Less! Less! Less!: How the miniseries took over television

From Quiz to Chernobyl, the one-off television series is the perfect antidote to the relentlessness of multi-season shows. But do they ultimately leave us wanting more?Broadcast across three nights as lockdown kept us glued to our sofas, ITV’s Quiz was the first new drama in a long time that felt like event television. Unlike an unwieldy, 10-season drama or a densely-packed one-off, the story of Major Charles Ingram’s dubious Who Wants To Be A Millionaire win was presented as a three-part miniseries, one of many that have attracted dedicated audiences in recent years. From Chernobyl (five episodes), to Netflix hits Unorthodox (four episodes) and Unbelievable (eight episodes), or self-contained anthology series such as American Crime Story, miniseries have become increasingly popular in recent years, offering a low-stakes way for harried TV viewers to get immersed in scripted drama. As well as Quiz, another British hit, The Nest, garnered impressive ratings, with 9 million viewers tuning in to the first of its five episodes. In the groundhog day mood of lockdown, their blink-and-you’ll miss-them nature perhaps felt even more vital, a few brief moments of connection to the outside world as everyone hunkered down in separate living rooms. Continue reading... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'

[ The Guardian | 2020-06-02 14:27:30 UTC ]
News tagged with: #television series #long time #increasingly popular #anthology

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8 Novels Using Television As a Plot Device

Writing about pop culture and current technology is always a gamble, pitting critique of the present against longevity, a story that will still feel relevant after we’re gone. But for novelists (present company included) who were exposed to the Real World before the, um, real world, reality TV... Continue reading at Electric Literature

[ Electric Literature | 2023-09-27 11:00:00 UTC ]
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Two-thirds of UK’s biggest advertisers to cut television spend

Traditional TV shunned in favour of digital media and last-minute promotional campaignsMore than two-thirds of the UK’s biggest advertisers intend to cut back spending on traditional TV next year, as the recession fuels a shift to digital media and last-minute bursts of promotion.A survey of 59... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2022-11-21 00:01:39 UTC ]
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Hitting the Books: The decades-long fight to bring live television to deaf audiences

The Silent Era of cinema was perhaps its most equitable with both hearing and hearing-impaired viewers able to enjoy productions alongside one another, but with the advent of "talkies," deaf and hard-of-hearing American's found themselves largely excluded from this new dominant entertainment... Continue reading at Engadget

[ Engadget | 2022-01-29 16:30:45 UTC ]
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Agents should pivot towards film and television, says Nelle Andrew

Agents should begin pivoting towards film and television as well as traditional publishing, according to Rachel Mills Literary agent Nelle Andrew.  Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2021-11-19 16:18:52 UTC ]
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The last laugh: is the television sitcom really dead?

From Friends to The Thick Of It, the TV sitcom has evolved – but it’s no longer in rude health. Enter offbeat shows like Stath Lets Flats, bringing joy and potential redemptionThe sitcom has a long history of being dead. According to the former NBC president of entertainment, Warren Littlefield,... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2021-10-26 14:35:04 UTC ]
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Troubled Nielsen to update measurements for local television

Increasingly under fire from its clients, the Nielsen company says it will soon incorporate homes that have cut the cable cord and rely on broadband in its measurement of local TV viewership Continue reading at ABC News

[ ABC News | 2021-09-21 20:37:02 UTC ]
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Michaela Coel takes the television industry to task in ‘Misfits’

“Misfits” revisits a powerful speech the “I May Destroy You” creator gave at the 2018 Edinburgh TV festival. Continue reading at The Washington Post

[ The Washington Post | 2021-09-15 12:00:00 UTC ]
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Showtime has (already) optioned a book about Biden’s win for television.

Joe Biden’s presidency has not yet begun, so one might think it would be too soon to start planning its depiction on television. Think again! Less than a month after Biden’s win, Showtime has optioned an upcoming book by John Heilemann, who has covered the President-elect for more than 30 years.... Continue reading at Literrary Hub

[ Literrary Hub | 2020-12-03 19:58:49 UTC ]
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Heyday Television triumphs in nine-way auction for Audrain's debut

Michael Joseph’s major 2021 debut The Push by Ashley Audrain has been optioned by Heyday Television.  Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2020-10-15 21:02:26 UTC ]
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The revolution will now be televised: How leftist streaming service Means TV timed its launch perfectly

The emerging left media—currently spread across the digital media landscape—are uniting to deliver an alternative to corporate, centrist news and entertainment. Sitting in a small Bronx apartment back in early 2018, it would be difficult to picture the world today. As Naomi Burton and Nick Hayes... Continue reading at Fast Company

[ Fast Company | 2020-02-26 07:00:23 UTC ]
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Susan Choi’s Trust Exercise is coming to your television.

Congrats to Susan Choi for ending the year on a high note: her novel Trust Exercise, which won this year’s National Book Award for Fiction, is in development to become a limited television series with FilmNation Entertainment. Choi will write the series for FilmNation Entertainment, which was... Continue reading at Literrary Hub

[ Literrary Hub | 2019-12-12 21:43:30 UTC ]
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Letting the televised impeachment hearings play out

On May 17, 1973, the first witness to testify in the Senate’s Watergate hearings took the stand. It wasn’t former White House Counsel John Dean, or former Chief of Staff H.R. Haldeman, or the burglar James McCord, but Robert C. Odle, Jr., a “baby-faced” 29-year-old who had been the office... Continue reading at Columbia Journalism Review

[ Columbia Journalism Review | 2019-11-13 13:14:35 UTC ]
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John Hodgman on Life as a Very Minor Television Personality

This week on The Maris Review, John Hodgman joins Maris Kreizman to discuss his new book, Medallion Status, now available from Viking. On the genesis of his new book: John: I just came back from the Barnes & Noble store managers’ conference in Orlando. Maris: Wow. What was that like? John:... Continue reading at Literrary Hub

[ Literrary Hub | 2019-10-17 08:48:15 UTC ]
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Lime Pictures to bring Duffy's YA debut to television screens

Lime Pictures has acquired television rights for Malcolm Duffy's young adult debut novel, Me Mam. Me Dad. Me., about a young boy trying to make sense of his mother's abusive relationship. Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2019-10-16 00:42:15 UTC ]
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MGM Television snaps up Colfer's 'Highfire'

MGM Television has bought the rights for Eoin Colfer’s first fantasy novel for adults, Highfire (Jo Fletcher Books). Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2019-10-13 12:09:59 UTC ]
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As Traditional TV Evolves, Television Rating Systems Remain the Same

The history of television ratings is of great interest to me because--to quote Maya Angelou--"if you don't know where you've come from, you don't know where you're going." Market research firm The Nielsen Company, founded in 1923, is perhaps best known for its ubiquitous television ratings, but... Continue reading at AdWeek

[ AdWeek | 2019-07-18 16:04:09 UTC ]
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Harry Potter Prequel Series Coming to Television

Warner Brothers is in the very early stages of developing a Harry Potter prequel television series. Find out what we know so far. Continue reading at Book Riot

[ Book Riot | 2019-07-02 18:58:30 UTC ]
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London Book Fair’s Quantum Conference in March: Film, Television, Audio

This year's Quantum Conference, the annual curtain-raiser to London Book Fair, picks up on the books-to-film dynamic in content development. The post London Book Fair’s Quantum Conference in March: Film, Television, Audio appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2019-01-23 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Barack Obama shares his favorite books, music and movies of 2018. Sorry, television

Former President Barack Obama weighed in on the best pop culture of 2018 on Friday, posting his favorite books, movies and music of the year on his official Facebook page. Sorry, television. Better luck next year. “As 2018 draws to a close, I’m continuing a favorite tradition of mine and sharing... Continue reading at Los Angeles Times

[ Los Angeles Times | 2018-12-29 00:00:00 UTC ]
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