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Should all soaps have at least 3 - 4 die hard fans on their production team?


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Old 13-06-2015, 18:15
starry_rune
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To avoid future errors like that in Corrie with Kevin forgetting his baby etc..

Should at least a few people be die hard fans as part of the recruitment process? Aswell as a database of character and area information?
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Old 13-06-2015, 18:20
samcains90
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It would probably be of benefit but should not be a requirement. Though they should obviously have some sort of passion for the characters they are writing about.

Obviously the current team did not do enough research before allowing this to be written.

It's surprising that the actor who plays Kevin did not notice the error also, don't you think?
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Old 13-06-2015, 18:22
srhgts
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Yes. It's pretty clear most people working on soaps these days don't give a shit about any kind of quality.
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Old 13-06-2015, 18:25
shrinkingviolet
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They absolutely should have a database of things - basic research should be the minimum people should expect. In no way should fans be allowed on the production team though.
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Old 13-06-2015, 18:26
davads
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It's surprising that the actor who plays Kevin did not notice the error also, don't you think?
To be honest I don't think it is, particularly. The likes of us notice these things because we're Corrie fanatics. It doesn't actually follow that just because an actor has played a soap role for many years, he or she is a world authority on the show or their character. (Some might not even be into the show as a viewer.) Plus - it's a job, you probably approach it a bit differently to sitting back and watching it on the telly every week.

It would be like expecting a newsreader to be an expert on every world event from however many years, simply because they broadcast the stories to the nation... (Or an actor to remember every character and plot detail from every production they've ever been involved in.)
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Old 13-06-2015, 18:31
D. Morgan
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Should McDonalds employ 5 fat Americans who love eating their food on their board?

What a dumb question.
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Old 13-06-2015, 18:32
samcains90
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To be honest I don't think it is, particularly. The likes of us notice these things because we're Corrie fanatics. It doesn't actually follow that just because an actor has played a soap role for many years, he or she is a world authority on the show or their character. (Some might not even be into the show as a viewer.) Plus - it's a job, you probably approach it a bit differently to sitting back and watching it on the telly every week.

It would be like expecting a newsreader to be an expert on every world event from however many years, simply because they broadcast the stories to the nation...
I don't think so, the amount of stories a newsreader gets through over the years is disproportionate to those of Kevin Webster.

But yes, perhaps he did not remember filming the previous scenes where his on-screen child died and his on-screen wife then commit suicide. It still should have been researched properly, but I would have thought that line would have triggered something in the actor as it did the audience.
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Old 13-06-2015, 18:34
David the Wavid
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They do. Corrie has a full-time archivist and assistant archivist, as the credits show.
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Old 13-06-2015, 18:49
Hank1234
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They do. Corrie has a full-time archivist and assistant archivist, as the credits show.
Well he can't be up to the job if he forgot about Kevin
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Old 13-06-2015, 18:50
srhgts
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They do. Corrie has a full-time archivist and assistant archivist, as the credits show.
They're not doing their jobs then, are they.
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Old 13-06-2015, 18:59
David the Wavid
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Well he can't be up to the job if he forgot about Kevin
They're not doing their jobs then, are they.
I take it you've never made a mistake in your line of work?
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Old 13-06-2015, 19:00
Janet Plank
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They should have fans on the casting team to prevent 'celebrities' and relatives of cast members from being fast-forwarded in to plum roles, ahead of talented actors/actresses.
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Old 13-06-2015, 19:23
swishbaby
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I take it you've never made a mistake in your line of work?
Precisely, a lot of hoo ha over nothing.
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Old 13-06-2015, 19:27
srhgts
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I take it you've never made a mistake in your line of work?
Not such an incredibly schoolboy error as that, no.
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Old 13-06-2015, 19:29
davads
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Precisely, a lot of hoo ha over nothing.
And I do wonder how many of those doing the hoo-ha-ing on this forum actually noticed, or are simply leaping on the bandwagon.

I personally didn't notice, and I'm a long-term Corrie fan.
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Old 13-06-2015, 22:44
Catmittens
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An archivist essentially fills the role that you're talking about, OP. They're meant to be the ones who keep the writers in line and make sure no inaccuracies or continuity errors are made. Fat lot of good it's doing Corrie in 2015 though.

I take it you've never made a mistake in your line of work?
But these 'mistakes' have happened more than once. What's the point of employing an archivist and assistant if history isn't going to be adhered to? I don't get it.
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Old 14-06-2015, 12:46
David the Wavid
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Not such an incredibly schoolboy error as that, no.
The archivists don't write the scripts. They could well have pointed it out and the writers ignored/forgot about it.
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Old 14-06-2015, 12:53
soap-lea
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god no that is actually a terrible idea.

the show needs to have people who work with their heads not their hearts.

effective archiving /decent researchers should be sufficient
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Old 14-06-2015, 12:59
Tony_Daniels
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Not necessarily. There'd be a risk a die-hard fan would merely want to rehash old storylines and drive the show towards their own nostalgic memories which might not be right for it in a contemporary setting.

It shouldn't preclude anyone from being on the production staff but it shouldn't be a requirement either.
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Old 14-06-2015, 16:08
emilyb
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The show has archivists & researchers but clearly thats not working, probably as there are simply too many episodes per week & too many characters as a result. Plus corrie has the longest history of any soap.

If they're going to continue having 5 episodes a week & I can't see that changing then the OP's suggestion is a good one. I don't necessarily think fans should be involved in the writing of the show but I think they could have a group of fans who writers/storyliners can get in touch with to check the accuracy of certain things. Each fan may have certain characters or a certain era to be responsible for. If a writer is unsure of a characters back history then they could email the relevant fan to ask them any questions (being careful not to give away spoilers obviously!)

Thats not to say it wouldn't be without problems, even a super fan may get facts wrong or leak details to the press. But I'm sure there would be lots of people willing to do the job even if it was unpaid, so if the fan employed wasn't any good there would be plenty of other fans waiting to take their place.

Of course an easier alternative is the writers could do a quick Google of characters before they start writing for them which would tell them all they need to know. I don't think its too much to ask that they should be expected to do some basic research before writing anything as I'm sure they'll be getting well paid.
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Old 14-06-2015, 16:12
djfunnyman
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To be honest I don't think it is, particularly. The likes of us notice these things because we're Corrie fanatics. It doesn't actually follow that just because an actor has played a soap role for many years, he or she is a world authority on the show or their character. (Some might not even be into the show as a viewer.) Plus - it's a job, you probably approach it a bit differently to sitting back and watching it on the telly every week.

It would be like expecting a newsreader to be an expert on every world event from however many years, simply because they broadcast the stories to the nation... (Or an actor to remember every character and plot detail from every production they've ever been involved in.)
A newsreader would remember covering a major world event such as Princess Diana or Michael Jackson's death. A soap actor isn't quite the same

Emmerdale don't have any archivists, as shown by the lack of celebrations for the 40th anniversary
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Old 14-06-2015, 16:21
joe gillott
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I think so. Also and joint eps to balance favoritism in characters.
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Old 14-06-2015, 16:30
Dr K Noisewater
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Good question OP I was thinking the same thing when I read about the Kevin slip up. It would make a lot of sense for them to hire a super fan who has a real passion for the show and takes pleasure in knowing everything about it as their archivist. Rather than someone who is just there because its a job for the money.
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Old 14-06-2015, 16:37
soap-lea
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The show has archivists & researchers but clearly thats not working, probably as there are simply too many episodes per week & too many characters as a result. Plus corrie has the longest history of any soap.

If they're going to continue having 5 episodes a week & I can't see that changing then the OP's suggestion is a good one. I don't necessarily think fans should be involved in the writing of the show but I think they could have a group of fans who writers/storyliners can get in touch with to check the accuracy of certain things. Each fan may have certain characters or a certain era to be responsible for. If a writer is unsure of a characters back history then they could email the relevant fan to ask them any questions (being careful not to give away spoilers obviously!)

Thats not to say it wouldn't be without problems, even a super fan may get facts wrong or leak details to the press. But I'm sure there would be lots of people willing to do the job even if it was unpaid, so if the fan employed wasn't any good there would be plenty of other fans waiting to take their place.

Of course an easier alternative is the writers could do a quick Google of characters before they start writing for them which would tell them all they need to know. I don't think its too much to ask that they should be expected to do some basic research before writing anything as I'm sure they'll be getting well paid.
so you want "fans" to do for free what archivists and researchers get paid to do? jobs where they have quite often gone to uni to get qualifications to do that job. all based on one small error?

writers should google lol I have heard it all now
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Old 14-06-2015, 16:39
West End Boy
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Should all soaps have at least 3 - 4 die hard fans on their production team?
NO!
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