well it's no surprise the right on lefties hate top gear, they want everyone driving about in lecky cars that are 500% less efficient at using energy than a trevethick steam car. It's also worth pointing out that love it or hate it without top gear the licence fee would have to go up!
Fiction can often have impact, newsworthy or otherwise. 'Cathy Come Home' directly caused a discussion in Parliament for its commentary on social services - as did the film 'Victim' on the issue of decriminalizing homosexuality.
On a more subtle level, The X Files had a significant impact the ambitions of huge numbers of women because it had such a well-written female protagonist (and I remember Buffy the Vampire Slayer being a huge crutch for my sister during a time when she was extremely insecure and unhappy).
Fiction can have a big impact on how people think, and if Corrie has the courage to deal with more sensitive issues by having well-established characters affected by them, then I'd say that probably elevates it above the level of "bilge".
I used to watch the Street years ago, when it was funny but don't now. If the scriptwriters have a storyline about the right to die, then they have my full support. I'm not sure if I will start watching again but millions of people do and its a very worthwhile subject.
"The kind of men who would talk non-stop about The Who and Jenny Agutter, if you ever had the misfortune to be sat next to them at a dinner party. "
lol - actually I don't mind the one I believe is called "James", who is quite entertaining and not quite so irritating when on his own.
What makes Top Gear so unbearable for me is the suspicion that the presenters seem to be directly addressing the poor unfortunates who've tuned into their nonsense by mistake and are determined to rub their noses in it :-)
well it is August and news is scarce - besides Syria of course and the G20 meeting in Stockholm.
and frankly I would rather have Haylie
than St Madiba leaves Hospital pognantly followed by his grasping grandchildren who gratefully will use free Beeb time to forward their economic gains.