World Cup Qualification Round Rest of The World Soap Operas

[Angela Channing]

Late chance to nominate a soap from the Rest of The World. Nominations close at midday tomorrow.

 

[Emelee]

I nominate Varuhuset ("The Department Store") 1987-1989.

A very typical 80's primetime soap opera from Sweden. It's a bit Upstairs Downstairs meets Dynasty. The Öhman family rules a large department store. Margareta Öhman (the Alexis Carrington Colby kind of character) assumes her father will make her the new CEO and is deeply shocked when he instead chooses the sweet and gracious outsider Karin (the Krystle Carrington kind of character). Lots of intrigues with them and the other board members - the upstairs crowd.

We also get to follow their employees (the "downstairs" people). People working in the clothing department, the food department, the stock room etc. Lots of intrigues going on there too. An employee getting together with a board member, smuggling in the stock room etc. But also sweet Edith who works in the charcuterie section who has some health problems and an alcoholic husband. Her colleague Rickard is enormously shy and secretly in love with his co-worker Tina.

It ran for 60 episodes (5 seasons) on SVT1.

Margareta (the Alexis in blonde hair) and Karin (The Krystle in dark hair).

I've never seen this before. Varuhuset - the musical.
Was not part of the original series. Probably made after the last episode to celebrate a good run.

 

[Angela Channing]

The 10 soap operas from the Rest of The World that were nominated by forum members to take part in the vote to qualify for the knock out stages of the World Cup are as follows:

Châteauvallon
Glenroe
Gloss
Radio Waves
Red Rock
Rederiet
Riviera
Shortland Street
Varuhuset
Westenwind

Forum members are now requested to vote for which of these soap operas you would like to go through to the next round.

Please select up to THREE soap operas from the list above that you would like to go through to the next round. Rank your choices from your favourite through to your third choice.

You may vote for any soap, including those your nominated. You don't have to remain loyal to your nominee and can choose to leave it out of your top 3 if you prefer.

You can still vote even if you haven't nominated.

Remember you are voting for your favourite soap operas or the soap opera you think deserves to do through. If you don't consider a particular show to be a soap opera, don't include it in your list.

You don't have to vote for 3 soaps but 3 is the maximum.

If you haven't seen all the programmes, I will shortly post a brief description of each soap opera which you may (or may not) find useful in deciding which soap to vote for.

You do not have to have seen a particular soap opera to vote for it, you just have to think it deserves to go through based on any criteria you think is appropriate.

You may add reasons for your votes but this is entirely optional.

Voting closes at midday on Tuesday 20th August.

 

[Angela Channing]

Châteauvallon (1985, France)
Set in the fictional French region of Châteauvallon, located on the banks of the Loire River. The series told the story of the rich and powerful Berg family who ran a newspaper called La Dépêche Republican (The Republican Dispatch). The series began with the discovery of the body of journalist Paul Bossis who was investigating dubious business deals but was there a link to the Berg family? Meanwhile, the Kovalic family, emigrants from Yugoslavia, led by Gregor and Albertas, tried to make their mark on the city and aimed to bring down the Berg family with whom they have a long standing grievance.

Glenroe ( 1983 – 2001, Ireland)
The series followed the lives of the people living in the fictional rural village of Glenroe in Country Wicklow, Ireland. The main protagonists were the Byrne and McDermott/Moran families, related by the marriage of Miley Byrne to Biddy McDermott, colloquially known as Biddy and Miley.

The show was set in a rural community in Co. Wicklow, Ireland and commenced in 1983, finishing in 2001 after the core cast diminished. The main stars were Joe Lynch R.I.P. (Dinny Byrne), Mick Lally R.I.P. (Miley Byrne), Mary McEvoy (Biddy Byrne), Geraldine Plunkett (Mary McDermott-Moran) and Emmet Bergin (Dick Moran). I remember fondly the soap opera being broadcast every Sunday night from September to May, on RTE at 8.30 p.m.

More often than not patriarchal Dinny got involved in a rumbly venture and he was at loggerheads with his son Miley, "well Holy God!" Glenroe was like Ireland's Emmerdale. During a 18 year run a priest became a permanent character, an English man, then there was a cranky old neighbour, a wife for Dinny who would later become the local pub owner and members of the 'Travelling Community' also joined as regulars. Glenroe was great escapism, the Irish way. - @Jock Og

Gloss (1987 – 1990, New Zealand)
A drama about a fictional publishing empire run by the Redfern family. Often compared with Dynasty, the series was known for it’s camp style and epitomised the excess of the 1980s with characters with big hair, big shoulder-pads, and big egos.

NZ’s only glamour soapie - @Victoriafan3

Radio Waves (1978, New Zealand)
Radio Waves was a 1978 series that ran for one season and followed the lives and loves staff at a commercial radio station based in Auckland, New Zealand.

Radio Waves - short lived 1970s soap opera set in a commercial radio station in Auckland, New Zealand.It is notable for having Alan Dale in its cast in his first major tv role who would go on to greater fame as the ill tempered Dr John Forrest in The Young Doctors and follow this as Ramsay street patriarch, Jim Robinson in Neighbours (the role for which he is probably most famous). - @Englishboy

Red Rock (2015 – 2019, Ireland)
A soap opera from Ireland that is also a crime drama. It is set in the fictional coastal town of Red Rock near Dublin. Action is based around the town's local police station and the activities of the uniformed officers and detectives who work there. The series was recently cancelled and a total of 115 episodes were broadcast, the last of which went out on 1st April 2019. There are 2 outstanding episodes which have never aired and these are beginning to become a bigger mystery than some of the crimes investigated on the show.

Red Rock: the Irish police station/crime family-based soap opera that's just come back to BBC1 in the afternoons for its final series. It's far soapier than The Bill ever was and much grittier than any 'afternoon soap' has a right to be (it aired in prime-time back in Ireland). It's got great plotting and top-notch acting with a real emphasis on its characters. It's comparatively low-budget, but in a good way - it means it's lean and taut and focused. @James from London

It was such a good show in it's heyday. I kind of lost track after it moved post-watershed and they tried turning it into a Love/Hate clone but it was great while it lasted. - @Carrie Fairchild

 

[Angela Channing]

Rederiet (1992 – 2002, Sweden)
A popular Swedish soap that ran for 10 years and was often the number one rated show in Sweden. It was the story of a shipping company which conducted ferry traffic between Stockholm in Sweden and Turku in Finland. Action took place on board MS Freja and the show followed life on board the ship, mostly focusing on the crew and captain, but also on some of the passengers. The plot often involved love, breakups, accidents, deaths, murders, smuggling, theft, arson, rape, drugs, and insanity.

It is a story about the Dahlén family who owns a shipping company. They arrange short passenger cruises on the Baltic sea between Stockholm and Helsinki mostly. They have three children. Rolf, Renate and Rebecca. Rolf is captain of the ship. Renate is the ambitious sister who wants to run things and work hard. Rebecca is the little sister who is a bit irresponsible. Then there is a bastard son named Tony who works on the ship "Freja". The story also follows the staff on the cruise ship. Like the bartender Joker. It is a prime time soap opera that has 318 episodes. It's one of the most successful Swedish ones that has also been exported to a number of countries abroad. - @Karin Schill

Riviera (1991 – 1992, France)
Set in the sunny Mediterranean, Riviera was a soap opera that was initially a big hit in France. A truly international soap which drew from American soaps to achieve a successful formula mixing sex with scandal.

The daily soap that ran for 260 episodes from 1991 - 1992 which followed the lives of a perfume dynasty in the South of France. This truly was an "international soap". Produced in France by a committee of pan-European production companies with some help from American writers & producers, it was filmed in English before being dubbed into various Euro languages with a view to it being sold across the continent in order to capitalise on the success of US soaps like Santa Barbara and The Bold and the Beautiful. It never took off though. In it's native France, it initially aired at 6pm before being relegated to 6am when ratings tanked. In the UK, it was picked up as cheap filler for ITV's late night schedule, usually washing up sometime around 4am. Randomly enough, all 260 episodes are available to watch online, albeit dubbed into Catalan. - @Carrie Fairchild

Shortland Street (1992 – Present, New Zealand)
A prime-time soap opera from New Zealand focussing on the fictitious Shortland Street Hospital. It is the country's longest-running soap opera, being broadcast continuously for over 6,000 episodes and over 27 years. It is one of the most watched television programmes in New Zealand.

NZs longest running soap Shortland Street, which is set in a hospital. It started in 1992 and is still going, 5 nights a week for half an hour. A lot of the Lord of the Rings cast debuted on here, most notably Karl Urban who had a kiwi soaps first gay kiss and Temuera Morrison of Star Wars fame. Every Christmas they usually have mass blood shed for the cliffhanger. - @Victoriafan3

Gotta be Shortland Street from the Kiwis and still going strong 27 years later. - @Falcon Crest I

Varuhuset (1987 – 1989, Sweden)

Varuhuset (The Department Store) is a Swedish drama that ran for 60 episodes in the late 1980s. Action was based in Öhman's department store in Stockholm. The Chief Executive, Gustaf Öhman passed over his daughter Margareta to be his successor and instead appointed sales manager Karin Forss as new CEO which set the scene for internal conflict.

A very typical 80's primetime soap opera from Sweden. It's a bit Upstairs Downstairs meets Dynasty. The Öhman family rules a large department store. Margareta Öhman (the Alexis Carrington Colby kind of character) assumes her father will make her the new CEO and is deeply shocked when he instead chooses the sweet and gracious outsider Karin (the Krystle Carrington kind of character). Lots of intrigues with them and the other board members - the upstairs crowd. We also get to follow their employees (the "downstairs" people). People working in the clothing department, the food department, the stock room etc. Lots of intrigues going on there too. An employee getting together with a board member, smuggling in the stock room etc. But also sweet Edith who works in the charcuterie section who has some health problems and an alcoholic husband. Her colleague Rickard is enormously shy and secretly in love with his co-worker Tina. It ran for 60 episodes (5 seasons) on SVT1. - @Emelee

Westenwind (1999 – 2003)
The series revolved around the Noordermeer and De Graaf families who own shipyards in the port of Rotterdam. The families had a different approach to business and were bitter business rivals for years. There were also tensions within the two businesses, especially between the generations as some characters were business-focussed, some were ruthless and some were moralistic which lead so clashes of personalities.

For me it has to be WESTENWIND (1999-2003), a story about two dysfunctional, feuding families. It did all the classic soap tropes like the Romeo & Juliet romance, the evil matriarch and her psycho grandson, lots of affairs and boardroom backstabbings. It goes without saying that it had more gore and nudity than the American soaps. @Willie Oleson

 

[Willie Oleson]

1. Châteauvallon
I have watched this with sub-titles because it was shown on a Belgian TV channel. I also remember reading an article about the (then) new soap opera, and indeed it was described as the French "Dallas". Of course it didn't look like Dallas at all, but I liked it and I would have continued to watch if it hadn't been cancelled.

2. Gloss
Not nearly as good as Sons & Daughters, but I never missed an episode so they must have done something right.

3. Varuhuset
Never seen it of course, but Emelee's intriguing description piqued my curiosity

 

[Barbara Fan]

I have never seen any so apologies but here is my vote lol

1- I will opt for Chateauvallon as it was compared to Dallas and the lead female of the cast was photographed with Victoria Principal and it made the cover of paris match magazine and that excited me greatly as there was a lot of coverage
Still have my copy - see below

2 - Radio Waves - simply because NZ is the most stunning and beautiful country I have ever visited

3. Rederiet - as I love all things Swedish - Abba, Ingrid B, Bjorn Borg, Stockholm, and the heated front seats of my Dads Volvo when I was a teenager
oh and @Karin Schill and Jenny too xx

 

[Angela Channing]

1- I will opt for Chateauvallon as it was compared to Dallas and the lead female of the cast was photographed with Victoria Principal and it made the cover of paris match magazine and that excited me greatly as there was a lot of coverage
Still have my copy - see below

@BarbaraFan, you never cease to amaze me with your magazine and newspaper clippings on Dallas. That's Chantal Nobel with Victoria. She played Florence Berg in Chateauvallon who was one of the main characters. I always loved how she walks purposefully towards the camera in the opening titles.

Chantal was seriously and permanently disabled in a crash of a car driven by the singer Sasha Distel and had to give up acting as a consequence which forced the producers to cancel the second season of Chateauvallon. Up until that point, I always though Sasha Distel's worst crime was advertising a ghastly aftershave called Mandate.

 

[Angela Channing]

My votes:

1. Chateauvallon. I gave my reasons when I nominated this soap. It was a great little series and helped me with learning French.

2. Red Rock - Not seen this series but I like the premise of it, sounds a bit like a cross between The Bill and Emmerdale.

3. Shortland Street - I need to watch this series because I'm intrigued to know if it really was his penis!

 

[Angela Channing]

Special mention for the cleavage in the titles for Riviera and for the graphics department who looked liked they raided a kindergarten art box when they put together that logo for Radio Waves.

 

[Carrie Fairchild]

1 - Red Rock: the greatest Irish soap ever produced.

2 - Glenroe: every Irish child of the 80's and 90's remembers this show with a mix of fondness and disdain, as it was a staple part of our TV diet growing up but given it's 8.30pm timeslot on a Sunday night, the opening bars of it's closing theme signalled that the weekend was over, it was time for bed and that we'd to return to school in the morning.

3 - Chateauvallon - despite having not watched it yet, I'm choosing this over others that I have seen for the simple reason that it has an epic soap theme song that's up there with Sons and Daughters.

 

[Karin Schill]

Great nomination @Emelee

I do remember watching the musical episode when it was broadcast on TV. I think it was the very last episode and some critic complained that it was so silly that it only appealed to people who were like 9-14 years old and I was so happy when they said that since I was about 9 years old at the time and of course I loved the episode. So I was happy to be grouped in with all the older cool kids who were like up to 5 years older than I was.

 

[Karin Schill]

1. Varuhuset
It was the first soap opera I was allowed to watch. I tried to watch Dallas but my parents refused to read me the subtitles and I didn't know English so I had to give up and go to bed. But with Varuhuset they spoke my language so I could understand it and they allowed me to watch it. Unfortunately I learnt all the bad curse words from it so as a 8 year old I had some colorful language!
Anyway I remember Karin's daughter was named Sara, she was like 13. So I thought she was the most interesting character on the show. Oh and gotta love Christina Schollin. She played the bitchy Margareta on the show. This actress actually turned down the chance to work with Elvis Presley once!

2. Rederiet
I loved the first two years of it. Then they started to replace the main cast. By the time Suzanne Reuter's character Renate was out I gave up on the show.

3. Chateauvallon
I have never watched this show. But of all the nominations this one made me curious enough to go check out the opening credits. Also I like the French language.

 

[Willie Oleson]

Up until that point, I always though Sasha Distel's worst crime was advertising a ghastly aftershave called Mandate.

Some people would argue that his worst crime was being name-dropped in Peter Sarstedt's one hit wonder. Personally, I thought it was cool.

I thought Chantal Nobel had recovered (eventually)?

 

[Emelee]

I will vote for the only 2 soaps that I have seen (and loved) + a non-European long-running soap.

1. Rederiet
2. Varuhuset
3. Shortland Street

 

[Angela Channing]

I thought Chantal Nobel had recovered (eventually)?

She recovered from being in a coma for 40 days but was left permanently disabled and still requires a wheelchair to move around. She never was able to resume her acting career.

In the aforementioned Mandate commercial, Sasha Distel sang the line "this is not fiction, this time it's for real", for Chantel Nobel, that was the reality of his wrecklessness.

 

[Barbara Fan]

@BarbaraFan, you never cease to amaze me with your magazine and newspaper clippings on Dallas. That's Chantal Nobel with Victoria. She played Florence Berg in Chateauvallon who was one of the main characters. I always loved how she walks purposefully towards the camera in the opening titles.

Chantal was seriously and permanently disabled in a crash of a car driven by the singer Sasha Distel and had to give up acting as a consequence which forced the producers to cancel the second season of Chateauvallon. Up until that point, I always though Sasha Distel's worst crime was advertising a ghastly aftershave called Mandate.

OH @Angela Channing - my parents always said I could be as rich as the Ewings if I didn't waste my pocket money then wages on all things Dallas!! (I wish) Now I need a house the size of SF to store it but (maybe thankfully for me) Dallas doesn't make the press very much now so bank balance is better lol

I never knew that re Chantal - that's very sad - It was a big show at the time and Ive got lots of cuttings relating to their cast and who was Dallas equivalent

Same went for a German show I don't remember its name but I used to call it Dark or black Forest gateau / think the word clinic appeared in it

 

[Karin Schill]

Same went for a German show I don't remember its name but I used to call it Dark or black Forest gateau / think the word clinic appeared in it

"Die Schwarzwald klinik"
My parents watched that.

 

[Willie Oleson]

Die Schwarzwald klinik

I've watched that too but I think it was more like HOTEL with different guests/patients.
There was Das Erbe Der Guldenburgs but it hasn't been nominated.

My mother used to watch a Japanese soap called OSHIN. It had one of the loveliest intro themes.

 

[Victoriafan3]

1. Gloss
2. Shortland Street
3. Chateauvallon, not that I ever saw it but as an actress on it was on a cover exclusive of Paris Match with Victoria Principal it must be good! ;-)