BA Film Studies and Middle Eastern Studies

This module introduces students to a broad overview of British and American television drama. It will look at the relationships between production, text and reception and think about how developments in television and new media have impacted on dramatic form and content. Topics and debates that will be covered include: TV genres; realism and television drama; the ‘quality TV’ debate; television acting; the auteur/showrunner and questions of representation.  The course will offer students a foundational base from which to critically read television texts and pursue a researched essay in one of the areas from the course syllabus 

Pre-requisites:  Any L1 Drama (DRAM) study unit (theatre or film).

Co-requisites:    Any L2 core Drama unit - Theatres of Modernity; Screen, Culture and                                                                              Society

• To introduce students to the critical study of Television Drama in terms of texts, institutions, audiences and users.  
• To offer students a sense of the historical developments and debates involved in the study of Television Drama. 
• To equip students with the ability to read and engage critically with Television Drama. 

The course will be taught via a weekly 2 hour seminar, 1 hour lecture and 3 hour screening over the 11 week teaching period. There will be essay advice sessions for individual students. 

• Demonstrate familiarity with contemporary theoretical approaches to the study of television drama. 
• Demonstrate understanding of the broad historical development of British and American television drama and the significance of particular genres within that history. 
• Articulate a clear understanding of how television drama can be understood within particular institutional and cultural contexts. 
• Demonstrate the ability to critically apply a range of theoretical applications to different aspects of the televisual dramatic text, including gender/race studies, narrative analysis and aesthetic analysis. 

• Analyse a range of Television Dramas using cross-disciplinary skills from film, media and cultural studies. 
• Identify aspects of TV and new media drama and dramatic forms and analyse these in detail. 
• Understand and explore the relationships between text, institutional and cultural contexts, and audiences and users 

• Communicate understanding of course materials effectively in both speech (as evidenced through seminar participation) and writing (as evidenced by summative assessments) 
• Develop a clear, coherent and critical interpretive argument 

• Basic interpersonal communication skills  
• Ability to analyse concepts, techniques, methods, materials - independently and with others 
• Ability to draw on individual research/preparation to engage in discussions in learning environments 
• Ability to present self effectively – through discussion and in writing (including adherence to academic conventions 

Bignell, J. and Lacey, S. (2017) Popular television drama: critical perspectives. Manchester, UK: Manchester University Press (Manchester Gothic).

Casey, Bernadette et al. (2002) Television Studies: The Key Concepts. London: Routledge.

Cooke, Lez (2003) British Television Drama: A History. London: BFI.

Hills, M., Hilmes, M. and Pearson, R. E. (2019) Transatlantic television drama: industries, programs & fans. New York, NY: Oxford University Press.

Jacobs, Jason and Steven Peacock eds. (2013) Television Aesthetics and Style. New York and London: Bloomsbury.

Johnson, B. and Davis, F. (2017) Social class and television drama in contemporary Britain. London: Palgrave Macmillan

Lury, Karen (2005) Interpreting Television. London: Hodder Education.

McDonald, K. and Smith-Rowsey, D. (2016) The Netflix effect: technology and entertainment in the 21st century. New York: Bloomsbury Academic, an imprint of Bloomsbury Publishing Inc.

McElroy, R. and Noonan, C. (2019) Producing British television drama: local production in a global era. London: Palgrave Macmillan (Palgrave pivot).