TV drama worksheets

SERIES TEACHING FILM AND MEDIA STUDIES

Teaching
TV Drama

Jeremy Points
British Film Institute

Series Editor: Vivienne Clark

worksheet 1
Thinking about genre

Genre means a ‘kind’ or ‘type’ and is a way of categorising films and
TV programmes. Before you start studying TV drama, a broad
television genre, you need to think about the role genre plays in
broadcasters’ and television producers’ thinking as well as in
audiences’ viewing. This will help put into context your detailed work
on the TV drama genre.

Your television viewing
G What are some of your favourite TV programmes?
G Why do you like them?
G Are you aware that you are looking at a programme in a particular
genre?

Look at extracts from at least three contrasting television genres.
You might try watching one without sound and one with sound only.
G Can you identify the genre you are watching/ listening to?
G What features enable you to identify the genre?

Look at examples of programmes and TV dramas which combine
elements of different genres – called hybrids. Examples include
Big Brother, The Sopranos, Extras, Doctor Who, Sea of Souls.
G Which elements of different genres can you identify in each
programme?
G Why do you think programmes like these are produced?
G How would you label programmes like these?
G How do broadcasters label them?
©British Film Institute 2007

What makes HBO’s
The Sopranos a hybrid,
and why?

Page 1 of 2 TV Drama

worksheet 1 Thinking about genre

G Do you think that broadcasters and producers consider the
different programmes they produce in terms of genre?
G How far are the generic features of a programme part of
audiences’ viewing experience? In what ways?
G In what ways do you think a programme’s genre affects the kind
of programme which is produced?

Audiences’ ability to recognise the genre of a programme almost
instantly means that they have assimilated the ingredients
(‘conventions’ – see Worksheet 2) of a genre without realising it.
As you study TV drama, you should think about how far the genre
affects the nature of the drama.


worksheet 2
What is TV drama?

TV drama is a broad genre. At its simplest, it is fictionalised action in
narrative form. It is important to gain some basic understanding of
how and why TV drama splits into the different types broadcast today.

G List as many examples of TV drama as you can. (Use a website,
like the BBC’s, or a listings magazine to prompt you.)
G Find examples of TV dramas which appear to be both a TV drama
and something else, eg, a TV drama and a crime series like
Prime Suspect. What is the reason for this kind of combination?
G Name as many different kinds of TV drama as you can.

What you have been doing is uncovering the various subgenres
(genres within genres) of TV drama.

G Genre means ‘kind’ or ‘type’. (Think of
the way biologists refer to ‘genus’ to
describe a type of plant or animal
species.)
G A television genre thus refers to
programmes which can be categorised
by the things they have in common – the
conventions of a genre.
G Many genres break down into subgenres.
Crime drama is a TV drama which has
become a genre in its own right.
G TV drama has given rise to a number of
subgenres. What started out as drama on
television, single plays, quickly gave rise
to different kinds of drama: costume
dramas, children’s classic dramas, soap
operas, crime dramas, hospital dramas,
sci-fi dramas and historical adventures.
This took place in the 1950s as the BBC
was evolving and ITV first began
broadcasting. Why do you think this
happened? Why are there still so many
different kinds of TV drama? (See the
Is Prime Suspect a TV drama or a crime drama or both?
What is the significance of these differnt ways of Timeline for further clues and examples

categorising TV drama? of the first ‘subgenres’.)


worksheet 3
TV drama
conventions 1
The conventions of a genre are the ingredients which all examples of
a genre share. They act a little like rules – not necessarily rigid rules
but rules you need to follow in order to create something which
audiences will recognise as part of a particular genre. Like other
conventions – governing speech and behaviour, for example –
audiences seem to assimilate the conventions of genres
unconsciously.

Establishing the conventions of TV drama
Choose three or four contrasting TV dramas and look at short
extracts from them. Here are some suggestions: a single drama like
Yasmin, a crime or medical series like The Shield or Green Wing, a
US drama series like 24 (2001), Lost or Desperate Housewives, a
drama serial like the classic literary adaptation Bleak House (2005),
a sensational drama like Footballers’ Wives or a teen drama like
The OC.

What is different about
the drama series 24? Did
it establish a new trend?


worksheet 3 TV drama conventions 1

What do they have in common?
You will find that TV dramas all have the following ingredients:
G Characters – even particular kinds of characters: eg, at its most
simple, ‘good’ and ‘bad’ characters.
G Stories – they all tell stories, whether those stories involve
adventure, crime or romance and they often, but not always, end
happily.
G The stories are told against familiar backdrops: – eg, homes,
police stations and offices (for crime dramas), hospitals (for
medical dramas) – most of which are created in studios. However,
most dramas also use outside locations to create particular
effects.
G Camerawork – particular kinds of shots are used: eg, sequences
involving establishing shots followed by mid-shots of characters,
shot/reverse shots to show character interaction and, in particular,
close-ups to show the characters’ emotions.
G Stories use dialogue to tell the stories. Occasionally, monologues
are built in (as voiceovers, a character telling a story).
G Music is used to punctuate the action, create effects (suspense,
tension) and underline emotional moments.
G Particular subgenres tend to have items which make them
immediately identifiable – police cars, blue lights, operating
theatres and scalpels, triage/reception areas in hospitals. Icons of
the genre, they symbolise the (sub)genre.


worksheet 4
TV drama
conventions 2

The conventions of TV drama revolve around:
G Characters.
G Narrative – both its overall structure and how it is constructed.
G Sets and settings – locations against which the story unfolds and
which frequently take on a symbolic significance.
G Camerawork – particular kinds of camerawork are often
associated with particular subgenres.
G Dialogue, sound and music – sound and music create effects and
often underline emotional content.
G Icons – these tend to be associated with particular subgenres.

Watching extracts from a selection of TV dramas, fill in the attached
table.
The key issue to identify is how these basic conventions are used in
Six Feet Under:
Character – a key the TV dramas you are studying. In several extracts, institutional and
concept of TV drama audience issues will be raised. Aim to note these as well.



Name of drama
Broadcaster/
scheduling details
Writer/director/producer
Conventions
Characters

Narrative

Mise en scène (particularly
locations, sets, lighting
and costume)

Sound: key dialogue,
sound effects, music

Icons

Industry
G Production, broadcast channel, scheduling, sponsorship, marketing and promotion, other available
platforms etc.
G Do you think any of the elements you have listed have shaped the drama?

Audiences

G Main target audience, male/female, different ways different audiences might respond to the drama,
encouraging fandom etc.
G Do you think the drama will shape audiences’ points of view about people, issues or events?


worksheet 5
Working with
characters
Characters (and the narratives which flow from them) are at the
centre of audiences’ enthusiasm for TV drama. They are also key to
influencing audiences, how they think of people and groups of
people, or particular issues. It is therefore important to ask how
audiences relate to characters in a drama.
Look at extracts from three or four contrasting dramas like Charmed,
Pride and Prejudice, Footballers’ Wives or House.
G What kinds of characters appear in the dramas? Are there
similarities between characters in different dramas?
G Do you respond emotionally to some characters? In what ways
and why?
G What do you understand by ‘identifying’ with a character?
G Do you think all audiences respond in the same way to
characters?
G Are the producers, writers and/or directors of dramas trying to get
you to respond in a particular way to characters? How?
You have probably already realised that many TV drama narratives
feature characters who are the opposite of one another, and that they
are frequently set up in conflict. The most obvious conflict is between
the good and bad characters. This simple idea appears to underlie
many narratives and is generally described as ‘binary opposition’,
after the French writer Claude Lévi-Strauss (who used it in his
explorations of myths).
Look at extracts from two or three dramas to explore how these
character oppositions work. Again, choose contrasting dramas like
Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Desperate Housewives, Blackpool or
Spooks. Identify the good and bad characters.
G How do you know which is which?
G Are we as audiences being encouraged to sympathise with the
good characters and be antagonistic to the bad?
G How is this process underlined by editing and camerawork,
mise en scène (like locations, settings, lighting and costume)?
G Do the good characters succeed and the bad fail? Why is this?
What effect does this have on audiences?


worksheet 6
TV drama
conventions 3
In order for television producers to keep audiences interested, they
frequently make slight variations on the standard conventions of the
genre. This is often noticeable in the way mise en scène, camerawork
and sound/music is used. These elements are also used to underline
issues raised by the drama.

Mise en scène
Choose extracts from three contrasting dramas such as Lost,
Doctor Who, Funland, Rebus and Tipping the Velvet. The opening of
an episode is frequently revealing.
G What are the connotations of the mise en scène?
G Does the mise en scène underline any particular issues which the
drama might be raising?
Choose dramas which you consider are slightly unconventional
examples of a particular TV drama subgenre (like medical dramas). In
what ways is the mise en scène different from the conventional kind
of mise en scène used in that subgenre. Here is an example based on
medical dramas.
Conventional mise en scène? Casualty, Holby City and ER
G Do you think these dramas have a conventional mise en scène?
What makes it conventional?
Unconventional mise en scène? Bodies and House
G How far is the mise en scène in Bodies and House unconventional?
Give reasons for any variations on the conventional.

Camerawork
Explore the way camerawork is used in three contrasting dramas.
Some innovative examples from the 1990s are: NYPD Blue, This Life
and Cops. Interesting contemporary examples include: Messiah 4,
Ghost Squad, Bleak House and 24.
G What kinds of camerawork are used and why?

Sound and music
Sound and music have taken an increasingly prominent role in TV

drama, although they have always been significant. The most obvious
role sound plays – in particular, but not exclusively, music – is in
underlining emotional response and thus positioning audiences. In
exploring this, play scenes without sound to highlight what you think
sound will contribute and play sound without vision to explore what
the sound suggests.



For example (in key dramas from the past):
G What role does the non-diegetic sound play at the end of a typical
ER episode?
G What role does the title music play inthe 2005 US drama Rome?
G What kind of soundtrack is used in the different CSI series?
Take one example and explore how and why it is used.
G At the moment when Darcy and Elizabeth first exchange glances
of love in Episode 5 of Andrew Davies’s Pride and Prejudice, the
volume of the non-diegetic music increases. This is a common
technique to position audiences and is frequently used in
romantic dramas. Look for your own examples.
G In a classic drama from 1982, ‘Yosser’s Story’ from Alan Bleasdale’s
Boys from the Blackstuff, a repeated harpsichord phrase is used
throughout the drama to underline Yosser’s psychological
isolation and imbalance. Look for another example of where
music underlines a psychological effect.

Music is sometimes used in an ironic way to counterpoint the
action. Martin Scorsese exploits music ironically in many of his films.
In Six Feet Under, Series 1/Episode 2, a character dies following a
diving accident in his own swimming pool (accompanied by Dean
Martin’s ‘Ain’t That a Kick in the Head’.)
G Explore how sound and/or music is used ironically in drama.
Good examples can be found in the opening of the recent
adaptation of Much Ado about Nothing, Blackpool, Doctor Who or
(from the past) Dennis Potter’s The Singing Detective and David
Lynch’s Twin Peaks.


worksheet 7
Genre –
Open to change
Genre variations
Genres are always open to change.
G Producers aim to vary the standard conventions to maintain
audience interest without departing from them so much that they
alienate audiences.
G Audiences do not want slavish imitations but subtle variations on
the expected. They are attracted to the slight variation but gain
pleasure from the genre’s expectations being fulfilled.
Explore variations in the crime genre. Look, for example, at the
different kinds of investigators in crime dramas. Find out about the
ones you are unfamiliar with. Extracts from several are available on
www.screenonline.co.uk. For example:
Dixon of Dock Green, Z Cars, The Sweeney, Cagney and Lacey,
Starsky and Hutch, Hill Street Blues, NYPD Blue, Homicide, Cracker,
Prime Suspect, Linda Lee, Murder in Suburbia, CSI, Silent Witness,
Waking the Dead, New Tricks, Ghost Squad, Murphy’s Law.
G Name other variations used in crime drama. Consider, for example,
narrative and mise en scène.

Hybrids
Another way of varying and extending a genre is by creating hybrids.
It may be that hybrids are not a new phenomenon, as is sometimes
claimed, but something broadcasters and film producers have always
employed.
G In what ways do you think the following dramas are hybrids?
List the genres which are blended to create the hybrid.
The Singing Detective
Blackpool
Sea of Souls
Murder Prevention
Buffy the Vampire Slayer
Charmed
Doctor Who
Footballers’ Wives

Mayo
G Why do you think broadcasting organisations commission and
produce hybrid dramas?
G Do audiences see these dramas as hybrids? Do you think
audiences gain more pleasure from viewing hybrid genres?


worksheet 8
Challenging dramas

At its simplest, an ideology is the way people think and feel – the
views and attitudes people hold which influence the way they see the
world. Questioning the way the majority of people think at any one
time is therefore challenging a dominant ideology. Most TV dramas
either reinforce dominant ideologies (encouraging people to think like
the majority) or challenge them.
G Do you think it is important for TV dramas to make people think
about contemporary social and cultural issues like gender, ethnic
differences, sex trafficking, unemployment or social class?
G How do TV dramas raise these issues?
G What do you understand by ‘challenging the dominant ideology’?
G In what ways, if at all, do you think any three of the following
challenge dominant ideologies?
Queer as Folk and Six Feet Under (sexual orientation)
Footballers’ Wives (gender, sexual orientation, ethnic difference)
Yasmin (ethnic difference)
Sex Traffic (prostitution and sex trafficking)
Boys from the Blackstuff (unemployment)
The Sopranos (gender and masculinity in particular)
Shameless (social class, gender, sexual orientation, families and
communities)

Yasmin: a challenging
drama raising important
issues about muslim
people in Britian today, or
just white-oriented
stereotyping?


worksheet 9
Narrative
construction
Television narratives are created by placing
images next to one another. The nature of
the narrative – what it suggests to audiences
– is affected by editing, camerawork and
mise en scène. Select any short sequence
from a TV drama to explore this. Here is an
example from Lost, Series 1/Episode 4:

Constructing a narrative shot by
shot: Lost, Series 1/Episode 4
10:33–11:36
Denotation: What is the story (in one
sentence)?
Connotation: What does the story suggest?
What is suggested by:
Camerawork
Mise en scène (setting/location, lighting and
costume)
Editing?

Lost: Series 1, Episode 4: 10.33–11.36:
a story of two cultures ...


worksheet 9 Narrative construction

Conventions of a complete narrative
Here is the start of a simple narrative: a couple wake up and go
downstairs to breakfast. They do not realise that they are being
watched by terrorists.
G What happens next? Create a narrative in no more than five
sentences.
G Which standard narrative conventions have you used?

You might have come up with the following narrative conventions:
G Beginning, middle and ending;
G Characters – some good, some bad;
G Probably a happy ending. Why do most stories end happily?

Look at approximately the first five minutes of Series 3/Episode 10 of
Spooks (which starts as outlined above). Which conventions are used?

Prompts
G This feels like the beginning of a narrative. Why?
G What starts as an ordinary, everyday morning, is suddenly
threatened – a standard way of beginning a narrative. Why?
G Audience involvement through the danger that is set up. We are
automatically being encouraged to take sides. Binary opposition?
G Are any other binary oppositions established?

Exploring narrative structures
What are the different narrative structures associated with the
following TV drama forms? Do they conform to Todorov’s and Lévi-
Strauss’s outlines of narrative structures, which both have a
fundamentally ideological significance?
G Single drama/film: Yasmin;
G Two-nighter: Sex Traffic;
G Soap (continuing drama): EastEnders;
G Serial: Bleak House;
G Anthology series (self-contained episodes, each based on different
characters): The Street;
G Long-form series drama: Lost;
G Long-form series drama with some narrative experimentation: 24.

Explore the beginnings and the conclusions of episodes from these
dramas. What can you say about their narrative structure?
G ER
G West Wing
G Clocking Off
G State of Play


worksheet 10
The conventions of
realism
Dramas do not provide windows on reality, but offer audiences
versions of reality using codes and conventions designed to convince
them of this. Realism is constructed and is essentially an effect.
To explore this, choose two contrasting hospital-based medical
dramas (like ER, House and Bodies). How do they convey the sense
of the reality of a hospital?
Think about the
following:
G What kinds of
characters
appear and what
are they wearing?
G What is the
narrative about?
How is it
constructed?
G What are the
most significant
features of the
mise en scène?
G What kind of
camerawork is
used?
G Do you notice
anything
particular about
the editing?
G What sort of
dialogue is used
(any dialogue
that you
particularly
associate with
hospitals)?
G What other
sound is used?
Ambient (natural)

sound? Music?
Effects of any
kind?

House: A stage
managed, promotional
pose. How far are all
dramas constructed?


worksheet 10 The conventions of realism

ER: Creating the effect of
reality? For what
reasons?
ER’s hard-wall, closed-ceiling emergency room sets [as opposed to
traditional open-ceiling and three-wall stage sets to allow for cameras
and lighting] … add another intrinsic element to the show’s realism …
It is much harder to move around on these stages because of the
ceilings that don’t move but that’s what makes you feel like you are
really in the ER. The sets provide more interesting possibilities for us
to choreograph scenes the way we do. We can shoot low and aim the
camera up and see the great ceilings and architecture or wind around
the multilayered hallways. You feel a sense of reality and immediacy ...
I think it’s a very subconscious thing, but I think it’s one of the keys to
the show.
Director, Mimi Leder, quoted in Pourroy, 1996, pp 33–4

What does this extract tell you about the role of mise en scène and
camerawork in creating the effect of the real?


worksheet 11
Different kinds of
realism
There are different ways to create a sense of reality. The codes of
realism vary in different kinds of drama. Perhaps we should talk of
‘realisms’ rather than realism. Realism perhaps reflects points of view
about ‘reality’ – sometimes the producers’ and sometimes
audiences’.
Choose three contrasting dramas which use different kinds of
camerawork and editing to attract different audiences, such as
Grey’s Anatomy (2005), Bodies (2003–6) and Casualty.
Each conveys a sense of reality but in a different way.
G Which different codes of realism are used in each drama?
G Do you think that Grey’s Anatomy shows hospitals from a younger
person’s point of view, while Casualty adopts a slightly more
mature perspective? Why is that?
G Do you think that Bodies shows a particular point of view about
the ‘reality’ of hospitals in Britain today? Whose point of view is
that?

… The edge of television realism
Research several classic, and to some extent,
experimental TV dramas from the past like
Alan Clarke’s Carousel, Dennis Potter’s
The Singing Detective or David Lynch’s
Twin Peaks.
G How far and in what way do you think
each of these dramas uses the codes and
conventions of realism? Do they convey a
‘sense of the real’?
G In what ways do they ‘stretch’ the
conventions of realism? And why?

… Exploring with your own
experimental narratives
Take a scene from any drama you know.

G What have the director, director of
photography and writer done in order to
create a sense of the real?
G Storyboard the scene as an alternative
drama that stretches the conventions of
realism.
G Why do you think realism dominates
An iconic image from David Lynch’s surreal Twin Peaks. television today?


worksheet 12
Contemporary
representations
of gender
It is often claimed that women are
represented as ‘sexual subjects’ rather than
‘sexual objects’ and that men are no longer
represented in terms of power and force.
The way gender is represented in the media
seems to affect all audiences – it shapes
people’s sense of themselves. Choose
contrasting TV dramas and explore how
women and men are represented.
How are women and men represented in the
following:
Desperate Housewives or Footballers’
Wives
Wire in the Blood or Ultimate Force
Green Wing or Extras
Doctor Who
The OC or Totally Frank
Desperate Housewives:
Sexual subjects or G Do you think all audiences will respond in the same way to the
sexual objects?
representations?
G What role does camerawork, lighting, editing and costume in
particular play in underlining these representations?
G How typical do you think that these representations are of (a) TV
drama in general and (b) other forms of media you experience?

Take one female and one male character from a TV drama who is
represented in what, for you, are typical ways. Play the following
roles:
G As broadcaster: Justify why these characters should be in your
TV drama and why this particular sequence/storyline should be
included? If you had to change it, how would you do that?
G As writer: Take a female character represented mainly in terms
of sexuality and a male character represented as insensitive,
self-oriented and potentially violent. Create an alternative character
for your drama and the storyline she/he will be involved in. How do

they challenge dominant representations? Why challenge dominant
representations of gender?


worksheet 13
Positioning
audiences
Dramas tend to encourage the majority of their viewers to take up a
particular point of view to the characters and issues. This process is
called ‘positioning’.
Storyboard an alternative opening sequence to Spooks which just
focuses on Fiona and Adam. In ten shots, try to encourage the
Characters and binary audience to do one of the following:
oppositions: How are
audiences positioned to G Like both Fiona and Adam
identify with Fiona and G Like Fiona and not Adam
Adam and be
G Like Adam and not Fiona
antagonistic to Ahmed?
G Dislike both Fiona and Adam
Concentrate on how you will achieve this in visual terms, using
minimal dialogue.
G What kind of setting/location will you use?
G What do the characters wear?
G What lighting is used?
G Will you use any particular camerawork?
G What will be the key features of the editing? In what order do the
shots come? What length of shot will you use?
This exercise demonstrates how mise en scène, camerawork and
editing, and their role in narrative construction, can position audiences.
Looking back on your own sequence, explain what would be an
‘oppositional’ and ‘negotiated’ interpretation of it. Give reasons for
those interpretations.
Reading/reasons why audiences might interpret the sequences in this
way

Oppositional Negotiated


worksheet 14
TV drama – Its role
for broadcasters
It is important to ask what role TV drama plays for broadcasters. Is it
still a flagship genre? Does it still anchor terrestrial schedules? With
more and more platforms for viewing TV drama becoming available,
are we moving from ‘broadcasting’ to ‘narrowcasting’? What role is
TV drama playing in that possible shift? Do all these industry issues
affect the nature and kinds of TV drama audiences see?
What do the following reveal about the importance of TV drama for
terrestrial broadcasters in Britain?
G BBC trailers like ‘The One for Drama’ (now ‘The One to Watch’)
G Promotion of autumn schedules
G Radio Times marketing
G Sponsorship on ITV – Sainsbury’s and Leerdammer
Look at the websites for each of the major terrestrial broadcasters.
G How do the different broadcasters use their websites to market TV
drama?
G What differences are there between the major terrestrial
broadcasters?
G What does each website reveal about the significance of TV drama
for terrestrial broadcasters?
Choose three contrasting channels.
G How far does TV drama contribute to the identity and brand image
of each of the major broadcasters and their channels?
Read the following extracts from an Observer article, 25 November
2005:

G On the BBC and TV drama
‘… the sparkling array of new work on BBC1 coincides with the
corporation’s charter renewal. Having Poliakoff alongside Shakespeare
Retold and Bleak House on your flagship channel ticks that ‘public
service’ box rather better than Groundforce.’

G On family drama: the Doctor Who effect
‘[Doctor Who showed that] drama can trump both light entertainment
and reality pap in the ratings …’

ITV are going to compete with Doctor Who. They have commissioned
a sci-fi drama Primaeval. Dan Chambers: ‘Reality TV probably peaked
last year and what will fill the gap is drama.’

G What do these comments suggest about the significance of TV
drama to broadcasters?


worksheet 14 TV drama – Its role for broadcasters

Websites
Explore the homepages from the BBC’s websites for Spooks and
Doctor Who. What do you think they are aiming to achieve?
Consider, for example:
G The design of the homepage (image and typography) and its
connotations;
G BBC logos;
G The links (including to other programmes);
G The language used;
G The purposes of ‘Your reviews’ and the ‘Messageboard’;
G Other ways, such as games and screensavers, in which audiences
are encouraged to get involved, interactively or otherwise.

The homepage puts across three basic points:
G It is likely to appeal to a younger, internet-oriented audience;
G It is encouraging audiences – particularly younger audiences - to
become more actively involved and develop into (loyal) fans;
G It is therefore promoting the BBC, hoping to provide a more
dynamic image, which would appeal to younger audiences, who
might be tempted to feel that they are part of it (and prepared,
therefore, to pay a licence fee).

Broadcasters’ websites
involving audiences or
indirect promotion?


worksheet 15
Programme supply
and digital rights
Downloading, on-demand viewing and podcasting
Read the following extracts from Emily Bell’s article for the Media
Guardian, 9 January 2006. It deals with just one aspect of the way
television viewing is changing. What are some of the other ways in
which viewers will be able to watch TV drama in future?

… Microsoft and Sky [have] agree[d] last week This is a model which has emerged after major
to a historic union which will allow viewers to interventions in the programme supply market
download Sky programmes on to their PCs. to correct the power of broadcasters over
The scary union of Bill Gates and Rupert teeny independents. Now these independents
Murdoch … is just the latest reflection of how have made millions out of stock market floats
broadcasters are increasingly making their and broadcasters are wondering where their
programmes available over platforms other next centime is coming from, the picture looks
than television. Whilst in many parts of the slightly different. Indeed, the fight between
country many still struggle to get a clear signal broadcasters and independents over what
for Five, the industry is charging ahead with a happens to rights is not a dead issue but the
future which involves receiving your audio- most pressing concern in the industry today.
visual entertainment through a number of Lucky Ofcom, the regulator, is producing its
household devices. The strong rumours are own thoughts on the issue of programme
that Steve Jobs, head of Apple, is about to supply and digital rights tomorrow.
announce a hang-it-on-your-wall high
On the one hand you have Gates and Murdoch
definition television with a computer built into
and the BBC, claiming that it is uneconomic to
it – a kind of giant iPod Nano dangling above
commission programmes unless this includes
the fireplace – which will accelerate the
the opportunity for the exploitation of
process of watching what were once TV
electronic rights, and on the other hand you
programmes as computer downloads.
have the independent producers worried that
But behind the scenes this amazing vision of a having finally garnered some power they are
new world is a knotty problem for the potentially about to lose it to muscular mega
regulators … at the moment you are allowed to corporations. Then you have Channel 4, which
sell programmes but retain the ‘other’ rights owns no original production facilities, because
[which include making money from other forms that is how it is configured, and which faces a
of distribution, including electronic]. If you sell fairly miserable future without some retention
to the BBC, which has a website it is proud of, of residual and electronic rights.
it has the electronic rights for seven days but
Who owns a programme and for how long is
then they revert to you.
the pressing question to be answered.

G What are the main sources of income for (a) the BBC (b) ITV and

(c) independent producers of TV drama?
G Set out the main ways in which downloading will affect (a)
broadcasters like the BBC and ITV and (b) independent producers
of TV drama like Kudos.
G Why do you think downloading TV drama might pose more of a
threat than recording TV drama off-air?
G What are the main commercial ways in which broadcasters are
hoping to benefit from downloading and podcasting?
G Who owns a programme and for how long?


worksheet 16
TV crime drama:
Broadcasters’
approach to genre
The popularity of crime drama on TV
Crime drama is probably the most popular drama subgenre on
television outside soap opera. The following should give you a rapid
overview its popularity.
Look at a listings magazine and count roughly how many TV dramas
are shown in one week, and how many of these are crime dramas.
Exclude soaps and sitcoms.
G During the week of 20–8 October 2005, 15 out of 27 TV dramas,
excluding soaps, were crime dramas – around 55%. If one
includes the five soaps, the percentage is just below 50%.
Look at the table of a September week’s Top 10 drama, based on
BARB (Broadcasters’ Audience Research Board) figures and reprinted
in Broadcast’s weekly look at ratings (Week ending: 25 September
2005, Broadcast, 14 October 2005).

Top 10 Drama
Title Day Start Viewers Channel Last
(millions) week
1 A Touch of Frost Sun 20.25 10.28 ITV1 –
2 The Bill Thu 20.00 8.19 ITV1 8
3 Casualty Sat 20.20 7.57 BBC1 2
4 Waking the Dead Mon 21.00 7.56 BBC1 –

Scruffy police detective 5 The Bill Wed 20.00 7.50 ITV1 6
Jack Frost in A Touch
of Frost. 6 Holby City Tue 20.00 6.93 BBC1 3
7 Spooks Thu 21.00 6.50 BBC1 4
8 Taggart Fri 21.00 6.35 ITV1 10
9 Afterlife Sat 21.10 6.00 ITV1 –
10 Waking the Dead Sun 21.00 5.96 BBC1 1

G What does this table tell you about the popularity of crime drama
on television?
G Are there any similarities in the scheduling of these crime dramas?
What role does scheduling play in the popularity of a TV crime
drama?


worksheet 16 TV crime drama: Broadcasters’ approach to genre

The industry’s approach to genre
Below is a selection of crime dramas commissioned in Britain within
the last few years. Each newly commissioned drama or drama series
seems to display slight variations on the standard conventions of
crime drama. In the right column of the table, identify the key features
of each drama.

Drama Broadcaster details Key features

Marple ITV

Murder in Suburbia ITV

Donovan ITV

New Tricks BBC1

Waking the Dead BBC1

The Long Firm BBC2

55 Degrees North BBC1

Ghost Squad Channel 4

Life on Mars BBC1

Conviction BBC3 and then BBC2

Murder Prevention Five

Blackpool BBC1


worksheet 16 TV crime drama: Broadcasters’ approach to genre

G What is the ‘unique twist’ (Tom Toumazis) for these dramas, or the
‘unique selling point’ for audiences?
G Why do producers want this ‘unique twist’?
G Why do audiences want some, but not too much, variation on the
familiar?

G Only a relatively small proportion of US crime drama reaches
British television audiences. Why do you think the BBC, ITV,
Channel 4 and Channel 5 acquired the following?
– BBC1: The Medium
– BBC2: 24
– Channel 4: The Closer, The Sopranos
– Five: CSI (in its various forms), Columbo (series from the 1970s
now shown during the daytime), The Shield

Why do you think
Channel 5 acquired
the US crime drama
The Shield?


worksheet 17
Representation
of the police
Endings and police procedures
The endings of crime dramas are very revealing. They generally
provide audiences with a satisfying conclusion where criminals are
captured and crimes are solved.
G Do you know, for example, what percentage of crimes, including
murders, are solved in Britain today?
G What view of the police and the legal system do most crime
dramas provide?

Look at the conclusions of three crime dramas you are familiar with.
Test out what you know about Todorov and Lévi-Strauss.
G Do you see a restoration of equilibrium (Todorov) and a resolution
of conflict between good and bad (Lévi-Strauss)?
G What does this suggest about the ideologies being conveyed to
the audience. Do they conform to dominant ideologies about the
police and criminality or challenge them?

Quentin Tarantino’s
grave ending: Is the
audiences’ confidence in
forensic science – and
law and order – being
maintained?


worksheet 18
Literary adaptations:
Reaching new
audiences
Labelling the ‘classic literary adaptation’
The way the ‘classic literary adaptation’ has been described by
broadcasters has changed considerably. Currently, several terms are
used and most of them are employed interchangeably by reviewers,
commentators and academic writers.
G What are the connotations of the following labels used by
broadcasters for the ‘classic literary adaptation’?
G What do they suggest about the way broadcasters are trying to
appeal to audiences?
The classic serial (used particularly in the 1950s, 60s and early 70s)
– the BBC used a curtain-raising ident with classical music (a
Schumann symphony) for this in 1970s
Historical drama – used in 1980s
Costume drama – used in 1990s
Period drama – used more recently
Literary adaptation – used mainly by academic writers.

Treatments, stars and audience identification
Bleak House was notable for the way it used popular television actors
not usually associated with classic drama. Think, for example, about:
Johnny Vegas (Krook) the comedian, Gillian Anderson (Lady Dedlock)
from The X-Files, Liza Tarbuck (Mrs Jellaby) from Linda Green,
Warren Clarke (Boythorn) from Dalziel and Pascoe …
G What do these actors bring to the roles?
G Do you think they bring new audiences?
Compare Bleak House with the more conventionally filmed TV series
Pride and Prejudice. Start with the openings of each drama, where
the major characters are introduced.
G List the features of Pride and Prejudice which you think make it
conventional, and would appeal to the ‘traditional’, classic drama
audience.
G List the ways in which Bleak House attempts to reach new
audiences.


worksheet 18 Literary adaptations: Reaching new audiences

Preparing a treatment
Choose a synopsis from a well-known classic novel. Prepare a
treatment for Jane Tranter, Head of Drama at the BBC, with ideas on
how to reach a new audience for your adaptation. In your treatment
you should consider:
G Whether to update/set the novel in a contemporary context and if
so how;
G Visual style (camerawork/editing);
G Mise en scène (key locations/sets/lighting/costume);
G Stars/key actors, with reasons for your choice;
G Length of each episode, scheduling, channel and reasons for your
choice;
G Ideas for possible interactive features (website/‘red button’).
You could find a synopsis of a novel like Wuthering Heights, Silas
Marner, Oliver Twist, Great Expectations or Tess of the D’Urbervilles,
all of which have been the subjects of films or TV dramatisations in
the last ten years.


worksheet 19
Representations
in Bleak House
How far is Bleak House relevant to society today? Explore how some
of the issues it raises are represented. How far do you think
audiences relate these issues to society today? For each topic, some
suggested extracts are listed to help navigate your way around this
15-part drama.

Social class
Look at the following extracts.
G What are the dominant views of society and social class conveyed
by each extract? How is the audience positioned to adopt that
dominant point of view? Consider dialogue and mise en scène.
Ep 6: 04.40 – Sir Leicester Dedlock, Lady Dedlock and Mr Rouncewell
Ep 1: 44.08 – Mrs Pardiggles, Esther, Ada and Richard visit
bricklaying family
Ep 4: 17.50 – Mr Bucket seeks out Jo
Ep 6: 14.51 – Mrs Woodcourt visits Bleak House
Ep 6: 17:26 – Jo ill, Tulkinghorn protecting the interests of a great
family, Lady D and Guppy
G What view of society do the representations suggest?
G In what ways do they suggest that these images are competing for
audience attention?
G How far do you think they are similar to society today?
G Do you think audiences of the recent series made such
connections?
G What are the implications of that?

Law
Look at the first and last view of the court: Ep 1: 1.30 and
Ep 15: 18.10–20.13 (the final judgment);
Ep 9: 11.24 – Vholes
G What image of law and the legal system is suggested by the
drama?
Tulkinghorn (notably the power he displays over Lady Dedlock)
Ep 1: 1.30 – Court scene where we are first introduced to his
power and reptilian appearance

Ep 2: 18.38 – Where he is shown to respond manipulatively to what
he senses is some hidden secret which might damage
Sir Leicester
Ep 2: 24:03 – Scene which ends with cross-cutting between
Tulkinghorn and Lady Dedlock suggesting menace
and power
Ep 9: 24.46 – Now fully aware of Lady Dedlock’s secret, Tulkinghorn
displays complete power and control over her


worksheet 19 Representations in Bleak House

The power of the gaze:
What do the characters
of Tulkinghorn and
Lady Dedlock suggest
about the representation
of social class and
gender in Bleak House?

G What do you think Tulkinghorn’s character suggests?
G What does his character suggest about the law?
G How far do you think he is merely a functional ‘bad’ character –
one who is exploitative, manipulative and ruthless?

Women and society
Look at the following scene between Lady Dedlock and Esther, Ep 8: 17
G Lady Dedlock’s secret is exposed approximately halfway through
the drama. It is signalled to audiences early in the narrative.
G What does that suggest about audience interest?
G Do audiences watch to have their (narrative) expectations
fulfilled/confirmed?
G Are audiences more interested in seeing how the drama unfolds

rather than what happens next?
G Is a critical point being made about a society in which position and
what people say and think is more important than what people
feel? Is this an exposure of a class-bound society in which
‘women’ are tainted whereas men are not? Is this still the case in
today’s society?
An interesting contrast is with the representation of ‘shame’ in
Paul Abbott’s Shameless.


worksheet 20
Industry and genre

Spooks provides a simple case study about the way the industry
approaches genre. Use the following questions as a prompt.
G Why do you think an independent producer, like Stephen Garrett,
wanted to develop a TV drama in a different genre from crime and
hospital-based dramas?
G Why choose a ‘more modern approach to the world of
espionage’? What does this say about the espionage genre?
G Why do you think the BBC producer wanted more of an ‘intelligent
action drama’?
G How do you think Spooks would have differed if it had been
produced for Channel 4?
G How did Kudos attempt to make ‘television that would stop people
renting videos’?
Look at the way the BBC has scheduled programmes in 2003/4 and
2005 on Saturday nights.

November 2004
6.30 Strictly Come Dancing
7.35 National Lottery
8.15 Strictly Come Dancing
8.40 Casualty
9.30 Billy Connolly’s World Tour of New Zealand
10.10 News
10.30 Match of the Day
12.00 Film

March 2005
5.55 Strictly Dance Fever
7.00 Doctor Who
7.45 National Lottery
8.20 Casualty
9.10 Strictly Dance Fever
9.40 Out-take TV
10.10 News
10.30 Match of the Day
12.00 Film

G How is the BBC trying to win back audiences from the video/DVD
rental market to television on Saturday nights?
G Why does the BBC need to do that?
G What is the role of TV drama in that competitive strategy?


worksheet 21
Narrative resolution

Examine the concluding
sequence of Spooks.

Scene Description of scene Notes
40 Adam and Khatera in Mansion House
reception room

41 Ahmed in room where Fiona is held

42 Adam and Khatera, dissuading
Khatera from acting and pleading
with her to reveal whereabouts of
his wife

43 Ahmed and other terrorist with Fiona –
petrol being poured over Fiona as
she screams – camera being set up
to film it
44 Helicopter shots


worksheet 21 Narrative resolution

Scene Description of scene Notes
45 About to set Fiona alight – shooting
of terrorist and of Ahmed

46 Helicopter – Adam running to meet
Fiona – embrace

47 Harry Pearce, Ruth and Danny’s
dead body

48 Final shot of Adam embracing Fiona

G How is equilibrium being restored?
G What techniques are used to position audiences?
Consider the role of
camerawork, editing and
narrative sequencing, sound,
dialogue and music.
G How are the binary oppositions
resolved?
G What reassurances is this
resolution attempting to give
and how is that achieved?


worksheet 22
Representation of
terrorism and
ethnicity in Spooks
Once you have seen the whole episode of Spooks (Series 3/Episode 10)
used in this case study, ask yourself what view of terrorism is
conveyed to audiences? Refer to key scenes which influence your
attitudes.
One key scene in the drama is where Ahmed holds Fiona and Danny
hostage and phones Fiona’s husband, Adam, to force him to decide
which of the two will be murdered. Danny provokes Ahmed into killing
him (scenes 31 and 32).
G Ahmed is represented in a negative way, Fiona and Danny
positively. How are those binary opposites conveyed to
audiences?
G What role do mise en scène, camerawork and editing play in
underlining those representations?
G What techniques are used to involve audiences emotionally? How
does that position audiences?
G What view of terrorism emerges from these scenes?

Representation of Ahmed and Khatera
G What do you understand by Arab, Islamic, Muslim, Middle-Eastern?
G What are the equivalent categories for describing British people?
Since Britain is an ethnically diverse society, are there equivalents?
What does this suggest about using these categories, which are
widespread in the mainstream media?
G What do you know about Al Qaeda?
G Try to find three contrasting representations of Iraqi people from
the internet, newspapers, magazines, films. What conclusions can
you draw from these representations?
G Look back at the representation of Ahmed and Khatera in this
episode of Spooks. How far does the drama position audiences to
equate ‘Muslim’ (from whatever national context) with terrorism?
G Think of other characters from British ethnic minorities in the
drama. What is their significance?


worksheet 23
Doctor Who and
fans: Doing your
own survey
Different audiences respond to TV dramas in different ways. Very
often it is a question of emphasis. Using a focus group, when
extracts are shown to a group of fans or enthusiasts, is a good way
of exploring how different audiences respond to dramas. Below are
some suggested episodes and/or extracts, with ideas about the kinds
of questions to ask (based on the issues raised in Case Study 4). Aim
to construct your own focus-group questions.

Role of CGI effects
Doctor Who and ‘The End of the World’ sequence (Series 1/Episode 2)
G What do you think of this as the concluding sequence of an
episode?
G What do you think of the special effects?
G Are they deliberately intended to be ‘realistic’ special effects?
G How do you think audiences respond to the special effects in the
drama?

Tone
Look at the opening of ‘Bad Wolf’ (Series 1/Episode 12), with its
parodies of Big Brother, The Weakest Link and Trinny and Susanna.
G What is being parodied here?
G Are there any serious issues underlining this send-up – about
media ownership or audiences, for example?
G How seriously do audiences take these issues?


worksheet 23 Doctor Who and fans: Doing your own survey

Characters and power
Watch the end of Series 1/Episode 1, where Rose is deciding whether
or not to join the Doctor.
G Why does Rose decide to join the Doctor?
G Do audiences see any particular significance in her decision to join
the Doctor?

Look at key moments from ‘The Long Game’ (Series 1/Episode 7),
where Cathica is being persuaded by the Doctor and Rose to rebel.
G What is the significance of the decisions Cathica makes?
G Do you think it is significant that Cathica is female?
G What is meant by the term ‘empowering’? How might ideas about
‘empowerment’, putting people in the position to help themselves,
relate to these representations of characters?
G Do you think these are familiar ideas to audiences today? How
does that knowledge affect reactions to the representation of
these female characters?

Look at the role of Doctor Who in ‘The Unquiet Dead’ (Series 1/
Episode 3)
G How is he represented and why?

Different audiences, different responses?
G Do you think children, young people, parents, students, fans
respond differently to Doctor Who?
G If possible, use the same extracts as above and carry out an
interview with at least two contrasting kinds of audience.


worksheet 24
Representation
of Rose
As Rose appeared in every episode of Doctor Who (in 2005 and
2006), studying her is a good way of exploring how women are
currently represented in the media. The issues surrounding this
representation remain open to debate. (For example, does sexuality
still shape women's identity? Are they in control or exploited?).
Choose what you consider to be key moments featuring Rose.
Suggested extracts are listed below.
Conclusion of Series 1/Episode 1
Rose’s exchange with Gwyneth (‘The Unquiet Dead’, Series 1/
Episode 3)
Rose finding out about her father (‘Father’s Day’, Series 1/Episode 8)
The way Rose and the Doctor act (choose any episode)
G What for you are typical representations of women today?
Give three contrasting examples.
G What do the examples suggest about women’s sexuality and
power?
G Do you agree that women today are often portrayed as ‘sexual
subjects’, in control of their sexuality, rather than the ‘sexual
objects’ of men’s desires and fantasies?
G What image of young women is being conveyed in these
sequences?
G Is Rose portrayed primarily in terms of sexuality? Suggest three
other representations of women you think are similar to Rose.
G Do you think different audiences (eg, female and male) react in the
same way to the representation of her character?


worksheet 25
Title sequences:
Shameless and
Six Feet Under
Title sequences are designed to attract (target?) audiences, set the
tone and establish a brand image for TV dramas. They are generally
produced by specialist companies (like Digital Kitchen who produced
Six Feet Under’s title sequence). Studying title sequences is therefore
a good way to explore dramas. Shameless and Six Feet Under are in
varying degrees alternative and unconventional. You would expect
that image to be established by the title sequences.
G What features of the title sequences for Shameless and Six Feet
Under create their alternative image (think about camerawork,
editing, images, music/sound)?
G Play each title sequence with sound only. How does the
soundtrack set up expectations of an alternative drama?
G Play each title sequence without sound. What are the connotations
of the images?
G Shameless: How does Frank’s voiceover anchor, and thus position,
audiences? (Take the example of the burning of the car at the
close of the sequence, for example.)
G Six Feet Under: Do you think the images of the title sequence
create a narrative? What is being suggested by that ‘narrative’?
G Alan Poul, one of the producers of Six Feet Under, says of the title
sequence that it sets the tone for the drama and establishes a
‘brand image’. What is the importance of a brand image for TV
dramas?


worksheet 26
Representation
of gay sexuality
Shameless, Series 1/Episode 1
One of the alternative features of Shameless is the way it represents
sexual orientation and gay sexuality. It seems to position audiences
to accept it as just one way in which people express their sexuality.
G Why do you think Paul Abbott chose to include a gay character as
one of the Gallagher family? What does this suggest about a
dramatist’s writing methods?
G What other images of gay sexuality do you know about on
television? Is this representation similar or different from them? In
what way? You might think about Will & Grace, Six Feet Under or
the film Beautiful Thing (UK, 1996).
Look at the following extracts from Episode 1 to show how gay
sexuality is built into the narrative at the beginning of the series:
Lip finds Ian’s folder of male pornographic images: 04:22
Lip reveals to Ian that he knows Ian is gay: 07:22
Ian catches sight of Kevin naked next door: 21:22–22:01
Lip and Ian’s argument over Kash – Ian stands up for himself: 27:54
Lip and Ian in van: 44:05
G How far and in what ways do you think the representation of
gay sexuality in this episode is challenging?
G Explore how humour is used to shape audience attitudes to
the issue.

Shameless: Just an
ordinary family?


worksheet 26 Representation of gay sexuality

Six Feet Under, Series 1
Look at some (or all) of the following sequences from different
episodes of Series 1:
Episode 2: 3:40–5:10 (David’s fantasy about waking up with Keith
and being quizzed by his dead father)
Episode 10: 54:59–55:08 (where Angela comments that she has
never known anyone so hung up about being gay)
Episode 12 which features several revealing scenes raising issues
about gay sexuality:
1:40–3:10 (the homophobic murder which opens the episode)
17:25–18:55 (fantasy sequence – conflict between David’s gay
sexuality and his religious beliefs)
37:22–40:07 (Rico’s homophobic reactions to David)
46:20–49:37 (funeral with anti-homosexual demonstrations)
Episode 13: 46:20–48:35 (David’s reading in church, a coded
‘coming out’)
G How is gay sexuality represented in each extract?
G How does this representation compare and contrast with other
Six Feet Under: What do
representations of gay sexuality?
you see? A police officer
and an undertaker or a G How do the representations position audiences? How far do they
gay couple? shape audience attitudes to gay sexuality?


worksheet 27
Challenging
alternatives?
Shameless builds a broad range of challenging issues into its
narratives (family, community and social class are all represented in
surprising and challenging ways). The narratives of each episode are
structured to position audiences to accept alternative points of view
about the issues. Six Feet Under uses fantasy sequences to explore
the psychological reasons why characters are repressed. This has the
effect of taking audiences with the characters to accept what might
be considered alternative or challenging points of view. In different
ways, therefore, both dramas position audiences to accept
challenging points of view.

Shameless
Explore how family and community are represented in any episode.
(Series 3/Episodes 1 and 4, or the 2004 Christmas Special episode
are particularly good examples.)
G How does the narrative structure position audiences?
G Why do you think Paul Abbott and the other writers in the series
continually position audiences to suspend conventional moral
codes and accept the way of life of people on the Chatsworth
estate?
G How alternative and challenging do you think Shameless is? Why?
G Compare the representation of social class and community in
Shameless with dramas like Coronation Street, The Simpsons and
Life Begins.

Six Feet Under and its fantasy sequences
Choose three contrasting examples of the many fantasy sequences
which are integral to the narrative structure of Six Feet Under. Here
are some examples:
Nate: Series 1/Episode 1, 24:00–25:40
David’s fantasy sequences: Series 1/Episodes 10, 12 and 13
Ruth: Series 1/Episode 9: 40:10–40:47 and 42:56–46:24
G How experimental do you think the incorporation of these
sequences into the narrative of a TV drama is?
G To what extent do these fantasy sequences use surreal and
dream-like features? Why?

G What do each of the sequences suggest about the characters?
G Are audiences being positioned to accept what each character is
trying to come to terms with?


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