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Tony Holland
Anthony John Holland (18 January 1940 – 28 November 2007) was a British screenwriter and actor. He is best known as the writer and co-creator (with Julia Smith (producer), Julia Smith) of the BBC soap opera ''EastEnders''. Early life Holland was born in Shoeburyness, Essex, England, the oldest of three children, to John and Pat Holland. His younger twin brothers were Allan and Bryn. As a military family, Holland moved around with the postings assigned to his father and spent time in Aldershot, Gravesend and Chelmsford. Career Holland began his career as an actor, appearing in the 1966 ''Doctor Who'' serial ''The Savages (Doctor Who), The Savages'' and later ''Message for Posterity'', a 1967 serial for ''The Wednesday Play''. In the latter year, a play Holland had developed – ''The Isle is Full of Noises'' – was taken up by the BBC and produced by ''Thirty-Minute Theatre''; it was from there that Holland turned to script-writing. Through his agent, Holland landed a job as ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Julia Smith (producer)
Julia Cuthbert Smith (26 May 1927 – 19 June 1997) was an English television director and producer. She is best known for being the co-creator (along with Tony Holland) of the BBC soap opera ''EastEnders'', also working as a director on the show and as its first producer. Early life Smith was born in Maida Vale, west London, on 26 May 1927, to Edward Cuthbert Smith and his wife, Elfriede Frances Gritton Menges. The family's residence was in Bedford Park, London, Bedford Park, a planned development in Chiswick. Smith's father was a vocalist, and became the senior professor of singing at the Royal College of Music. Other maternal family members have also had careers in the arts: Herbert Menges, her uncle, was a conductor and director of music at The Old Vic; Isolde Menges, her aunt, was a violinist, and Royal College of Music professor; and Chris Menges, her cousin, became an Academy Awards, Oscar-winning cinematographer. During the World War II, Second World War, Smith was eva ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cockney
Cockney is a dialect of the English language, mainly spoken in London and its environs, particularly by Londoners with working-class and lower middle class roots. The term ''Cockney'' is also used as a demonym for a person from the East End, or, traditionally, born within earshot of Bow Bells. Estuary English is an intermediate accent between Cockney and Received Pronunciation, also widely spoken in and around London, as well as in wider South Eastern England. In multicultural areas of London, the Cockney dialect is, to an extent, being replaced by Multicultural London English—a new form of speech with significant Cockney influence. Words and phrases Etymology of ''Cockney'' The earliest recorded use of the term is 1362 in passus VI of William Langland's ''Piers Plowman'', where it is used to mean "a small, misshapen Egg as food, egg", from Middle English ''coken'' + ''ey'' ("a rooster, cock's egg"). Concurrently, the List of mythological places, mythical land of luxury Co ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Expats
An expatriate (often shortened to expat) is a person who resides outside their native country. The term often refers to a professional, skilled worker, or student from an affluent country. However, it may also refer to retirees, artists and other individuals who have chosen to live outside their native country. The International Organization for Migration of the United Nations defines the term as 'a person who voluntarily renounces his or her nationality'. Historically, it also referred to exiles. The UAE is the country with the highest percentage of expatriates in the world after the Vatican City, with expatriates in the United Arab Emirates representing 88% of the population. Etymology The word ''expatriate'' comes from the Latin words and , from , . Semantics Dictionary definitions for the current meaning of the word include: :Expatriate: :* 'A person who lives outside their native country' (Oxford), or :* 'living in a foreign land' (Webster's). These definitions ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Eldorado (TV Series)
''Eldorado'' (English: "The Golden One") is a British soap opera created by Tony Holland. It ran for only one year, from 6 July 1992 to 9 July 1993. Set in the fictional town of Los Barcos on the Costa Eldorado in Spain and following the lives of British and European expatriates, the BBC hoped it would be as successful as ''EastEnders'' and replicate some of the sunshine and glamour of imported Australian soaps such as ''Home and Away'' and ''Neighbours''. In spite of a high-profile advertising campaign on television, radio and in the press preceding the launch ('Are you ready for ''Eldorado''?', read by actor Campbell Morrison), the programme was not initially a popular hit with viewers or critics. Following a radical overhaul, ratings improved, but it was deemed too late to save the programme and it was cancelled by BBC1's new controller, Alan Yentob, in March 1993. Creation ''Eldorado'' was conceived originally from an internal competition within the BBC as a replacement f ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Irish Independent
The ''Irish Independent'' is an Irish daily newspaper A newspaper is a Periodical literature, periodical publication containing written News, information about current events and is often typed in black ink with a white or gray background. Newspapers can cover a wide variety of fields such as poli ... and online publication which is owned by Independent News & Media (INM), a subsidiary of Mediahuis. The newspaper version often includes glossy magazines. Traditionally a broadsheet newspaper, it introduced an additional compact size in 2004. Further, in December 2012 (following billionaire Denis O'Brien's takeover) it was announced that the newspaper would become compact only. History Murphy and family (1905–1973) The ''Irish Independent'' was formed in 1905 as the direct successor to ''The Irish Daily Independent and Daily Nation'', an 1890s' pro- Parnellite newspaper. It was launched by William Martin Murphy, a controversial Irish nationalist businessman, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Fair City
''Fair City'' is an Irish television soap opera which has been broadcast on RTÉ One since 1989. Produced by the public service broadcaster RTE, it first aired on Monday, 18 September 1989. It has won several awards and is both the most popular and the longest running Irish drama serial. Plots centre on the domestic and professional lives of the residents of Carrigstown, a fictional suburb of the Northside part of the city of Dublin. The area encompasses a restaurant, pub, garage, corner shop, community centre, charity shop, surgery, boxing club (Esker/Carrigstown Boxing Club) and various businesses. Originally aired as one half-hour episode per week for a limited run, the show is now broadcast year round on RTÉ One in three episodes per week, all of which air at 20:00. ''Fair City'' is the most watched drama in Ireland, with average viewing figures of 550,000. Devised by executive producer Margaret Gleeson and series producer Paul Cusack, it has remained a signific ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
RTÉ
(; ; RTÉThe É in RTÉ is pronounced as an English E () and not an Irish É ()) is an Irish public service broadcaster. It both produces and broadcasts programmes on television, radio and online. The radio service began on 1 January 1926, while regular television broadcasts began on 31 December 1961, making it one of the oldest continuously operating public service broadcasters in the world. It is headquartered in Donnybrook in Dublin, with offices across different parts of Ireland. RTÉ is a statutory body, overseen by a board appointed by the Government of Ireland, with general management in the hands of a committee of senior managers, currently an interim leadership team, headed by the Director General. RTÉ is regulated by Coimisiún na Meán. It is financed by the television licence fee and through advertising, with some of its services funded solely by advertising, while others are funded solely by the licence fee. The current network consists of 4 main TV chan ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Leslie Grantham
Leslie Michael Grantham (30 April 1947 – 15 June 2018) was an English actor who played "Dirty" Den Watts in the BBC soap opera ''EastEnders''. He was a convicted murderer, having served 10 years for the killing of a West Germany, West German taxi driver, and had significant press coverage resulting from an online sex scandal in 2004. Early life Grantham was born in Camberwell, London, the son of Adelaide (''née'' Flinders) and Walter William Grantham (1915–1998). He enlisted in the Royal Fusiliers regiment of the British Army in 1965, aged 18. Murder conviction Grantham was soon posted to West Germany, where he quickly found himself in debt to army colleagues. He resorted to criminal activities in his attempt to clear the debt. On 3 December 1966, Grantham attempted to rob a taxi driver, Felix Reese, in Osnabrück, Lower Saxony, by threatening him at gunpoint and demanding money. In a struggle between the two men, Grantham shot Reese, who died from a gunshot wound to the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Queen Victoria
''EastEnders'' is a British television soap opera created by Julia Smith and Tony Holland which has been broadcast on BBC One since February 1985. Set in the fictional borough of Walford in the East End of London, the programme follows the stories of local residents and their families as they go about their daily lives. Within eight months of the show's original launch, it had reached the number one spot in BARB's television ratings, and has consistently remained among the top-rated series in Britain. Four ''EastEnders'' episodes are listed in the all-time top 10 most-watched programmes in the UK, including the number one spot, when over 30 million watched the 1986 Christmas Day episode. ''EastEnders'' has been important in the history of British television drama, tackling many subjects that are considered to be controversial or taboo in British culture, and portraying a social life previously unseen on UK mainstream television. Since co-creator Holland was from a large f ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Angie Watts
Angie Watts is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera ''EastEnders'', played by Anita Dobson from the first episode of the series in 1985 until 1988, when Dobson decided to leave, and the character was written out. Angie is well known for her cheeky banter, her perm and turning to alcohol during her stormy marriage to cheating Den Watts (Leslie Grantham), which ended when he handed her divorce papers on Christmas Day 1986, in an episode watched by a record-breaking 30.1 million viewers. Despite being the loud and feisty lady of Walford, and having a close relationship with her beloved adopted daughter Sharon Watts ( Letitia Dean), she does not have much real happiness during her time in Albert Square. Alcoholism claimed her life in April 2002 when she died off-screen from cirrhosis of the liver, 14 years after her last appearance prior to that date. Angie made an unannounced appearance as an apparition on 19 February 2025 during the show's 40th anniversary, reprisin ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Den Watts
Den Watts is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera ''EastEnders'', played by actor Leslie Grantham. He became well known for his tabloid nickname, "Dirty Den". Den was the original landlord of The Queen Victoria public house from Albert Square who first appeared when the show debuted on 19 February 1985. From then onwards, the character had a turbulent marriage with his alcoholic first wife Angie Watts, Angie (Anita Dobson). In 1986, Den discovers that Angie lied to him about having six months to live and got revenge by giving her divorce papers on Christmas Day 1986, which was watched by over 30 million viewers. Den continued his close relationship with their adopted daughter Sharon Watts, Sharon (Letitia Dean). Den soon became involved in storylines that mostly contributed to the character's magnanimous and "bad boy" persona, such as Den impregnating 16-year-old Michelle Fowler (Susan Tully) – which resulted in a long-standing feud with Michelle's mother Pauline Fowle ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pauline Fowler
Pauline Fowler is a fictional character from the BBC One soap opera ''EastEnders''. She was played by actress Wendy Richard between the first episode on 19 February 1985 and 25 December 2006. Pauline was created by scriptwriter Tony Holland and producer Julia Smith (producer), Julia Smith as one of ''EastEnders' ''original characters. She made her debut in the soap's first episode on 19 February 1985, and remained for twenty-one years and ten months, making her the second-longest-running original character to appear continuously, surpassed only by her nephew Ian Beale (Adam Woodyatt). Since then, she has been surpassed by Letitia Dean who plays Sharon Watts. Pauline has featured in archive footage twice since her departure: in 2015, celebrating the show's EastEnders Live Week, 30th anniversary, and in 2025, celebrating the show's EastEnders 40th Anniversary Week, 40th anniversary. Pauline is a member of the Beale family. Her storylines focus on drudgery, money worries, and fami ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
