Eastenders (PBS) - General Discussion

[Decider]

M. Darcy -- 

Yes! Sam did dig Den up on Dennis and Sharon's wedding day.

[M. Darcy]

At least Den got to be at the wedding then :-) Heh, too soon?

[Chip]

How did I forget that?

[Ohwell]

I'm getting sick of Alfie acting like a 15 year-old trying to juggle two girlfriends.  I'll be glad when this story arc is over because it's stupid, stupid, stupid.  And Mo needs to get a life and quit going after her sister's husband.

[M. Darcy]

He's s slimeball - they are sisters! And refusing to dump one of them is just being a jerk.

[Ohwell]

No question he's a slimeball, and then having the nerve to tell Mo to break it off with Billy, knowing full well that he wasn't ready to break it off with Kat.  I used to like him, but no more.

Edited July 7, 2014 by Ohwell

[M. Darcy]

I can't imagine they thought this storyline would be popular. 

 

Oh, and Chrissie's friend Amanda - hated her!  She is just being such a bitch to Sharon. 

[Milz]

Why is Amanda bitchy to Sharon? To Den...sure, but Sharon?

[M. Darcy]

Its weird.  What did Sharon ever do to her? 

[Sharon]

Any one else not getting EastEnders for the last 2 weekends?  I live in the Richmond, VA PBS market and EE's hasn't been shown for the last 2 weekends. I've contacted the station but haven't received a reply.

And just when the "Den is dead story" was hotting up!

[Ohwell]

I live in the DC area and I've been getting it.

[sugarbaker design]

Still airing on WLIW.

[Sharon]

Heard from my Richmond, VA useless PBS station.  EastEnders is too expensive so they dropped it.  Told me to try viewing on line....

[Chip]

Out of curiosity, did they suggest where to watch it online?

[M. Darcy]

Yeah, that seems a silly suggestion.  Who would have Eastenders shows from 2005 online - especially since there are so many episodes.  Hopefully I'm wrong about that or there will be enough of an outcry that they will change their minds.  I think WETA in DC fear us if they ever dropped Eastenders - they never even interrupt it for pledge drives.

 

Wow, Alfie, when Ian can have the moral high ground, you have sunk very low.

[Ohwell]

Wow, Alfie, when Ian can have the moral high ground, you have sunk very low.

Alfie looked like a shamed dog.  Which he is.  I'm so glad Ian (!) told him off.

[Sharon]

Here's the gist of my PBS station's response:

Thank you for your email.

After many, many years airing on this station, EastEnders will no longer be part of our schedule due to the rising cost to purchase the series and our reduced funding for acquisitions of this type.

We apologize for the inconvenience with the cliffhanger. Our license to air the program ended June 30.

You may want to try online. Many of the Eastender episodes can be found at http://www.tv.com/shows/eastenders/or http://www.tvmuse.com/tv-shows/EastEnders_31038/

Janet Campbell

Director of TV Programming

p.s. - you might also be able to access these shows on Hulu or Netflix or similar services.

I haven't tried her suggestion yet. I'm surprised that each station purchases the license separately (??) since she states they have no funding for it but other stations are still showing it.

Edited July 15, 2014 by Sharon

[Decider]

That was the reason why it was dropped from the PBS station here in Los Angeles, too.  I have been able to keep up with current episodes on YouTube but it is difficult to find older episodes except here and there online.

[Chip]

I think if you are willing to jump in time to the current era, you can keep up via internet sources.

[M. Darcy]

Its not the same thing as actually watching the episodes, but I really like this website if you want to read what happens during each episode - http://archive.walford.net/

[TimWil]

A few weeks ago on the WLIW episodes Dot said to Johnny and Tina that Jim had "two grown children." Wow. Was she only referring to Carol and April? What about Derek, Max, Jack and Suzy?

[One Tough Cookie]

Boy, it's really sad about how much I have come to hate this show in such a short time.  The Millers have ruined it, driving miss Dorothy sucks, panda faced Zoe and her slut mother Kat, Pauline trying to get Rebecca back--the writing just STINKS...I used to watch it faithfully every Wednesday night and then every Tuesday night before the new shows, and now I couldn't care less.

 

For you veterans of the show--Does it get better?

[Chip]

Yes!

[Ohwell]

I hope it gets better because I'm sick of the Alfie/Kat/Mo sordid storyline, I'm sick of Dot and her driving lessons, I'm sick of the lazydirtydisgusting Millers (except for Mickey), and I'm sick of looking at Pauline's sour face. 

[One Tough Cookie]

Ohwell;  STANDNG OVATION

[Chip]

It's good now. But at the rate the US goes through episodes, who knows how long it will be!

[Ohwell]

One More Time:  Thanks! *takes a bow*

[Milz]

In the DC Metro area, stuff is going to hit the fan pretty soon: Sharon's gone to Spain to look for Den to bring back so he can attend the wedding.

 

Ian. What more can you say?

[QuinnM]

I just hope the whole scum family hits the fan and hits the road.  The only good thing I can say is that if I Tivo the episodes I can watch them in 15 minutes since I fast forward through anything scum related.

 

Did that fat lazy douchebag learn how to read yet?

[Ohwell]

I want scum family to leave, too.  I remember the first thing they did when they moved to Walford was to steal a bed.  Scumbags.  I think fat lazy douchebag attempted to read for a brief period.  His younger son was trying to help, but I don't know if douchebag learned much.  I never thought that not being able to read was much of an excuse anyway.  There must be some manual labor jobs that don't require much literacy.  Douchebag just doesn't want a job.

[M. Darcy]

I like Mikey but the rest of the Millers can just go away now. I especially like Mikey now that he keeps telling off Keith.

[Ohwell]

Oh yeah, except for Mickey.  He can stay.

[Lambie]

I get 2 episodes once a week on Channel 21 in New York. I looked up where I was in the storyline, and yup, 2005. What?! Many years ago BBCAmerica used to show the omnibus on Sundays. My husband and I got sucked into it and we sat there on Sunday afternoons watching over 4 hours of Eastenders. BBCA was only a few weeks behind the real broadcast so when I had to go over to London for work for a few weeks we were in our glory because we knew what was going on.

 

I see that you can watch the 4 weekly episodes on line on BBC but there's a big ole jump from 2005 to now. I read the episode descriptions and I didn't recognize anyone's name. Those were fun days keeping up on a British soap. I wish BBCA would do it again.

[M. Darcy]

Ah, BBCA- I remember when they stopped showing the current episodes. They said it was because no one watched the show. But no one believed them - they just didn't want to spend the money. Ever since them I refer to them as those wankers at BBCAmerica.

I could just watch Mickey yelling at Keith all day. And honestly until Rosie went to Leo's parents what has she done except cry all around the Square. I kept thinking that the place the idiots are hanging out with isn't that different from the Millers home.

[Ohwell]

I

kept thinking that the place the idiots are hanging out with isn't that different from the Millers home.

Ha!  Yeah, all that place needs is a big, smelly shaggy dog. 

[M. Darcy]

Speaking of which, where is the dog? I wonder if he ran away and they were just too stupid to notice.

[Milz]

lol.

 

 

I could just watch Mickey yelling at Keith all day. And honestly until Rosie went to Leo's parents what has she done except cry all around the Square. I kept thinking that the place the idiots are hanging out with isn't that different from the Millers home.

lol.

 

RE: PBS and EastEnders.

 

When WETA in DC began showing EE in the 80s, they caught up (!) and were a month or two behind the BBC. That lasted until EE increased the number of weekly shows from twice a week. And WETA has been falling further and further and further behind. I lived briefly in the NYC area in the mid 90s and the PBS station there was ahead of WETA by 2 or 3 weeks.

 

I don't understand why WETA doesn't try to catch up again because it has a "UK" channel and they could run episodes of EastEnders instead of re-running "My Family" or "Monarch of the Glen" (which they've re-run since they began the UK channel).

[Ohwell]

Enough with the Millers!  I read that the British viewers didn't like the Ferreiras, but I think the Millers are much more annoying.  I hope they move away soon.

[M. Darcy]

People hated the Ferreiras.   I wonder if the producers thought- you thought they were bad, you haven't seen anything yet.

 

So, am I supposed to be sad that Leo is dead?  Even though I hate the Millers, I have to say the baby was adorable in the scene in the café.  Heh, though, it kind of says something about what should have been an emotional scene that all I was doing was watching the baby kick the table.

[Ohwell]

Why did people hate the Ferreiras?  I saw all the episodes they were in and I didn't think they were that bad.  And they were clean.  The only one I couldn't stand was the father.

[M. Darcy]

The Wikipedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ferreira_family entry explains all the problems but basically the fans and critics thought that they were "unrealistic", "annoying", and "unlikeable" . 

[Ohwell]

Ah, ok, thanks.  

[Milz]

The Wikipedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ferreira_family entry explains all the problems but basically the fans and critics thought that they were "unrealistic", "annoying", and "unlikeable" . 

 

Those adjectives could be applied to the Millers too.

 

I think Demi and her boyfriend are idiots, but I don't blame her for going with him---anything is better than living with Rosie and Keith.

Edited August 28, 2014 by Milz

[M. Darcy]

Heh, that is true.  It was just such a stupid plan - running away with a baby.  Though, the idiot parents on both sides are at fault - sit down and have a reasonable talk that he was moving away instead of hiding it from Romeo and Juliet.  But then, if people weren't idiots, they wouldn't be living in Albert Square.  I do have to give them props - they didn't fall on the Albert Square plan of job training - becoming prostitutes.

 

Which I never understood.  No jobs in the Square - instead of getting on the Tube and getting a job outside the Square, it makes more sense to become a prostitute. Nothing against prostitutes of course, but there must be other jobs.

[Milz]

Note too there's always a teen who runs away for a while, or a young  couple who squats.

 

The earliest teen runaway I can remember is Diane Butcher. The next one was Sarah Hills. Then Zoe.

 

Ricky squatted twice: once when he was with Sam and the other when he was with Bianca. Tony Hills and Simon Raymond.

[TimWil]

Milz, the very first teen runaway on EE was Mark Fowler.

I liked Disa a lot, the girl who befriended Diane when she was sleeping rough in Central London.

[Ohwell]

The writers drag out many of these storylines much too long!

 

I'm sick of the Dead Den storyline and Chrissie acting like a cat in a room full of rocking chairs.  I'm sick of Sharon looking for Dead Den. 

 

I've already said I'm sick of the Millers' storyline.  The poor kid is dead now.  I really don't care what else happens to that family.

 

I'm sick of the Alfie/Kat/Mo triangle and I guess that'll be revived soon, only to drag it out even longer.

 

I'm sick to death of Dot and her driving lessons.  I just don't care!

[Milz]

I forgot that Mark was the first teen runaway!

 

But they do recycle/ repeat story lines. The Kat-Alfie-Mo triangle is a frigid version of the Grant-Sharon-Phil triangle, which was a hot version of the Ian-Cindy-Wicksy triangle. Leo and Demi are Ricky and Sam, but this time with a baby.

 

Speaking of Ian.......what the HECK do women see in him? Cindy, Mel (she had to be on drugs!), Laura, now Jane. I've always said Ian is the Square's version of Henry the VIII.

[M. Darcy]

Sigh. I had totally forgotten Johnny Allen even existed - it seems like forever since he's been on the show.

 

Sam just should have said - I am not related to Den Watts, I had no relationship with him - why would I even care what happened to him.  Ask his damn wife.

[Ohwell]

Johnny Allen!  Did the writers forget about him?