1. Conventions
in TV Dramas
By Sophie, Beth, Nathan
and Ollie.TV drama mainly looks at four
aspects of life. These are
crime drama, medical drama,
soap opera and costume.

2. Genre:
 A category of artistic composition, as in music or
literature, characterized by similarities in form, style, or
subject matter.
 A sub genre is a sub category in a particular genre, for
example in Tv crimes, the genre would be drama and
the sub genre would be crime.

3. Narrative:
 Tzvetan Todorov theory of narrative is that the drams’s
start of with a happy storyline and then something
happens to change this but it is resolved at the end. This
theory is for crime drama, medical drama and costume
drama.
 There is a different theory for soap’s. Valdimir Prop said
that there is always a hero and a villain. Soap operas do
not have a happy ending they always use cliff hanger
to keep you watching the drama because you want to
find out what happens next, the story never ends.

4. Conventions of Costume:
 Costume/period drama’s are often adaptations of a
famous 'classic' novel or play but can also be original
works.
 They show a specific part of history. For example life in war.
 This type of drama is normally part of a series.
 These drama’s use costume clothing to show a certain
period of time.
 A typical period drama is set in a large country mansion
house (stately home) is for the point of interaction.
 Normally involves romance between two characters.
 Example of costume drama’s are: Down town abbey, the
Tudors, Arabian nights, Oliver twist and Vikings.

5. MEDICAL TV DRAMA
Conventions of a Medical TV Drama:
 set in a hospital or a doctors which is the point of
interaction
 The characters often witness horrific events,
 Similar to a Soap Opera but a Medical TV Drama is
believed to be more educational by using more
medical terms
 It relates to soap operas in the way that there are
usually 2 doctors that fall in love and there are
usually tensions and arguments between doctors.
 Medical dramas can also be similar to crime dramas
as often doctors get police involved
 Medical TV Dramas always hold emotional or life
changing moments to a doctor or patients life e.g. a
patient dying.
 Medical TV Dramas tend to follow Todorov’s theory.
 Usually a lot of blood and gore.
 Examples of medical dramas: Holby city, casualty,
ER and doctors
 Medical pops and outfits

6. Soap conventions
 In most TV soap operas there are certain aspects of them
that are the same, for example, A British soap opera almost
always features the following conventions:
 It is a serialized drama that usually runs week-in, week-out,
all year round.
 It features continuous storylines
 It generally has a well-known theme tune.
 The plots are open-ended and usually many storylines are
featured or even interlinked in an episode.
 They are often set around a small, central area such as a
square (as in EastEnders) and have a standardized meeting
point like a pub.
 Soaps often have special episodes for events in the real
world such as Christmas or the Millennium.
 British soaps most often feature common, ordinary, working
class characters.
 Soap operas usually end on a cliff hanger.
 Three, four or even five storylines will be in progress during
any one episode, with the action switching between them.

7. Examples of Soap operas
 Eastenders
 Coronation street
 Holyoaks
 Emmerdale
 Neighbors
 Waterloo Road

8. Conventions of Tv crime
dramasCan be set in many different locations. Usually a city.
However most have a three part structure. Beginning (discovery of the
crime), middle (solving the crime), end (usually making a arrest).
Here are some of the key elements to a crime Drama:
 A mystery/problem that needs to be solved
 The resolution to a mystery/problem
 Question of morality
 Debates about innocence and guilt
 Conflict between modes of policing
 Different characteristics of villainy
 The hero usually defeats the villain
 The hero often has a sidekick in order to let the audience see the hero’s
thoughts.
Examples of TV crime dramas are, CSI, Sherlock Holmes, Top boy, law and
order, The Bill, Board Church, Midsummer murders.