What are you watching?

Every one that knows me knows that I am a huge soap fan. My self and Mrsimo both love to watch Eastenders, Coronation street and Emmerdale, every day! It is something we have done for many years, and we are both very proud soapies! Emmerdale has always been our favourite, the way they cover their story lines really draws you in. There has been some really big story lines over the years, from plane crashes, to whodunits, family feuds, storms and peoples health stories. The current storyline revolves around Cain Dingle, who has been on our screens for many years. The lovable rogue who you wouldn't want to cross unless you wanted to end up in the boot of a car. I adore Cain, he wouldn't want to admit it, but under all his bravado is a loving caring man, that only puts his family first.

Cain has recently been diagnosed with prostate cancer, it is very advanced and requires surgery. To see his character crumble from this tough guy to a vulnerable man who initially does not know how to deal with this and hides it from his family has been heartbreaking to watch. This has revealed a new side of Cain, a gentler, frightened side, now forced to confront his fears openly, which reminds us that strength isn't about endurance, strength is admitting you need support and letting others in to help. 

Macmillan have partnered up with Emmerdale to highlight not just Cains story, but to promote the online community and how Macmillan are there for everyone effected by cancer. There are adverts running after the Emmerdale episodes which you can catch this week.

There is a blog all about Emmerdale,and the work that Macmillan are doing in relationship to this story line. You can read the blog here emmerdale-tv-campaign

Is anyone else watching? What are your thoughts, do you think that the way Cain is being portraid highlights prostate cancer in a realistic way? Will he survive? can he survive, and how will this effect his relationship? 

It’s great that programmes feature cancer in a realistic way. I have to say I hate the sort of advert that has the person in a hospital bed with crying relatives, or the “it’s all melted away” narrative. Cancer is messy.

I don’t watch Emmerdale but I do often have radio 4 on in the car and they have just started a story line where Pippa who is in her 30s has found a breast lump. Pippa’s mother Ruth went through breast cancer 30 years ago in the series, which I remember well. I am hoping this turns out to be a realistic story - time will tell. 

I would love to have a sea view every day too, for two or three weeks every summer for about 10 years my brother and I were taken to a little summer house that was situated right on the edge of a sandy beach and we spent the days walking and sitting watching the tides change. A picture that was always changing.

At home we don't just have fields, there's a small lough in the second field behind us, another direction we can see the Mourne Mountains, opposite our house is a small willow wood with 1500 trees that I planted almost single handedly so plenty of birds including screeching cock pheasants and hen pheasants. We have foxes, a large badger sett as well as sheep and cattle. Lots of little lambs these days, so we are quite lucky in that respect.

Tvman x

I'm not so much of a soap fan although growing up in Belfast, Coronation Street was a forever compulsory view in the family home. 

Later in life there was Neighbours, (Shughie McFee was a great character), El Dorado (remember that?) and EastEnders. I don't watch EastEnders anymore as it's depressing, no one seems to have a happy life but maybe that's what viewers like. I don't really watch soaps anymore. One of my favourites to watch these days is Ambulance on BBC 1 and also there's 24 hours in police custody on channel 4. 

Good to hear about the story line in Emmerdale 

Tvman x

Good evening, I very much enjoyed the BBC series Return to Paradis. Set in Australia, it is a spin of from Death in Paradise. I thought it was very entertaining and good to see a lady detective as the main character. All episode are available on the BBC I player. Can’t wait for the next season to come next January. 
Not a soap fan at all I have to admit, but my ex hubby watched Coronation Street without fail. That was my time to read and shut out the world for the evening. 

Angie and Lilly xx

Hi I am not a soap fan and don't watch any.  We are watching The Good Doctor, it is brilliant.

Lee x

Saturday morning and one of the best competitions in the world has started, the World Snooker Championship. I used to play a lot and pool too. I played pool internationally and was chosen to captain the team for a few tournaments but I quit playing because my children were growing up and I wanted to devote more time to them. 

Nowadays I just watch the snooker on TV and dream of what might have been. 

Tvman x

Hi TVman, do you remember the match with Denis Taylor, when he won the title? That was something else to watch. If my memory serves me right it went on late into the night. Never forget his smile and the wiggles of his finger when he won. Love 

Angie and Lilly xx

Hi Angie and Lilly,

Do I remember that final? Not half, it's one that everyone who stayed awake after midnight will never forget. I met Dennis Taylor a couple of times outside Dublin at a place called Goff's at a Legends snooker tour in 2016 and 2017. I was a wheelchair user for around 6 years at the time as my back was so bad. 

When he came over to me I held my index finger up and shook my hand a few times and his smile would have lit up a room. I seemed to be just about the only person that had seen it before. 

Had to do a bit of searching to find the photo below. It's of Dennis Taylor and yours truly 

Tvman x

Not the best photo of me, I think I was taking the photo and was concentrating so much that I didn't drop my phone! Lol 

My eyelids aren't always like that!!

Tvman x