Anybody still watch soaps?

[Lonoxo]

Almost 40, used to watch soaps a lot during my teen but stopped during my uni years because I didn’t have a TV. Also they increased the number of shows a week and I didn’t have the time to watch all episodes and I felt the writing suffered.

I used to watch:

EastEnders - Sharongate, Grant and Tiffany. Stopped watching when the Slaters arrived. Got back into it a bit later with the Bradley-Stacey storyline.

Brookside - The Body under the Patio and the first lesbian kiss. Went off it with the incest storyline and Tinhead and Emily becoming a gangster couple.

Neighbours - Scott and Charlene wedding was amazing. I remember the Kennedy arriving and the Beth-Brad-Lauren love triangle.

Home and Away - Watched it from the start so the Bobbi-Frank-Roo love triangle. Sophie’s teenage pregnancy.

I can’t remember why I didn’t go back to those two. Maybe because I wasn’t a teenager anymore and they were on at an inconvenient time for me when I’m working.

Nowadays I don’t watch any soaps. I just think there’s better writing, acting and production values out there.

I used to enjoy Neighbours. Around the same era as you.
My opinion may not be popular but I really think that some soaps are part of the ills in society. I think they normalise poor behaviour. People see shouting and aggression so often (and children may watch) that it ceases to be shocking. There’s so much joy in the world...let’s have more of that!

We used to watch Neighbours at uni - that would've been around 1990.

I have never watched it since and I've never seen any other soaps.

I'm only 22 now but I don't watch them anymore. I had always watched them as I kid and teen with my mum (eastenders, coronation street and neighbours), but when I first moved out on my own at 17 I didn't have a tv for ages so lost track of the storyline. I've watched a few episodes over the years but never really got back into them. Don't watch live tv at all to be honest!

Similar to you OP....big Neighbours and Home and Away fan as a teen and into twenties and watched Emmerdale in my twenties. Now neither I nor DH watch any soaps. They're just a habit really aren't they? And they're easy broken. I wonder if Covid will kill off the soap habit for most people for good?!

Me! Late 40s, was weaned on Coronation Street and started Emmerdale 25yrs ago!

I still watch Corrie. It makes me realise that however shit my life gets it could be worse!

I used to watch Eastenders but dropped it when now ex moved in almost 3 years ago and moaned about how many soaps I watched (all 2 of them )

I used to watch eastenders and coronation Street from as early as I can remember up untill I was about 28. I'm 33 now. I stopped watching as I didn't have time as they are on so many times a week. I also suffer with anxiety and since I've stopped watching it really helped. I would feel anxious if I missed an episode and I would get far too over invested with the story lines. I'm very empathic and I have enough real things to worry about so needed to knock worrying about people that weren't real on the head 😂

I’ve watched Eastenders from the day it started.
Same with Brookie until it finished.
Hated Corrie till I was about 16. I love it now.
That’s all really.

I watch Neighbours, Home and Away, Corrie and Eastenders.
I enjoy the soaps.

Im 47 and watch them all except Home and Away.

I used to watch them all religiously but just dip in and out now. Scott and Charlene's wedding remains my all time favourite piece of television history and still brings a tear to my eye.

Started watching Corrie when a friend was staying with me who was a fan (about 30 odd years ago)
The dc's as teens watched them all and I would dip in and out of them, but started watching Emmerdale regularly when I was confined to the bed/couch when I had 2 knee replacements within a year.

Agree with PP, they normalise atrocious behaviour. My sister loves her life as if she were in a soap

Yes I still watch soaps, don't know why because they are all shite these days.
I loved brookside wish they would bring it back.
River City is the one I never miss.

I stopped watching the new year 4 years ago it’s the only resolution I’ve ever stuck to