What things never made sense to you on Home and Away?

[Homeandawayfan.]

Home And Away is technically the same programme as it was when it began almost 36 years ago, just not the same show if you get my drift. There is continuity goring right back to the pilot, just the format has changed so much.

On a note about Bert King, I found the Kevin Healy version better even if Kevin's Bert was a one episode wonder. The Peter version was more memorable though. Bert was about the same age as Nev I reckon.

As said, Floss looked quite young in 1988 but was supposed to be at least 58 if she had married Nev in 1949. 1988 Don could have passed as Floss' dad even though Floss was much older.

 

[James Martin]

Emmerdale wouldn't have survived without those changes, however.  It was absolutely the right thing to do, and they were able to turn it into Dallas or Dynasty whilst still remaining a very British show, mostly by pivoting from the Sugdens to the Tates as a central family.  The Dingles then bought in a lot of comic relief amongst the sex, money and power at Home Farm.  That said, Emmerdale did borrow from Home & Away in the 90's, bringing in a Tate-owned Holiday Village and lots of aerobics classes, a swimming pool, and attractive teen/young adult characters.  They also bought Kim Tate back from the dead and somehow got away with it without really needing to retcon that much; the only dodgy thing was Frank being charged with her murder only to get let out from remand and the charge dropped, but it then turned out a year later Frank had murdered the lookalike Kim had paid to drive her car, thinking Kim was in it.

[Homeandawayfan.]

As H&A was a rival to Emmerdale on ITV here in the UK I wonder if both shows copied one another from time to time, such as if the Emmerdale plane crash inspired the H&A bushfire and earthquake. Also i think Emmerdale was inspired by Neighbours as well, in the focus on younger characters, like Neighbours and H&A.

EastEnders also got some ideas from the 2 Aussie soaps as well.

[CaptainHulk]

Enders did have some focus on the younger lot with Ian/Chelle/Mark/Sharon/Kelvin in the early going.

[cymbaline]

Alf's store (the smaller one from 1991 onwards) was a fascinating place. Was there anything he didn't stock? Toys, hats, exotic foods, you name it. He also must've had store rooms that expanded and contracted, just like Yabbie Creek. He could vanish without a trace into the store room for entire episodes, while his staff and customers yakked away without interruption. 

[CaptainHulk]

On 21/10/2023 at 00:20, cymbaline said:

Alf's store (the smaller one from 1991 onwards) was a fascinating place. Was there anything he didn't stock? Toys, hats, exotic foods, you name it. He also must've had store rooms that expanded and contracted, just like Yabbie Creek. He could vanish without a trace into the store room for entire episodes, while his staff and customers yakked away without interruption. 

It felt more like a Country General store than the one he and Celia ran before she took off to Africa (that was more like a mini mart)

Edited October 22, 2023 by CaptainHulk

[cymbaline]

I wonder did they ditch that larger store because the set was a bit too big? It only lasted 18 months or so onscreen before they downsized Alf. The newer store was a nicer set to look at and it kept the actors in a tighter space. 

[CaptainHulk]

On 23/10/2023 at 00:20, cymbaline said:

I wonder did they ditch that larger store because the set was a bit too big? It only lasted 18 months or so onscreen before they downsized Alf. The newer store was a nicer set to look at and it kept the actors in a tighter space. 

In the storyline, the Stewarts were in $chtook and had to sell up. Dunno about behind the scenes, though. That store became a Furniture store but was never seen again on screen.

[Homeandawayfan.]

The original store was my fave, with the pinball machine and small cafe area, and the counter to the left. That was the first regular on screen location to be written out of the show when Dodge fired it in 1989.

The new Bayside Diner first appeared in early 1989, or very late 1988, so it did appear contemporary with the original store for a couple of months.

I sometimes wonder if the original store had stayed and how it would look today.

[cymbaline]

It's an interesting "what if?", isn't it? If the shop had survived, I think it'd look like any other modern-day convenience store. But I'd have liked to see the people behind the late 90's Bayside Diner makeover have a go at it. That was so garish, they should've been handing out sunglasses at the door.

The exterior, on the other hand, is something I'm more interested in. If you've not read about the store, there's an interesting write-up on this very site. They used a derelict old store that was scheduled for demolition and gave it a brief new lease of life. But it ultimately had to go and that's why Dodge burned it down. In hindsight, it could've become a tourist trap an iconic location if they'd saved the building or replicated it elsewhere.