This book explores the collaborative sitcoms of two of British television's most well-known comedy writers. Written over a period of twenty-five years, the four series 'Dad's Army', 'It Ain't Half Hot, Mum', 'Hi-de-Hi!' and 'You Rang M'Lord?' have endured as much-loved and often-repeated classics. The book explores the themes of Perry and Croft's writing in terms of their own biography, and as articulations of British cultural and televisual history. Focusing on issues central to the concept of identity in British culture, class, gender, sexuality and race and analysing individual episodes and scenes in the four series, 'Jimmy Perry and David Croft' evaluates the contributions made by these two writers to the genre of situation comedy, and locates the programmes in the immediate contexts of their production. Including new interview material from David Croft, this book will be invaluable to students and lecturers of television studies and cultural studies. -- .

This is the first in-depth study of the science fiction television devised and written by Terry Nation. Terry Nation was the inventor of the Daleks and wrote other serials for 'Doctor Who'; he also wrote the BBC's 1970s post-apocalyptic drama 'Survivors' and created the space adventure series 'Blake's 7'. Previously television science fiction in Britain has received little critical attention. This book fills that gap and places Nation's work in the context of its production. Using Terry Nation's science fiction work as a case study, the boundaries around the authorship and authority of the television writer are explored in detail. The authors make use of BBC's archival research and specially conducted interviews with television producers and other production staff, to discuss how the programmes that Terry Nation created and wrote were commissioned, produced and brought to the screen. The book makes an important contribution to the study of British television history and will be of interest to enthusiasts of Terry Nation's landmark drama series as well as students of Television Studies. -- .

Curly Watts is a TV icon - for twenty years appearing on millions of TV screens around the country in Coronation Street. Kevin Kennedy is one of the UK's most successful soap actors, although behind the scenes and high-profile appearances, he faced a painful personal battle. Kevin shares his experiences of alcoholism, rehab and IVF as well stories from the set and stars he worked with during some of the brightest, and darkest moments of his life, through to his music career and current roles. This brutally honest autobiography provides a rare glimpse into life behind the scenes, the power of addiction, and his battle with recovery.

This book challenges social science to address the most important social change since the industrial revolution: the mediated communication order. More of our everyday lives and social institutions reflect the compelling media logic that resonates through conversation, interaction, marketing, as well as social programs, issues and foreign policy. We are beyond the time when people take into account media matters; rather, media matters are now incorporated as a kind of social form in routine and extraordinary activities. This thesis was first laid out in 'Media Logic', co-authored with Robert P. Snow in 1979. Thirty-five years on, Altheide discusses his recent thinking about how media logic and mediation is a basic element in constructing social reality. From the internet to the NSA, he shows how media logic has transformed audiences into personal networks guided by social media. He argues that we have reached the media edge as social media have all but eviscerated the audience as a significant factor in the communication equation; mediated communication is increasingly about media performances and individual selection to promote identity.

HBO's Carnivale was a critically-acclaimed, elaborate period narrative set in Depression era America that set the stage for the current explosion of cinematic storytelling on television. Despite an ambitious and unusual storyline that spanned several seasons, remarkable production design and a stellar cast, the show was cancelled after only two seasons. No other television series has been so steeped in history, spirituality and occultism, and despite its early cancellation it retains a cult-like following. This collection of fresh essays explores the series through a diverse array of topics, from visual aesthetics to tarot symbolism to sexuality to the portrayal of deformity.

One of the most visible literary genres of contemporary popular culture, Fantasy is often condemned as escapist, unsophisticated and superficial. This collection of new essays puts such easy dismissals to the test by examining the ways in which Fantasy narratives present diverse, politically relevant discourses - gender, race, religion or consumerism - and thereby serve as indicators of their real-world contexts. In spite or rather because of their depiction of other worlds allegedly disconnected from our own, these texts are able to actualize political attitudes. Instead of categorizing Fantasy either as conservative or progressive, the essays suggest that its generic peculiarity allows the emergence of productive forms of oscillation between these extremes. Covered are Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings, George R.R. Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire sequence, J. K. Rowling's Harry Potter novels, the vampire TV series True Blood, and the dystopian computer game Fallout 3.

Start your engines - for the fun, the controversy, and the life lessons of RuPaul's Drag Race and its spinoff RuPaul's DragU. This collection of original essays by international scholars critically examines the shows' representation of drag within the contexts of the reality TV genre and LGBTQ issues. Contributors focus on the structure of the programs; the subversive nature of drag; the treatment of trans contestants, race, language, and its handling of LGBTQ political issues. Overall, this book provides a comprehensive interrogation of the shows' premise, their host, and the contestants through the first six seasons of RuPaul's Drag Race and the three seasons of DragU. This book is of interest to fans of the programs, as well as scholars and students in the fields of gender, LGBTQ, and trans studies.

Television Brandcasting examines U. S. television's utility as a medium for branded storytelling. It investigates the current and historical role that television content, promotion, and hybrids of the two have played in disseminating brand messaging and influencing consumer decision-making. Juxtaposing the current period of transition with that of the 1950s-1960s, Jennifer Gillan outlines how in each era new technologies unsettled entrenched business models, an emergent viewing platform threatened to undermine an established one, and content providers worried over the behavior of once-dependable audiences. The anxieties led to storytelling, promotion, and advertising experiments, including the Disneyland series, embedded rock music videos in Ozzie & Harriet, credit sequence brand integration, Modern Family's parent company promotion episodes, second screen initiatives, and social TV experiments. Offering contemporary and classic examples from the American Broadcasting Company, Disney Channel, ABC Family, and Showtime, alongside series such as Bewitched, Leave it to Beaver, Laverne & Shirley, and Pretty Little Liars, individual chapters focus on brandcasting at the level of the television series, network schedule, "Blu-ray/DVD/Digital" combo pack, the promotional short, the cause marketing campaign, and across social media. In this follow-up to her successful previous book, Television and New Media: Must-Click TV, Gillan provides vital insights into television's role in the expansion of a brand-centric U.S. culture.

What can depictions of psychotherapy on screen teach us about ourselves? In Eavesdropping, a selection of contributions from internationally-based film consultants, practicing psychotherapists and interdisciplinary scholars investigate the curious dynamics that occur when films and television programmes attempt to portray the psychotherapist, and the complexities of psychotherapy, for popular audiences. The book evaluates the potential mismatch between the onscreen psychotherapist, whose raison d'etre is to entertain and engage global audiences, and the professional, real-life counterpart, who becomes intimately involved with the dramas of their patients. While several contributors conclude that actual psychotherapy, and the way psychotherapists and their clients grapple with notions of fantasy and reality, would make a rather poor show, Eavesdropping demonstrates the importance of psychotherapy and psychotherapists on-screen in assisting us to wrestle with the discomfort - and humour - of our lives. Offering a unique insight into perceptions of psychotherapy, Eavesdropping will be essential and insightful reading for analytical psychologists, psychoanalysts, academics and students of depth psychology, film and television studies, media studies and literature, as well as filmmakers.

Since the "Automatic Binding Bricks" that LEGO produced in 1949, and the LEGO "System of Play" that began with the release of Town Plan No. 1 (1955), LEGO bricks have gone on to become a global phenomenon, and the favorite building toy of children, as well as many an AFOL (Adult Fan of LEGO). LEGO has also become a medium into which a wide number of media franchises, including "Star Wars," "Harry Potter," "Pirates of the Caribbean," "Batman," "Superman," "Lord of the Rings," and others, have adapted their characters, vehicles, props, and settings. The LEGO Group itself has become a multimedia empire, including LEGO books, movies, television shows, video games, board games, comic books, theme parks, magazines, and even MMORPGs.

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LEGO Studies: Examining the Building Blocks of a Transmedial Phenomenon "is the first collection to examine LEGO as both a medium into which other franchises can be adapted and a transmedial franchise of its own. Although each essay looks at a particular aspect of the LEGO phenomenon, topics such as adaptation, representation, paratexts, franchises, and interactivity intersect throughout these essays, proposing that the study of LEGO as a medium and a media empire is a rich vein barely touched upon in Media Studies.

Since the "Automatic Binding Bricks" that LEGO produced in 1949, and the LEGO "System of Play" that began with the release of Town Plan No. 1 (1955), LEGO bricks have gone on to become a global phenomenon, and the favorite building toy of children, as well as many an AFOL (Adult Fan of LEGO). LEGO has also become a medium into which a wide number of media franchises, including "Star Wars," "Harry Potter," "Pirates of the Caribbean," "Batman," "Superman," "Lord of the Rings," and others, have adapted their characters, vehicles, props, and settings. The LEGO Group itself has become a multimedia empire, including LEGO books, movies, television shows, video games, board games, comic books, theme parks, magazines, and even MMORPGs.

"

LEGO Studies: Examining the Building Blocks of a Transmedial Phenomenon "is the first collection to examine LEGO as both a medium into which other franchises can be adapted and a transmedial franchise of its own. Although each essay looks at a particular aspect of the LEGO phenomenon, topics such as adaptation, representation, paratexts, franchises, and interactivity intersect throughout these essays, proposing that the study of LEGO as a medium and a media empire is a rich vein barely touched upon in Media Studies.

This innovative collection investigates the ways in which television programs around the world have highlighted modernization and encouraged nation-building. It is an attempt to catalogue and better understand the contours of this phenomenon, which took place as television developed and expanded in different parts of the world between the 1950s and the 1990s. From popular science and adult education shows to news magazines and television plays, few themes so thoroughly penetrated the small screen for so many years as modernization, with television producers and state authorities using television programs to bolster modernization efforts. Contributors analyze the hallmarks of these media efforts: nation-building, consumerism and consumer culture, the education and integration of citizens, and the glorification of the nation's technological achievements.

Television directors remain an enigma to most students of the mass media; traditionally, their function has been little understood by scholars and the viewing public. In this book, John Ravage studies the role of the director in the producer-dominated medium of commercial television. Built around lengthy interviews with twelve of the leading directors of commercial programs-representing all the genres of "prime time"-the book analyzes the major issues facing television, its past, present, and portents for the future, and the audience that watches it.

This book presents a critical analysis of the images of China portrayed in British television documentaries between 1980 and 2000. The examination is contextualized within the profound transformations of the post-reform China and global political structures in the last two decades of the 20th century. Using an innovative analytical framework based on Vladimir Propp, the book focuses on how different images of China are constructed through an effective use of TV narrative strategies. In particular it details how various strands of (Western) modernity underpin major discourses about China. The book will be valuable to the understanding of how China was perceived in the West during one of the most dramatic moments in modern history.

The study of music in commercials is well-suited for exploring the persuasive impact that music has beyond the ability to entertain, edify, and purify its audience. This book focuses on music in commercials from an interpretive text analytical perspective, answering hitherto neglected questions: What characterizes music in commercials compared to other commercial music and other music on TV? How does music in commercials relate to music outside the universe of commercials? How and what can music in commercials signify? Author Nicolai Graakjaer sets a new benchmark for the international scholarly study of music on television and its pervading influence on consumer choice.

Since the early 2000s, zombies have increasingly swarmed the landscape of popular culture, with ever more diverse representations of the undead being imagined. A growing number of zombie narratives have introduced sexual themes, endowing the living dead with their own sexual identity. The unpleasant idea of the sexual zombie is itself provocative, triggering questions about the nature of desire, sex, sexuality, and the politics of our sexual behaviors. However, the notion of zombie sex has been largely unaddressed in scholarship. This collection addresses that unexamined aspect of zombiedom, with essays engaging a variety of media texts, including graphic novels, films, television, pornography, literature, and internet meme culture. The essayists are scholars from a variety of disciplines, including History, Theology, Film Studies, and Gender and Queer Studies. Covering The Walking Dead, Warm Bodies, and Bruce LaBruce's zombie-porn movies, this work investigates the cultural, political and philosophical issues raised by undead sex and zombie sexuality.

- A concise and engaging textbook for students offering an original perspective on a concept that is a site of much industry and scholarly debate. - Combining work on both political media and entertainment, with an emphasis on social media, this is ideal for a range of undergraduate courses, particularly those exploring media audiences, media industries, social media and society and political engagement. - Each chapter includes a brief introduction, a conclusion with key points, sub headings, and a broad range of international case studies that show how the points of the chapter can work in practice for media engagement analysis.

According to Joss Whedon, the creator of the short-lived series Firefly (2002), the cult show is about "nine people looking into the blackness of space and seeing nine different things." The chronicles of crewmembers on a scruffy space freighter, Firefly ran for only four months before its abrupt cancellation. In that brief time, however, it established a reputation as one of the best science-fiction programs of the new millennium: sharply written, superbly cast, and set on an exotic multicultural frontier unlike anything ever seen on the small screen. The show's large, enthusiastic fan following supported a series of comics and a theatrical film, Serenity (2005), that extended the story, deepened the characters, and revealed new wonders and dangers on the deep-space frontier. In Firefly Revisited: Essays on Joss Whedon's Classic Series, Michael Goodrum and Philip Smith present a collection that reflects on the program, the characters, and the post-cancellation film and comics that grew out of the show. The contributors to this volume offer fresh perspectives on familiar characters and blaze new trails into unexplored areas of the Firefly universe. Individual essays explore the series' place in the history of the space-Western subgenre, the political economy of the Alliance, and the uses of music and language in the series to immerse audiences in a multicultural future. These essays look at how the show offered viewers high adventure as well as engaged with a range of themes that still resonate today. As such, Firefly Revisited will intrigue the show's many fans, as well as Whedon scholars and anyone interested in the twenty-first-century renaissance of science-fiction television.

Paranoid visions explores the history of the spy and conspiracy genres on British television, from 1960s Cold War series through 1980s conspiracy dramas to contemporary 'war on terror' thrillers. It analyses classic dramas including Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, Edge of Darkness, A Very British Coup and Spooks. This book will be an invaluable resource for television scholars interested in a new perspective on the history of television drama and intelligence scholars seeking an analysis of the popular representation of espionage with a strong political focus, as well as fans of cult British television and general readers interested in British cultural history. -- .

This study traces the evolution of the various categories of factual entertainment programmes which have come to dominate our screens over the last decade. The book focuses on issues such as the changes in the braodcasting environment which have given rise to such programmes, the relationshp they have to other popular TV genres and the huge appeal that shows such as Big Brother have for contemporary audiences. The book also seeks to measure the cultural significance of these new formats. Do they reflet a more general cultural malaise or should we measure their popularity more in terms of the changing expectations which modern audiences bring to TV entertainment? factual/documentary formats and assesses the institutional factors which have promoted their growth. Later chapters focuse on the inexorable rise of the docu-soap and reality game-docs. lucid, accessible style, exploring an important phenomenon in recent broadcasting history. It should be of relevance to all television and media studies students, both at undergraduate and sixth-form level.

Advances in audiovisual technology, most notably the advent of the popular usage of digital technology in the last few years, have altered the face of popular television. Thanks to cable, satellite and now digital technology, television broadcasts can reach an international audience. The reaction from cultural critics has been mixed. As the debate concerning the effects of new telecommunications and audiovisual technology continues unabated, this book examines the underlying hypothesis that collective allegiances are moving away from the national paradigm towards the global/local model and provides a balanced appraisal of the depiction of a select number of group identities on television in Britain and France.

After an historical survey of "A Midsummer Night's Dream" from Shakespeare's time through to the 19th century, Jay Halio focuses primarily on 20th century productions and adaptations, for film and television as well as for the stage. Chapters are devoted to productions by Max Reinhardt, Peter Hall, Robert Lepage, and especially to Peter Brook's landmark production in 1970 and the reactions to it. Using a wealth of personal experience, as well as original promptbooks and critical reviews, Halio shows how differently but still very effectively the play may be staged, as the wide variety of plays he records. This second, enlarged edition contains three new chapters on Adrian Noble's RSC production and film, Michael Hoffman's film, and the "Dream "in China. Written in clear, jargon-free language, this is the only book so far in print that offers an extended study of major 20th-century productions of the "Dream "in their historical context.

Gather your best girlfriends and celebrate Galentine's Day with this delightful entertaining guide inspired by Parks and Recreation! Join America's most upbeat public servant, Leslie Knope, in the year's best tradition-ladies celebrating ladies! Made popular by Parks and Recreation, before growing into an international phenomenon, this special day for embracing female friendship is the perfect excuse to pull out all the stops, just like Leslie. Complete with food and drink recipes, DIY decorations, ideas for party activities, and more, this official guide will help you throw an inspired Galentine's Day party for the women in your life. Fun and comprehensive, this is a must-have event-planning guide for every Parks and Recreation fan.

Curly Watts is a TV icon - for twenty years appearing on millions of TV screens around the country in Coronation Street. Kevin Kennedy is one of the UK's most successful soap actors, although behind the scenes and high-profile appearances, he faced a painful personal battle. Kevin shares his experiences of alcoholism, rehab and IVF as well stories from the set and stars he worked with during some of the brightest, and darkest moments of his life, through to his music career and current roles. This brutally honest autobiography provides a rare glimpse into life behind the scenes, the power of addiction, and his battle with recovery.

Brolga (aka Chris Barns) is the 6ft 7in strong but sensitive Aussie star of the extraordinary BBC series Kangaroo Dundee. Brolga lives in a simple tin shed in the outback where he raises orphaned baby kangaroos. It is a sad fact of life that kangaroo mothers are at the mercy of speeding cars in this part of the world - killed on the road, their young still tucked up in their pouches. These young joeys holding on to life, have been given a second chance thanks to the kindness and dedication of Brolga, who carefully retrieves them and nurses them back to health. Brolga has been rescuing these special creatures for years, slowly and painstakingly creating a kangaroo sanctuary for the many kangaroos he has saved, reared and loved. He has dedicated his life to observing how kangaroo mums care for their babies and does everything he can to replicate this. The baby kangaroos, traumatised by losing their mother so early, are tucked up into pillow cases and kept warm and comforted next to Brolga at night. We see him getting up at 4am to bottle feed them, washing them in a little tub, taking them to the supermarket and generally mothering them with heart breaking tenderness. Charting Brolga's life with the joeys and honing in on his relationship with one or two in particular, Kangaroo Dundee tells the heart-warming, sometimes funny, sometimes poignant story of one man's unique relationship with a group of extraordinary animals.