Watching TV is a very popular pastime in the UK but what kind of programmes do British peo

Watching TV is a very popular pastime in the UK but what kind of programmes do British people like to watch? Well, the most-watched TV programmes every week are very popular dramas that are usually on at least four times every week. They are dramas based in one neighbourhood that try to describe ordinary life in the UK --- we call these dramas ‘soap operas’ or ‘soaps’.

       In the early days of TV, there were often dramas on during the day. Back in those days, it was traditional for the husband to go out to work and for the wife to stay at home and look after the house and the children. Most of these daytime dramas were aimed at entertaining the housewives who would traditionally be at home, probably doing the washing. Companies selling washing powder would advertise their products at times when these dramas were on, and sometimes those companies would even sponsor (赞助) the drama. Hence the word ‘soap’.

       So what about the word opera? Well, that’s because these dramas are often an exaggeration (夸大) of real life. They are supposed to represent ordinary life but to make them entertaining, lots of dramatic events like murders, divorces, affairs (风流韵事) etc. all happen probably much more regularly than they would in a normal neighbourhood.

       Most soap operas these days are shown in the evening. Each show will have several different storylines happening at once that continue over several shows. The same cast members will appear in every show too.

       There are lots of different soaps on in the UK on different channels but there are three main popular ones. ‘Coronation Street’ has been on since 1960. It is set in a suburb of Manchester and it’s supposed to represent working class life in the north of England. Then there’s ‘Eastenders’ which started in 1985, set in the East End of London and ‘Emmerdale’, which is set on a farm in Yorkshire, in the north of England.

56. The text is mainly about ______.

       A. some popular soap operas

       B. how people spend their spare time in the UK

       C. why soap opera is so called

       D. how companies sell soaps

57. Which opera should you watch if you want to learn about people’s life in London?

       A. Coronation Street.                                 B. Eastenders.

       C. Emmerdale.                                          D. None of the above.

58. The underlined part “cast members” in paragraph 4 probably means ______.

       A. actors and actresses                              B. people who sell washing powder

       C. characters in Coronation Street               D. opera producers

59. We may infer from the second paragraph that ______.

       A. companies often sold washing powder from door to door

       B. soap operas were produced only for women

       C. men didn’t like watching TV

       D. today more women go to work

60.   Which of the following stories takes place in Manchester?

       A. Coronation Street.     B. Eastenders         C. Emerdale           D. None of the above.