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Is Coronation Street about to turn into a soup opera for healthy eating? Is Coronation Street about to turn into a soup opera for healthy eating?
(6 months later)
Presumably working on the basis that what’s good for Tracy Barlow is good for thee and me, the government could soon be enlisting Coronation Street residents to help change national attitudes to healthy eating – and help us all live longer and happier lives as a result. Apparently, in an attempt to stave off an advertising ban on junk food before the watershed, commercial broadcasters have offered to “sneak covert plugs for fruit and vegetables into dramas”. Hence, Tracy Barlow might soon be extolling the virtues of cauliflower rice while Gail Potter-Tilsley-Platt-Hillman-McIntyre-Rodwell amorously eyes up aubergines in the corner shop.Presumably working on the basis that what’s good for Tracy Barlow is good for thee and me, the government could soon be enlisting Coronation Street residents to help change national attitudes to healthy eating – and help us all live longer and happier lives as a result. Apparently, in an attempt to stave off an advertising ban on junk food before the watershed, commercial broadcasters have offered to “sneak covert plugs for fruit and vegetables into dramas”. Hence, Tracy Barlow might soon be extolling the virtues of cauliflower rice while Gail Potter-Tilsley-Platt-Hillman-McIntyre-Rodwell amorously eyes up aubergines in the corner shop.
There are two obvious ironies here. One is that, given the government’s ruthless slashing of the welfare state, stealthy privatisation of the NHS and callous cutting of public services, I sort of assumed that it wanted you and me dead, and was pursuing a venomous vendetta quite at odds with wanting us all to lay off saturated fats and sugarThere are two obvious ironies here. One is that, given the government’s ruthless slashing of the welfare state, stealthy privatisation of the NHS and callous cutting of public services, I sort of assumed that it wanted you and me dead, and was pursuing a venomous vendetta quite at odds with wanting us all to lay off saturated fats and sugar
Related: Soaps, mental health and cancer: how TV is shaping our attitudes
Second, enlisting Tracy Barlow in any enterprise usually ends badly, occasionally even in death. Killer, blackmailer, cheat – this is a woman who once sold her own child to a neighbour whom she’d previously drugged in order to fool him into believing that he’d impregnated her. Not exactly a poster girl for virtuous living. Sure, you could find nicer characters to surreptitiously front a healthy eating initiative but you’d be hard-pushed to find anyone in Weatherfield, other than Roy Cropper, who’s thoroughly upstanding and whose opinion you’d trust on almost anything. Soap characters aren’t known for their top-notch decision-making: that’s why they’re forever getting involved in love triangles and armed sieges – occasionally both simultaneously. Carla Connor, I am looking at you.Second, enlisting Tracy Barlow in any enterprise usually ends badly, occasionally even in death. Killer, blackmailer, cheat – this is a woman who once sold her own child to a neighbour whom she’d previously drugged in order to fool him into believing that he’d impregnated her. Not exactly a poster girl for virtuous living. Sure, you could find nicer characters to surreptitiously front a healthy eating initiative but you’d be hard-pushed to find anyone in Weatherfield, other than Roy Cropper, who’s thoroughly upstanding and whose opinion you’d trust on almost anything. Soap characters aren’t known for their top-notch decision-making: that’s why they’re forever getting involved in love triangles and armed sieges – occasionally both simultaneously. Carla Connor, I am looking at you.
Of course, leaving the jokes aside, you can see why broadcasters such as ITV – which could lose up to £200m a year if a ban on junk food advertising on TV comes to pass – would offer to harness the power of dramas, and its soaps in particular, to propel an essentially benign initiative. Soaps’ power to change public attitudes is undeniable and demonstrable. Whether it’s tolerance towards gay people, greater understanding of mental health issues, or raising awareness of the importance of cancer screening, soaps have contributed massively to making their audiences more liberal, better informed, smarter and more sensitive. Soaps may be scoffed at by those who view their audiences with contempt, but since Coronation Street was first broadcast in 1960, soaps have been both mirror and lamp to Britain. They’ve reflected injustice, intolerance and inequity as it was (and as it is), and they’ve illuminated the path to how things might be if we were all that bit more thoughtful and empathetic.Of course, leaving the jokes aside, you can see why broadcasters such as ITV – which could lose up to £200m a year if a ban on junk food advertising on TV comes to pass – would offer to harness the power of dramas, and its soaps in particular, to propel an essentially benign initiative. Soaps’ power to change public attitudes is undeniable and demonstrable. Whether it’s tolerance towards gay people, greater understanding of mental health issues, or raising awareness of the importance of cancer screening, soaps have contributed massively to making their audiences more liberal, better informed, smarter and more sensitive. Soaps may be scoffed at by those who view their audiences with contempt, but since Coronation Street was first broadcast in 1960, soaps have been both mirror and lamp to Britain. They’ve reflected injustice, intolerance and inequity as it was (and as it is), and they’ve illuminated the path to how things might be if we were all that bit more thoughtful and empathetic.
In 1998 the appearance of transsexual character Hayley Cropper in Coronation Street was incredibly bold and groundbreaking, and undoubtedly paved the way for the increasing acceptance of trans people. The soap’s handling of transgender issues was so ahead of its time that it was practically subversive, but thanks to Julie Hesmondhalgh’s sensitive and ultimately heartbreaking portrayal of Hayley, the British public fell in love with that trans character to such an extent that politicians were racing to chase public opinion when they passed the Gender Recognition Act in 2004, granting trans people full legal rights in their acquired gender. From Hayley’s journey of alienation to acceptance through Stacey Slater’s struggle in EastEnders with her mental health issues, to Hollyoaks’s Ste currently wrestling with what it means to be a young gay man with HIV in Britain today, there’s an abundance of evidence that soaps can change minds and sway hearts.In 1998 the appearance of transsexual character Hayley Cropper in Coronation Street was incredibly bold and groundbreaking, and undoubtedly paved the way for the increasing acceptance of trans people. The soap’s handling of transgender issues was so ahead of its time that it was practically subversive, but thanks to Julie Hesmondhalgh’s sensitive and ultimately heartbreaking portrayal of Hayley, the British public fell in love with that trans character to such an extent that politicians were racing to chase public opinion when they passed the Gender Recognition Act in 2004, granting trans people full legal rights in their acquired gender. From Hayley’s journey of alienation to acceptance through Stacey Slater’s struggle in EastEnders with her mental health issues, to Hollyoaks’s Ste currently wrestling with what it means to be a young gay man with HIV in Britain today, there’s an abundance of evidence that soaps can change minds and sway hearts.
In 1998, the appearance of transsexual character Hayley Cropper in Coronation Street was groundbreakingIn 1998, the appearance of transsexual character Hayley Cropper in Coronation Street was groundbreaking
And if you’re still not convinced, consider how corporations eye soaps’ power to influence their viewers and affect consumer behaviour. If product placement - like the 2012 deal that saw Hollyoaks feature Nokia’s Lumia phone – didn’t work, big brands wouldn’t bother. But they do, and increasingly so.And if you’re still not convinced, consider how corporations eye soaps’ power to influence their viewers and affect consumer behaviour. If product placement - like the 2012 deal that saw Hollyoaks feature Nokia’s Lumia phone – didn’t work, big brands wouldn’t bother. But they do, and increasingly so.
Some may be uncomfortable with broadcasters offering to use soap power to push the government’s agenda – and I’m not sure I’d be as relaxed if soaps started pushing the benefits of Trident – though I would love to see Corrie’s Mary Taylor astride a missile in the style of Cher in the If I Could Turn Back Time video. But such unease is pointless - that ship has sailed: soaps already promote government policy. In 2013, for example, Hollyoaks partnered with the Home Office as part of a campaign aimed at teenagers to highlight abuse within relationships. Objecting to the principle of soaps’ power being for sale means objecting to such campaigns.Some may be uncomfortable with broadcasters offering to use soap power to push the government’s agenda – and I’m not sure I’d be as relaxed if soaps started pushing the benefits of Trident – though I would love to see Corrie’s Mary Taylor astride a missile in the style of Cher in the If I Could Turn Back Time video. But such unease is pointless - that ship has sailed: soaps already promote government policy. In 2013, for example, Hollyoaks partnered with the Home Office as part of a campaign aimed at teenagers to highlight abuse within relationships. Objecting to the principle of soaps’ power being for sale means objecting to such campaigns.
So will the government take up broadcasters’ offer of sneaky plugs for fruit and veg in return for not introducing a ban on pre-watershed TV advertising of junk food? The answer, I’d wager, will be no. But that would be asking the wrong question. While the focus may be on the pernicious nature of Pepsi ads during The X Factor, do remember that in our on-demand world, the watershed is a quaintly old-fashioned concept, and children are the least likely viewers to watch linear TV. If the government can’t or won’t get Google to pay its correct taxes, what do you think the chances are of it daring to curtail the online giant’s advertising revenue? Let’s just say that you’re more likely to see Roy Cropper down Spearmint Rhino.So will the government take up broadcasters’ offer of sneaky plugs for fruit and veg in return for not introducing a ban on pre-watershed TV advertising of junk food? The answer, I’d wager, will be no. But that would be asking the wrong question. While the focus may be on the pernicious nature of Pepsi ads during The X Factor, do remember that in our on-demand world, the watershed is a quaintly old-fashioned concept, and children are the least likely viewers to watch linear TV. If the government can’t or won’t get Google to pay its correct taxes, what do you think the chances are of it daring to curtail the online giant’s advertising revenue? Let’s just say that you’re more likely to see Roy Cropper down Spearmint Rhino.