Decline of Dallas in the UK

[Grangehill1]

It’s well known that the rebirths of comedy programmes helped with the fall in popularity of night time soaps in the US. In the UK it was another matter.

EastEnders launched in Feb 1985 at a time when Dallas was riding high in popularity. So what happened?

Well because of Thames TV trying to poach Dallas the BBC ended up in a situation where they had to hold back season 9 for a considerable length of time. So Swansong transmitted in July 85 but the Family Ewing transmitted in a March 86! By that point in the U.K. audiences were clearly more swept away with Den and Angus’s antics in EE.
Then when the dream resolution aired in the U.K. in October 86 just 4 days later Neighbours launched.
I think UK audiences were more ‘interested’ in EastEnders at this point and then soon to be interested in neighbours.

I remember Christmas Eve 86 Larry and a Linda were on Wogan but nobody really cared any more as we were all more excited about the next day and Den divorcing Angie.

I wonder if there handnt been that enforced gap in the U.K. between seasons 8 and 9 whether things would have turned out differently over here

 

[Barbara On A Broomstick]

I certainly was never interested in EE - and never have been. And i cared about Dallas back then and lapped it all up, and grateful for any Wogan appearances too.

ITV poaching Dallas was a shock, and Im glad it didnt come to fruition, i had seen Dallas in USA with 5 or 6 ad breaks and it was horrible. But they made the most of it with Guild Home. Video releasing VHS tapes which I rushed out to buy!

I also think BBC 'cheated' with EE ratings figures as they added weekend repeats which skewed them. I didnt know too many people who watched it then (and now)

 

[Grangehill1]

With respect I think you were in the minority in the U.K. EE was the biggest show on British tv in 1986 and I think the enforced gap of Dallas transmitting together with the ludicrous dream scenario Aided in its demise in popularity over here.

by 1988 EE and Neighbours were juggernauts and nobody was talking about Dallas anymore

 

[Monzo]

When the BBC stopped airing Dallas in prime time, was there a fan riot or didn't it matter as long as it was still anywhere on the schedule?

 

[Spells & Karma]

When the BBC stopped airing Dallas in prime time, was there a fan riot or didn't it matter as long as it was still anywhere on the schedule?

As far as I remember it was only the final season that was broadcast on a Sunday afternoon and by that time there were probably only half a dozen people who knew or cared (all of whom are here ).

 

[Monzo]

I have to say it is easier to find Dallas broadcast history information for non-English speaking countries than outside of the US for English speaking countries. There is some information for the UK, but I have never been able to find out whether and how successful Dallas was in Canada, Ireland and Australia.

 

[Barbara On A Broomstick]

As far as I remember it was only the final season that was broadcast on a Sunday afternoon and by that time there were probably only half a dozen people who knew or cared (all of whom are here ).

Thats right, it was only the final (dire) season that was relagated to a sunday afternoon slot and was regulartly beaten by Snooker on BBC2 or a John Wayne film

I think my mum and i were the only 2 watching it - and not liking it at all - as it was Dallas in name only, no one left and I couldnt tell you what happened except JR met a devil and April got shot :bravo1: I wish she went to Paris 3 seasons earlier x

 

[Carrie Fairchild]

I was a child when Dallas went off the air, so I’m not the best placed to recall reactions on the ground at the time but I’d speculate that it’s decline in the UK was just natural, as happens to all US imports in the UK eventually. I’m sure the gap between seasons didn’t help matters but also, the show was heading into its 9th season, so it’s natural for viewer erosion to be occurring by then, particularly in a serialised drama. I’m open to being corrected but Friends is the only US network TV show that I can think of that remained more or less appointment viewing in the same time slot for the duration of its UK run in the last 30 years. A lot of other shows either petered out (as Dallas & Dynasty did), was moved around timeslots (Dallas, Knots) or was dropped from terrestrial TV altogether (Falcon Crest). A lot of this applies to the US imports on Channel 4 in the 90’s (ER, NYPD Blue) too.

Regarding the arrival of EastEnders, I’m sure there were viewers who preferred the gritty realism of Albert Square to vagaries like the dream season but I’ve never seen it cited as a reason for the decline of Dallas.

 

[Angela Chilling]

I think the decline of Dallas and the rise or EastEnders were unrelated. Personally, I never watched EastEnders in the early days but continued to watch Dallas until the end so I do wonder how big the overlap was between the viewers of both those shows.

I think when Thames TV tied to poach Dallas it gave the show, which was already declining in the ratings but still doing well, a lot of publicity which couldn't have been a bad thing. The BBC's subsequent decision to pause screening Dallas only added to the anticipation of what was going to happen in the next half of that season. So I can't see how those events could have contributed to the decline of Dallas. Hiring a bad actress such as Prissy Presley and giving her prominent storylines probably had more to do with the loss of viewers than which UK TV channel was going to screen the series.

 

[Carrie Fairchild]

but I have never been able to find out whether and how successful Dallas was in Canada, Ireland and Australia.

From the bits I’ve seen of old RTE Guides online, Dallas remained in the Top 10 ratings for the bulk of its run in Ireland (it was No 7 with 850k viewers one week in February 1991) and remained in its prime Saturday night slot too.

 

[Grangehill1]

I think the decline of Dallas and the rise or EastEnders were unrelated. Personally, I never watched EastEnders in the early days but continued to watch Dallas until the end so I do wonder how big the overlap was between the viewers of both those shows.

I think when Thames TV tied to poach Dallas it gave the show, which was already declining in the ratings but still doing well, a lot of publicity which couldn't have been a bad thing. The BBC's subsequent decision to pause screening Dallas only added to the anticipation of what was going to happen in the next half of that season. So I can't see how those events could have contributed to the decline of Dallas. Hiring a bad actress such as Prissy Presley and giving her prominent storylines probably had more to do with the loss of viewers than which UK TV channel was going to screen the series.

I disagree. I think audience tastes changed in the U.K. and the gap between season 8 and 9 was huge. 9 months! In that time EE became the tabloids darling.
Dallas was still huge at this point. It was the dream that helped kill its popularity in the U.K. and the ‘majority’ of the viewing public were much more invested in real life soaps like EastEnders and Neighbours. 3 months after the dream reveal we had the Den and Angie divorce story on Christmas Day. Watched by the biggest audience for a drama in history

When the BBC stopped airing Dallas in prime time, was there a fan riot or didn't it matter as long as it was still anywhere on the schedule?

Nobody cared. It just happened with no press interest at all.

mahatma WAS weird that season 13 had gone down relatively well over here and the last 4 episodes were shown as 2 double episodes just before the World Cup in 1990. On a Friday night I think? Anyway the following season just disappeared to a Sunday

the BBC were more interested in EastEnders and Neighbours

 

[Rove]

It’s well known that the rebirths of comedy programmes helped with the fall in popularity of night time soaps in the US. In the UK it was another matter.

But did it? Comedy is an easy watch generally because of self contained episodes. While I cannot speak of what occurred in the U.K. I can possibly guess the downfall of Dallas and Dynasty - more so Dynasty - was due in part to the ridiculous cliff-hangers and daytime soap plots creeping into our prime soaps. Dynasty shot itself with the Moldavian massacre resolution and Dallas did the unthinkable by wiping a whole season with the return of Bobby. If my reaction was an "eye roll" imagine what the broader population must have been thinking.

I don't think pitting something like Eastenders against Dallas helps either. When Eastenders premiered in 1985 Dallas had already been on the screen for 7 years. There is also something to be said about locals watching a series which reflects them (Eastenders) whereas Dallas could be viewed as escapism television. Is this how the rich live? While the Ewing's were drowning in money the writers were clever in keeping the characters grounded with stories many of us can relate.

As an Aussie many here would think I watch Neighbours and Home & Away. Neither have never been my cup of tea. Personally I've always gravitated to adult contemporary drama even in my teenage years. Heck, I began watching Dallas when it premiered here in Australia just as my teenage years began.

Contractual arrangements in the U.K. with Dallas sounds messy but perhaps that 7 year itch was beginning to catch up with our favourite series. Bobby's death could have been the catalyst for refreshing Dallas and it did - in part - when Pam was put in charge of Christopher's stake in Ewing Oil but somewhere along the way the back office politics caught up with them. Larry was desperately missing Patrick and come hell or high oil he wanted him back regardless of the impact it was about to have.

 

[Carrie Fairchild]

While I cannot speak of what occurred in the U.K. I can possibly guess the downfall of Dallas and Dynasty - more so Dynasty - was due in part to the ridiculous cliff-hangers and daytime soap plots creeping into our prime soaps

Yes. I commented somewhere on here before that I’m sure certain TV license payers were thinking WTF is this dross that we’re paying for on our primetime schedules during stuff like Rita or the UFO. Someone also mentioned that the reason Dynasty and The Colbys shared that rotating time slot when Dallas returned to the schedules is because the BBC couldn’t justify giving three primetime hours a week over to US soaps.

I don't think pitting something like Eastenders against Dallas helps either.

If anything, EastEnders was created to bolster the schedule that Dallas was part of, in order to add to the BBC’s success, rather than become competition for each other. And with Neighbours airing in daytime, it wasn’t even in the same orbit as Dallas as far as I can tell.

 

[Monzo]

The last 4 episodes were shown as 2 double episodes just before the World Cup in 1990.

So that means the finale of season 13 aired on June 1, 1990. I once read in here that Dallas concluded in the UK sometime in the Autumn/Winter of 1991, I can't remember the exact date. Since season 14 only had 22 episodes, Dallas must have had a hiatus of up to a year in the UK. Perhaps by then the BBC had reoccupied Dallas' regular slot and couldn't find a better slot than Sunday afternoon.

Did Lesley-Anne Down joining Dallas in season 13 have an effect in the UK? Did she spice up the ratings because some Brits were curious about how one of them was doing in Dallas?

By the way, did Dynasty spend its entire run in primetime in the UK or were later seasons also burned off during daytime or late night?

 

[Spells & Karma]

I’m sure there were viewers who preferred the gritty realism of Albert Square to vagaries like the dream season but I’ve never seen it cited as a reason for the decline of Dallas.

If anything, EastEnders was created to bolster the schedule that Dallas was part of, in order to add to the BBC’s success, rather than become competition for each other. And with Neighbours airing in daytime, it wasn’t even in the same orbit as Dallas as far as I can tell.

Yes. When EastEnders began, Dallas was one of the jewels in the BBC's crown. It wouldn't have cannibalised itself by spending a fortune on a series that would undermine Dallas. EastEnders' main competition was Corrie, but to a degree also the other UK soaps such as Brookside, Emmerdale Farm and Crossroads.

British, Australian and American soaps are really all different genres, to be enjoyed in different ways. The glamour and production values of the American soaps made them seem otherworldly and escapist and much of the time Brits watched series like Dallas and Dynasty with tongues firmly in cheek.

Some watched ostensibly to poke fun while secretly enjoying it. I still have a memory of watching the The Colbys with members of the family who fell about laughing at the bombastic opening credits.

And Terry Wogan's fond-but-cheeky commentary of the goings on in Dallas and his teasing interviews with the casts of those shows was all part of the experience.

In many British viewers' eyes, the US soaps were all grouped in together, and I think they fell out of favour by stretching credulity to limits and asking us to suspend disbelief to a ridiculous degree. The aftermath of the Moldavia Massacre was the beginning of the end (there were chortles and snarky comments galore). Then came Bobby in the shower (the big one, since Dallas was HUGE here and this was the highest profile fingers up to viewers). The Colbys' alien abduction was the icing on the cake. I was at school, and I only ever remember all American soaps being spoken of in disparaging terms in the second half of the Eighties (if at all). Admitting to watching Knots Landing (perceived by many Brits to be a DAYTIME American soap because of its scheduling on British TV) was social death.

It's true that Neighbours - and later Home And Away - were seen as hotter and cooler by the late Eighties, but I think it was partly Brits being ready for a different, more grounded form of escapism due to the American soaps going too far.

It may also be worth noting that the UK daytime programming became more prominent from 1986 onwards with the launch of BBC's daytime schedule in October (with Neighbours being one of its flagships). Viewer habits were changing, and more hours of television meant more choice.

But those who watched and enjoyed British, US and Aussie soaps wouldn't have chosen one over another. Viewers simply watched them as long as they were good, entertaining and worked. By the late Eighties, Dallas simply wasn't ticking all the boxes anymore.

By the way, did Dynasty spend its entire run in primetime in the UK or were later seasons also burned off during daytime or late night?

Dynasty's final season aired at around 8pm on a Friday night, a slot it had made its home for several seasons by this point.

 

[Monzo]

Brits watched series like Dallas and Dynasty with tongues firmly in cheek.

Many (West) Germans felt the same about the soaps. In 1985 German entertainer Karl Dall started his comedy talkshow "Dall-As." His show survived Dallas and ended in 1994. It even had the same opening theme and the credits were similar.

 

[Spells & Karma]

Discussing the differences in the way we Brits watched our UK kitchen sink half hour soaps and the glossy imported hour long ones reminds me of
this article I read on a Crossroads blog site just yesterday which discusses this very subject:

"The English enjoyed the American soaps in a different way to the home-grown ones. We took the UK soaps quite seriously, the American cousins were great fun - and a bit of a pantomime.

So, by the end of the 1980s, you had the English sauce-bottle-on-the-dining-table style soaps, and the glitzy hugely shoulder-padded American variety."

 

[Grangehill1]

But did it? Comedy is an easy watch generally because of self contained episodes. While I cannot speak of what occurred in the U.K. I can possibly guess the downfall of Dallas and Dynasty - more so Dynasty - was due in part to the ridiculous cliff-hangers and daytime soap plots creeping into our prime soaps. Dynasty shot itself with the Moldavian massacre resolution and Dallas did the unthinkable by wiping a whole season with the return of Bobby. If my reaction was an "eye roll" imagine what the broader population must have been thinking.

I don't think pitting something like Eastenders against Dallas helps either. When Eastenders premiered in 1985 Dallas had already been on the screen for 7 years. There is also something to be said about locals watching a series which reflects them (Eastenders) whereas Dallas could be viewed as escapism television. Is this how the rich live? While the Ewing's were drowning in money the writers were clever in keeping the characters grounded with stories many of us can relate.

As an Aussie many here would think I watch Neighbours and Home & Away. Neither have never been my cup of tea. Personally I've always gravitated to adult contemporary drama even in my teenage years. Heck, I began watching Dallas when it premiered here in Australia just as my teenage years began.

Contractual arrangements in the U.K. with Dallas sounds messy but perhaps that 7 year itch was beginning to catch up with our favourite series. Bobby's death could have been the catalyst for refreshing Dallas and it did - in part - when Pam was put in charge of Christopher's stake in Ewing Oil but somewhere along the way the back office politics caught up with them. Larry was desperately missing Patrick and come hell or high oil he wanted him back regardless of the impact it was about to have.

Comedy wasn’t massive in the U.K. at that point. I’m comparing the rise of The Cosby Show in the states to Dallas and that didn’t happen over here. The UKs obsession with soap operas carried on throughout the 90s and noughties and I would argue finally died out at the end of the last decade. Only now soaps are in massive decline and not taken seriously any more.

UK viewers loved seeing the glamour in f Dallas and the nice clothes and sets. Dynasty was never taken seriously from the start. It was always seen over here as laughable viewing but Dallas was different. Yes the ball was dropped with the Miss Ellie recast but everybody regarded Swansong as a work of art. The gap didn’t help until the next episode and viewers ended up enjoying EE instead and it became HUGE over here.
At that point EE had a good mix of characters and really eliciting story’s. Where it went wrong going into the late 80s was becoming too transfixed with doom and gloom and misery. That’s when Neighbours came along and became the massive hit.

So that means the finale of season 13 aired on June 1, 1990. I once read in here that Dallas concluded in the UK sometime in the Autumn/Winter of 1991, I can't remember the exact date. Since season 14 only had 22 episodes, Dallas must have had a hiatus of up to a year in the UK. Perhaps by then the BBC had reoccupied Dallas' regular slot and couldn't find a better slot than Sunday afternoon.

Did Lesley-Anne Down joining Dallas in season 13 have an effect in the UK? Did she spice up the ratings because some Brits were curious about how one of them was doing in Dallas?

By the way, did Dynasty spend its entire run in primetime in the UK or were later seasons also burned off during daytime or late night?

So Dallas season 13 ended in July 1990 and season 14 started in may 1991! That’s absurd. I had no idea there was such a gap! Again by that point we were all more obsessed with Neighbours

I think there was a Radio Times cover for Lesley Anne Downes when she joined which was a massive deal. But nobody really cared that much

dynasty spent its entire run in prime time

 

[Spells & Karma]

everybody regarded Swansong as a work of art. The gap didn’t help until the next episode and viewers ended up enjoying EE instead and it became HUGE over here.

It was a big gap, but the main disruption from the bidding war actually took place some time before Swan Song. Dallas was pulled off the air for months mid-Season Seven after Jenna was found with the smoking gun and Naldo's body.

I do agree that the big gaps didn't help, particularly in terms of spoilers. Pictures of Bobby's death were plastered all over the tabloids months before Swan Song aired. As you said, Swan Song was very successful and highly regarded in Britain, but it may have had even more impact if there hadn't been the gap and time for it to be spoilt.

As I remember, Dallas was still on many people's tongues even the following year when the series was back on regularly. There was much speculation after Patrick Duffy turned up in the shower (I seem to recall the "long lost evil twin" theory prevailed). But the dream reveal at the start of the following season alienated a number of people I knew who'd watched up to that point who just felt it was too silly for words.

Falling behind in the scheduling didn't help, but the audience loyalty was probably tested more by the content of the series itself.

 

[Carrie Fairchild]

So that means the finale of season 13 aired on June 1, 1990. I once read in here that Dallas concluded in the UK sometime in the Autumn/Winter of 1991, I can't remember the exact date. Since season 14 only had 22 episodes, Dallas must have had a hiatus of up to a year in the UK. Perhaps by then the BBC had reoccupied Dallas' regular slot and couldn't find a better slot than Sunday afternoon.

Wow! I didn’t realise there was such a gap between seasons 13 and 14. A gap of that length plus the Sunday afternoon slot that it eventually aired in, I think is pretty indicative of how the BBC and the general viewing public viewed Dallas at that point.

By the way, did Dynasty spend its entire run in primetime in the UK or were later seasons also burned off during daytime or late night?

As others have said Dynasty (and The Colbys) were the only two to stay in primetime for their complete run. Knots Landing ran for two and a half seasons in primetime (first on Saturday then Friday) before being dropped mid season three. BBC started broadcasting it again (picking up where it left off), three years later, in 1986 when it was added to their daytime schedule. Falcon Crest was on ITV and I think its time slot varied by region. I don’t know if it was a case of it starting in primetime before being moved to daytime or if some regions only ever aired it in daytime. Regardless, ITV dropped it somewhere around the middle of its run and it was then picked up by Sky, who ran it in primetime.