared conversation starters. Den and Angie’s Christmas divorce? Brookside’s before-the-watershed lesbian kiss? Tony Blair’s support for the wrongly-imprisoned Deirdre Barlow? I was there for it, along with millions of others.
I even got caught up in Rob’s coercive control of Helen over in Ambridge. But not any more. When drama gave way to a continual stream of awareness-raising, I got bored. And if ratings are to be believed, I’m not alone.
Now soap’s directors and script editors are fighting back: unfortunately with a plan to ratchet up the political messaging still further. They are working together to highlight the issue of climate change. Over the course of this week, carefully co-ordinated plot-lines will see characters from Casualty, Coronation Street, Doctors, EastEnders, Emmerdale, Holby City and Hollyoaks all discussing the environment. This on-screen event kicks off tonight and is designed to coincide with the COP26 conference in Glasgow.
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