BBC One EastEnders Down Memory Lane with Matt Di Angelo", Doctor Who episodes coming to your mobile phone, "Get your anoraks on trains are coming! Many people watched this together with friends and family, so the viewing figures were probably even higher than the 24.5 million suggests! This article or section is incomplete! BBC EastEnders has endured dwindling ratings in recent months. She was succeeded by Corinne Hollingworth. [266] On 23 July 2012, a segment of that evening's episode was screened live as Billy Mitchell (Perry Fenwick) carried the Olympic flame around Walford in preparation for the 2012 Summer Olympics. The most-watched TV show was the penultimate episode of The Apprentice on BBC One, which had 6.7 million viewers, 2.1 million of whom watched not live, but on . [288], The omnibus edition, a compilation of the week's episodes in a continuous sequence, originally aired on BBC One on Sunday afternoons,[289] until 1 April 2012 when it was changed to a late Friday night or early Saturday morning slot, commencing 6 April 2012, though the exact time differed. [38] Ferguson was succeeded by both Leonard Lewis and Helen Greaves who initially shared the role as Executive Producer for EastEnders. EastEnders has lost an array of its stars over the past year with the BBC soap's viewing figures dropping below both Emmerdale and Coronation Street. [25] The visual images were taken from an aircraft flying over the East End of London at 1000 feet. In February 2016, the repeat moved to W, the rebranded Watch, after BBC Three became an online-only channel. The wedding of Scott Robinson and Charlene Mitchell in Episode 523 got 20 million viewers when it aired in the UK in November 1988. The videotape editor used the director's notes so they knew which scenes the director wanted to appear in a particular episode. The table below summaries the chart rankings for EastEnders for each year since 1985. Emmerdale was watched by 8.1 million people. [263] In January 2013, on-location filming at Grahame Park in Colindale, north London, was interrupted by at least seven youths who threw a firework at the set and threatened to cut members of the crew. [334], In October 2009, a 12-part Internet spin-off series entitled EastEnders: E20 was announced. It was named as if Walford were part of the actual E postcode area which covers much of east London,[132] the E standing for Eastern. John Yorke, the former BBC's head of drama production, put this down to Tony Holland's "gay sensibility, which showed a love for strong women". She regarded EastEnders as a fundamental assault on the family and morality itself. [340] In the spin-off, the Moons visit Ireland where they "search for answers to some very big questions". The highly anticipated return of Ross Kemp as Grant Mitchell in October 2005 proved to be a sudden major ratings success, with the first two episodes consolidating to ratings of 13.21 to 13.34 million viewers. Some actors' salaries were leaked in 2006, revealing that Natalie Cassidy (Sonia Fowler) was paid 150,000, Cliff Parisi (Minty Peterson) received 220,000, Barbara Windsor (Peggy Mitchell) and Steve McFadden (Phil Mitchell) each received 360,000 and Wendy Richard (Pauline Fowler) had a salary of 370,000. In 2001, EastEnders clashed with Coronation Street for the first time. [55][56] On Friday 11 November 2005, EastEnders was the first British drama to feature a two-minute silence. The storyline, 10.84 million viewers tuned in for the 30th-anniversary episode itself in an hour-long special on 19 February 2015 (peaking with 11.9 million). Kyle Slater (Riley Carter Millington), a transgender character, was introduced in 2015. Tournament officials have revealed encouraging viewing figures for the men's, women's and wheelchair competitions so far, with broadcast figures up to and including last Sunday showing a cumulative total of more than 18.7million viewers. The final process was to add the audio which included background noise such as a train or a jukebox music and to check it met the BBC's technical standard for broadcasting. In one segment of the . [295] Four specially selected episodes from 1985, 1986 and 1987 were also repeated on BBC1 on Friday evenings at 8pm under the banner "The Unforgettable EastEnders". [296][297][298][299], EastEnders was regularly repeated at 10pm on BBC Choice from the channel's launch in 1998, a practice continued by BBC Three for many years until mid-2012 with the repeat moving to 10:30pm. Peggy Mitchell death: Eastenders suicide was watched by 41% of UK TV viewing audience. [89] Additionally, Oliver Kent was brought in as the Head of Continuing Drama Series for BBC Scripted Studios, meaning that Kent would oversee EastEnders along with O'Connor. Everyone agreed that EastEnders would be tough, violent on occasion, funny and sharpset in Margaret Thatcher's Britainand it would start with a bang (namely the death of Reg Cox). However, there have been times when EastEnders had higher ratings than Emmerdale despite the two going head-to-head. Both Smith and Holland were unhappy about the January 1985 launch date, favouring November or even September 1984 when seasonal audiences would be higher, but the BBC stayed firm, and Smith and Holland had to concede that, with the massive task of getting the Elstree Studios operational, January was the most realistic date; however, this was later to be changed to February. [23], Through the next few months, the set was growing rapidly at Elstree, and a composer and designer had been commissioned to create the title sequence. [13], The project had a number of working titlesSquare Dance, Round the Square, Round the Houses, London Pride and East 8. [60] In April 2007, EastEnders became available to view on mobile phones, via 3G technology, for 3, Vodafone and Orange customers. Other events to mark the anniversary were a spin-off DVD, EastEnders: Last Tango in Walford , and an Internet spin-off, EastEnders: E20 . [231] When a quartet is completed, it is edited by the director, videotape editor and script supervisor. The sound team also have the capability to access the edited episode, enabling them to dub the sound and create the final version. Hit British soaps including EastEnders and Coronation Street have seen a significant drop in their viewing figures, it has been claimed. [363] Later that year, EastEnders suffered its lowest rating ever, with 1.7 million viewers watching live. [86] Treadwell-Collins left on 6 May[87] and O'Connor's first credited episode was broadcast on 11 July[88] Although O'Connor's first credited episode aired in July, his own creative work was not seen onscreen until late September. Viewing figures peaked at 16.6million, which was the highest viewed episode in seven years. Viewers rushed to tune in as Matt Hancock made the final. "[93] Yorke initially returned for three months but his contract was later extended. The UK communications regulator Ofcom later found that the episodes depicting the storyline were in breach of the 2005 Broadcasting Code. [350] On 21 September 2004, Louise Berridge, the then executive producer, quit following criticism of the show. [335] A second 10-part series started in September 2010, with twice-weekly episodes available online and an omnibus on BBC Three. [66], From 4 February 2010, CGI was used in the show for the first time, with the addition of computer-generated trains.[67]. [16] They took a holiday in Playa de los Pocillos, Lanzarote, and started to create the characters. EastEnders star Danny Dyer opens up on 140,000 Maldives holiday heart.co.uk - Naomi Bartram Danny Dyer enjoyed 'the best holiday ever' in the Maldives after he jetted off last year. He axed the majority of the Di Marco family, except Beppe di Marco, and helped introduce popular characters such as the Slater family. [319] In Canada, EastEnders was shown on BBC Canada until 2010,[320] at which point it was picked up by VisionTV. Corrie's first episode was not a critical success, with one columnist predicting it wouldn't last longer than 3 weeks. THE BBC enjoyed some record-breaking viewing figures with its on-demand service, BBC iPlayer, last year. Since then, "Return of Nick Cotton" (2000), "Ricky & Bianca" (2002), "Dot's Story" (2003), "Perfectly Frank" (2003) and "Pat and Mo" (2004) have all been broadcast, each episode looking into lives of various characters and revealing part of their backstories or lives since leaving EastEnders. EastEnders ' inconsistent airing schedule and shorter episodes are partly to blame for its lower ratings, according to BBC drama boss Piers Wenger. Manage all your favorite fandoms in one place! EastEnders was pulling in up to eight million viewers an episode, but in the past year those figures . [189], EastEnders has a high cast turnover and characters are regularly changed to facilitate storylines or refresh the format. [54] Harwood stayed at EastEnders for 20 months before being promoted by the BBC. [344] EastEnders two biggest ratings rivals are the ITV soaps Coronation Street and Emmerdale. Two special anniversary books have been written about the show; EastEnders: The First 10 Years: A Celebration (ISBN978-0-563-37057-4) by Colin Brakein 1995 and EastEnders: 20 Years in Albert Square (ISBN978-0-563-52165-5) by Rupert Smith in 2005. Although the Euros have an effect on viewing figures, many now watch what they want when they want on . [264] In October 2013, scenes were filmed on a road near London Southend Airport in Essex. [222] In December 2018, it was revealed that the new set was now planned to cost 59million but a National Audit Office (NAO) report stated that it would actually cost 86.7million and be completed two-and-a-half years later than planned, in 2023; the NAO concluded that the BBC "could not provide value for money on the project". I think we need to be ourselves and go back to the origins of the show and what made it successful in the first place. EastEnders is a British television soap opera, first broadcast in the United Kingdom on BBC One on 19 February 1985. ", "EastEnders Boss Lorraine Newman Quits As Soap's Ratings Plummet", "Twitter / dominictc: Had an amazing three years", "EastEnders' new producer shares gossip and teasers- full text", "EastEnders boss: I refuse to tick boxes on race or sexuality", "At last: EastEnders will reveal Who Killed Lucy? EastEnders suffered its lowest ratings on record last summer when viewing figures were just 2.4million. [110] Beginning on 22 June 2020, Dooley interviews two cast members together in the show's restaurant set while observing social distancing measures. The Dutch version was re-written from already existing EastEnders scripts. Allegations of national and racial stereotypes. It shouldn't just be a distraction from your own life, it should be an exploration of the life shared by the audience and the characters. [344], The launch show in 1985 attracted 17.35million viewers. [247], If scenes during a normal week are to be filmed on location, this is done during the normal recording week. Santer officially left EastEnders in March 2010, and was replaced by Bryan Kirkwood. Over the years Emmerdale Farm/Emmerdale has attracted high audience figures. A father-of-three has filed a complaint against YouTube for allegedly gathering data on children's viewing habits . [179][180] Despite this, the programme has been criticised by the Commission for Racial Equality, who argued in 2002 that EastEnders was not giving a realistic representation of the East End's "ethnic make-up". [31], In 1987 the show featured the first same-sex kiss on a British soap, when Colin Russell (Michael Cashman) kissed boyfriend Barry Clarke on the forehead. ", Ethel Skinner's death, Jim Branning and Dot Cotton's marriage, Trevor Morgan's domestic abuse of his wife Little Mo Morgan, and Kat Slater's revelation to her daughter Zoe Slater that she was her mother. John Yorke became the Executive Producer of EastEnders in 2000. This shocking tell-all style set the tone for relations between Albert Square and the press for the next 20 years. EastEnders Wiki is a FANDOM TV Community. [210] The lower walls, pavements, etc., were constructed of real brick and tarmac. [11], A previous UK soap set in an East End market was ATV's Market in Honey Lane; however, between 1967 and 1969 this show, which graduated from one showing a week to two in three separate series (the latter series being shown in different time slots across the ITV network) was very different in style and approach from EastEnders. Let's take a look at what television captured our imaginations and gained the largest viewing figures in each year of . Despite once being the highest-rated soap, it dropped to third in the rankings in 2021, behind Coronation Street and Emmerdale, with 4.09 million viewers. In 2009, producers introduced a limit on the number of speaking parts in each episode due to budget cuts, with an average of 16 characters per episode. 1) From Episode 39 (2 July 1985) onwards, ratings include the Sunday omnibus edition. EastEnders storylines examine the domestic and professional lives of the people who live and work in the fictional London Borough of Walford in the East End of London. Over the years EastEnders has typically featured a number of elderly residents, who are used to show vulnerability, nostalgia, stalwart-like attributes and are sometimes used for comedic purposes. Newspapers reported on employee dissatisfaction with Hutchison's tenure at EastEnders. Four EastEnders episodes are listed in the all-time top 10 most-watched programmes in the UK, including the number one spot when over 30 million watched the 1986 Christmas Day episode. However, ratings for the 10 pm EastEnders repeat on BBC Three reached an all-time high of 1.4 million. We hope that this story will help raise the public's awareness of cot death, which claims 300 babies' lives each year. Danny went on to say his character had 'lost his way' after divorcing Linda and marrying Janine Butcher (Charlie Brooks). Alison Spittle fans slightly confused by pregnancy/EastEnders announcement The Dry review: Hailed as the 'Irish Fleabag', sadly this new dramedy is like its heroine - a bit of a mess Berridge was responsible for some ratings success stories, such as Alfie and Kat Slater's relationship, Janine Butcher getting her comeuppance, Trevor Morgan and Jamie Mitchell's death storylines and the return of one of the greatest soap icons, Den Watts, who had been presumed dead for 14 years. [337], EastEnders and rival soap opera Coronation Street took part in a crossover episode for Children in Need on 19 November 2010 called "East Street". The overnight TV ratings refer only to live television viewing and do not include online or catch-up audiences. [7], The show's creators were both Londoners, but when they researched Victorian squares, they found massive changes in areas they thought they knew well; however, delving further into the East End of London, they found exactly what they had been searching for: a real East End spiritan inward-looking quality, a distrust of strangers and authority figures, a sense of territory and community that the creators summed up as "Hurt one of us and you hurt us all".