I have never quite fathomed why this soap does so well in the ratings?? I've followed and seen the appeal of most soaps like Corrie, Eastenders, Hollyoaks, The Bill, Family Affairs, Home and Away etc but I can't see any in this - my mother watches this religiously but I just can never get into it.

The acting is atrocious (Lorraine Chase for example), the storylines are ridiculous and inane beyond belief (the Dingle's celebrating sending Shamrak to jail, Marlon's stalking) and although Eastenders isn't setting the world on fire anymore surely it looks like high class televison in comparison?? And as for Cain Dingle, what woman in their right mind would sleep with that tramp???

Am I the only one who feels like this, what is wrong with me? lol!!

i like it i'm afraid. i think it's because it's not all doom and gloom, not every plot is sensationalist and some of the characters are actually (shock horror!) likeable, unlike Eastenders and Corrie where i couldn't give a toss what happens to any of the characters. A lot of the acting is very good, and what soap has believable storylines?

Its horses for courses then Ilike emmerdale and corrie both. EE is so depressing now. I thought ee was getting good when Alfie Moon arrived to inject some much needed humour into it but now he is as sad and depressing as the rest of them. Emmerdale and Corrie score so well because whilst the deal with some serious storylines they still show the funny side of life.

Because they are not so intent on sensational storylines to keep people interested they also see things through a lot better. Characters don't have as many personality transplants (except for Chloe - what happened there?', storylines play out in a realistic time frame and characters actually react like normal people to things, which i prefer to all the shouting and screaming that goes on in other soaps.

I don't watch Emmerdale religiously, but it does tend to be on when I get home from work and sit down to eat, so I generally see quite a few episodes. I do tend to find there's a slight 'pantomine' side to it, with The Dingles etc, but I quite enjoy that, mainly because I always feel that it doesn't take itself too seriously, unlike some other soaps (yes, EE I'm talking about you). There are some appaulling bad actors in it (yes, Lorriane Chase it's you I'm looking at), but there's some other really enjoyable characters, Diane, Chas, Edna for example. I find it strikes a nice balance between the comedy side and the serious.

This is exactly how i feel. I love to get in from work (i get in around 6:50) pour a glass of wine and watch Emmerdale whilst staring the dinner. You dont have to concentrate hard on it, its lighthearted and its entertaining.

They also have a good mix of older and younger characters so its watchable to most people.

The only thing that got a tad boring recently was Marlon Dingle and his depression. I thought the scenes when Tricia died were fantastic and brought a tear to my eye. They should of let him mourn, and then carried on where he left off. BUT no, they had to make him sink into a depression and live in a loft for weeks - then have him stalk someone. I wanted to wack him round the face with a wet haddock. It got too much.

But i love Emmerdale and it brings a smile to my face most days ... which alas Eastenders doesnt

I'll go completely with you there, as to the reasons it's so popular.
The Marlon thing dragged on a little too long, but then, in real time, how long would it take someone to get over the death of a loved one? Different people react differently to any said situation.
Does Edna wear her hat in bed? (that was just a thought).
I think it has a good range of characters, some less believable than others, but I think that those of us who do enjoy the lighter side of soap, may, at least, identify/know of someone similar to most of the characters in the village.

I think emmerdale is great. I actually think it quite often has better storylines than the other soaps. The added humour is also a bonus!! I thought the Tricia thing at new year was an excellent storyline, as was the charity in prison business. There are a few things that are slightly unbeleiveable!! But hey, ee is totally unbeleivable, I mean how much bad stuff can happen in one place in a year??!!

Thank god someone else was thinking the same things as me! And why the hell is that stupid Jervis (think thats his name) bloke making a coffin, as if anyone is going to believe that old people act really childish and get their friends to run over to a shed with them to pretend to measure them up to build their coffin! As far as Lorraine Chase's acting is concerned its appalling and I don't know whether its the stupid clothes, voice or facial expressions which make the character unconvicing! :yawn: As you said da33431 Cain is a tramp. He always looks dirty! What woman would sleep with a man with that kind of haircut.

Whats with the Dingles and incest anyways?

Don't worry I don't actually watch it religiously, just see bits of it up my friends house in the week when she's watching it! :sleep:

Angel

er... well some people do make their own coffins. Why not if you can and haven't anything better to do? Do you know how expensive it is to buy a coffin? He's thinking of his family not having to shell out for one when he dies. Sounds fair enough to me, i don't think that's particularly childish!

i didn't really see the point of the Marlon stalking thing, it didn't really go anywhere, did it?

people watch it cos its on at that 7pm time-slot and has very little competion on the other channels!

it is without dought the shittyest soap, along with neighbours!

You must be mixing it up with eastenders and home and away

Dumded down Archers on tv, perfect early evening viewing. You don't have to watch it religiously but can dip in and out with the added bonus of humour.

I find it pretty entertaining generally. I like most of the characters (except Jarvis who I reeeeeally hate).

give lorraine chase a break!she is a sexy woman,regardless of age,and an entertaining character at that.

An entertaining character ???????

She has no redeeming features whatsoever.

Ge Paul Mckenna to visit the village and hypnotise Steph into marrying Shadrach. It would make my day and his day.

ffs lmao that I would love to see - imagine the look on her scrawny face if she woke up in bed with Shadrach

Hold that image folks

I think someone else got it right. Emmerdale is not as complex as Corrie or EE, so in the earlier timeslot you can watch while you cook or eat etc. It is easy to dip in and out which is very suitable at that time. I don't think it is up to Corrie's high standard (impossible IMHO) but at the moment I would rate it above EE!

Is Emmerdale off it's rocker? Yes. Is it in a world of it's own? Yes (Evevn more than Corrie). But it is lighthearted and easy to keep up with...

That's exactly why I like it as well. I've really gone off Eastenders lately and I've never been particularly interested in Corrie barring a few storylines here and there. What I love about Emmerdale is that it's got the sass of Eastenders and combines it with the light-heartedness of Corrie. It's witty and the dialogue is always sharp. The best of both worlds IMO and a little extra.

Ok, I'll give it to you that there's a lot of humour, whether intentional or not!!! The Dingles though must be the most horrendous family on TV, I guess that's why people like them I guess. I think the fact they are so cut off leads to some very incestuous claustrophic storylines!!

What's Eastenders' excuse for all the incest then? lol

Oh they just like to keep it in the fairmerly

What other people have said. Emmerdale is FANTASTIC, far far better than the dire Eastenders. It's up there with Corrie for me and often better. In fact like Corrie, the last 18 months have been one of its best ever spells. May it long continue.

Varying characters, interesting storylines that can be as dramatic as the best of them, huge amounts of humour be it in the script or actions of someone, often excellent acting...

It's not faultless, but it's entertaining and totally likeable, and that's all you need.

I thought the Slaters were the most horrendous family on TV.
The Dingles are definitely the BEST family onTV.

[quote=msf]I thought the Slaters were the most horrendous family on TV.
closely follwed by the ferrias, the watts and the beales