Did anyone notice Jenny break the 4th wall in tonight's second EP?

https://www.dropbox.com/home/Public?...apture+(6).PNG

It's happened a few times now with Phelan doing it, so wonder if it's going to become a regular thing.

Can you show me it doesn't work on the link

Try this link
http://i209.photobucket.com/albums/b...apture%206.png

Without seeing the actual scene I couldn't say for sure, but surely she's just "gazing into space"? It would be a bit naff for UK soap characters to start breaking the fourth wall (I say UK, they've probably done it in US and Australian ones), and I doubt very much they've done it a few times with Phelan as suggested above...

Sorry for being stupid, but what does that mean?

It means deliberately looking at the camera (the "fourth wall" being the audience).

There was a thread on here recently about Phelan doing the same thing in December, when we saw him "BTFW".

I think that the phrase makes the act sound more dramatic than it looks at times, and as you say it will just look like an actor staring into the distance to most people, who wouldn't know about this phrase.

Thanks for the explanation guys!!!!

Surely Phelan does it after almost every scene doesn't he??

Oh right, I get fed up with the use of these obscure terms, why not just.......looked straight at the camera.

I can think of other words for such bovine excrement, and obscure is not one of them.

It's not really an obscure term though. It usually refers to characters speaking to the audience and interacting with them, like Miranda or Deadpool.

When was the last time you heard that obscure term in your life besides this forum minutes ago.

Reading Empire magazine a few days ago.

Well they've shown scenes in the past where it's more than obvious their sets are missing ceilings, painted backdrops etc so breaking the "fourth wall" a few times is a welcome change

Personally I'd prefer them to play Chopin's Waltzes on piano. They don't do that to often so it would be a more of a welcome change to me. Not even a few times, just once. But that's just me.

Surely 'breaking the fourth wall' is really a deliberate act on the part of the writers and the characters concerned, usually as a device to bring the audience into their confidence.

I contend that the apparent breaking of the fourth wall in CS is merely, as others have suggested, a straightforward staring into space expression rather than a genuine look to camera.

Trouble is, with HD TV, there's no hiding place for this kind of inadvertent eyes roaming .. if that's indeed what it was. We the viewer don't miss anything these days, not the tiniest skin blemish thickly covered in make up, nor poorly applied mascara clogging up the lashes, etc.. On the male side, poor shaving can clearly be seen - and I don't mean so called designer stubble (that's just sheer laziness). Injury make up needs to be pretty good as well these days to be truly convincing.

Exactly what I was going to say. I've certainly known the term since I was a teenager as Moonlighting was constantly referred to as breaking the fourth wall in reviews and interviews. As indeed it did with winking into camera, directly addressing the audience, referring to how long the programme had keft to run, walking out of the set and showing the cameramen etc.

Many people wouldn't understand that staring into camera might be breaking the fourth wall if they just said that. I've not seen the Jenny one but there is no question that Phelan did stare straight into camera a couple of weeks ago as I noticed it. Tge question, as in the OP, is whether this was breaking the fourth wall and it's debateable.

Often I think these things are more leaning on the fourth wall rather than breaking them. Like Ronnie and Roxy recreating the promo for when the characters arrived in Sundays EE. Or Fletch saying he's sure he already knows Jac when they first met in Holby City due to the actors have played lovers in The Bill. They are winks to the audience by acknowledging the real world of actors and advertising within the fiction but not to the extent of directly addressing the audience.

I asked when was the last you heard the term. It's not quite the same as reading it in a magazine. But let's not quibble.

Reguarly when discussing films and tv with friends. I had a conversation about Dot referring to all the bad things that happen at Haloween over Christmas with my brother.

But, I guess many of my friends do work in the Media so perhaps we're not a standard grouping. But I've used the term with people who don't work in the industry but just like tv.

To be honest, if I as somebody with no interest in football, have heard of the offside rule, I don't think that breaking the fourth wall is that obscure re tv.

It's constantly referred to in sny reviews of Mrs Browns Boys for example.

Pantos also break the fourth wall for a theatre example and I'm sure everybody would understand in what way.

As a layman who knows nothing about the nuances of fIlmng soaps etc kk can you tell me the difference between the long 'looks' at the 'audience' that Phelan does at the end of practically every scene he's in & this incident where he has 'broken the fourth wall?'
I'm finding it very confusing!!

Thanks David's cos I didn't know what it meant either! Cheers again.

I agree with you

Nonsense.

Does that mean you want to quibble or the term is nonsense?