Manchester University Press
Introduction
Abstract
This chapter provides a profile of the television-series writer and creator Jack Rosenthal, who was born in 1931 in Cheetham Hill, Manchester, the second son of Sam and Leah. His parents were working class and Jewish, elements of his background that characterised all his work. Rosenthal was delighted to be commissioned in 1961 to write for Coronation Street, a soap opera set in a milieu he knew well. Almost everything for which his writing became famous stems from Coronation Street, including his interest in the underprivileged and the underdog, and their salty, everyday discourse and Englishness. Rosenthal's career paralleled and was integral to a formative period in the history of British television drama and he worked for the independent television company Granada before becoming a freelance writer in 1962. Throughout his career, his writing was characterised by the same kinds of comic verbal trope. Despite his many industry awards and nominations, Rosenthal's archive contains several examples of plays that were never televised or filmed.
Abstract
This chapter provides a profile of the television-series writer and creator Jack Rosenthal, who was born in 1931 in Cheetham Hill, Manchester, the second son of Sam and Leah. His parents were working class and Jewish, elements of his background that characterised all his work. Rosenthal was delighted to be commissioned in 1961 to write for Coronation Street, a soap opera set in a milieu he knew well. Almost everything for which his writing became famous stems from Coronation Street, including his interest in the underprivileged and the underdog, and their salty, everyday discourse and Englishness. Rosenthal's career paralleled and was integral to a formative period in the history of British television drama and he worked for the independent television company Granada before becoming a freelance writer in 1962. Throughout his career, his writing was characterised by the same kinds of comic verbal trope. Despite his many industry awards and nominations, Rosenthal's archive contains several examples of plays that were never televised or filmed.
Chapters in this book
- Front matter i
- Dedication v
- Contents vii
- General editors’ preface ix
- Acknowledgements xi
- Introduction 1
- 1 The beginnings 14
- 2 Little England 33
- 3 Men at work 58
- 4 Love stories 84
- 5 Structure and plot 112
- 6 Television satire in 1976 and 2005 134
- 7 Versions of autobiography 147
- 8 Anglo-Jewish plays 165
- Appendix 189
- Select bibliography 193
- Index 197
Chapters in this book
- Front matter i
- Dedication v
- Contents vii
- General editors’ preface ix
- Acknowledgements xi
- Introduction 1
- 1 The beginnings 14
- 2 Little England 33
- 3 Men at work 58
- 4 Love stories 84
- 5 Structure and plot 112
- 6 Television satire in 1976 and 2005 134
- 7 Versions of autobiography 147
- 8 Anglo-Jewish plays 165
- Appendix 189
- Select bibliography 193
- Index 197
