2 Russians, 2 Jews, and a Puerto Rican walk into a bar ...

When EastEnders launched on BBC One in 1985, Britain’s most popular soap operas were being imported from America. Dynasty and Dallas both peddled televised fantasies of extreme wealth, atrocious ...

The everyday lives of working-class residents of Albert Square, a traditional Victorian square of terrace houses surrounding a park in the East End of London's Walford borough.

In 1985, ITV was the dominant force in soap operas, with Coronation Street (then nearly a quarter of a century old) and Emmerdale drawing in large audiences every evening. Even the often-criticised ...