Yorkshire Stereotypes

Yorkshire characters/TV shows:

 Emmerdale. An ITV serial drama based in the fictional town of ‘Emmerdale’. It is said
to have sprung from the BBC Radio 4 programme ‘The Archers’.
 Heartbeat. Another ITV serial drama, it is set in 1960’s Yorkshire which follows the
police force as they solve multiple crimes.
 Last of the Summer Wine. Following the journeys of three older men acting younger
than they are. It has been on TV since 1973.
 Fat Friends. TV show aired on ITV between 2000-2004. It follows a group of
overweight people as they try to lose a bit of weight.
 Red Riding. A crime drama which follows the corrupt police and notorious serial
killers such as ‘The Yorkshire Ripper’. It aired on Channel 4 in 2009.
 Open All Hours. A comedy starring Ronnie Barker as a corner shop keeper who is a
bit of a sleuth. Set in Doncaster.
 Where the Heart Is. Focuses on a group of hardworking working-class nurses in the
Yorkshire village Skelthwaite.
 The Royal (Today). A drama set in the 1960s alongside ‘Heartbeat’ which follows the
antics within a hospital in Elsinby, near Whitby.
 The Chase. Set in Otley and set around a veterinary practice.

Decline in TV shows in Yorkshire?

This is most likely due to the hard economic times that the UK is currently feeling. For
example non essential regional television programming is being cut considerably such as ITV
to be shutting down ‘Yorkshire Television Studios’ they were adjudged to have lost £2.6
billion during 2008, however the separate Emmerdale studios will be untouched. Previous
to the financial recession TV shows set in Yorkshire we still on a high with many shows being
filmed throughout the region.

Representation of Yorkshire-ness
Shows that were based in Yorkshire and often heavily stereotyped. Especially in terms of
dialect and speech for example the use of “by t-way” instead of “by the way” etc. This is a
common tool used so that the audience can relate to the typical Yorkshire man and have
appeal throughout the UK. Another device used is that of frequently setting the show, in the
rolling hills and showing a lot of countryside. Characters will often be working class, working
in industry, farming etc.
‘I Didn’t Know You Cared’
“Sitcom depicting the awful Brandon family, an extended Northern clan struggling with the
miseries and stresses of family life. There’s miserable pessimist Uncle Mort, his sharp-
tongued sister Annie who is constantly arguing with husband Les, their laid-back son Carter
and his not so laid-back fiancé Pat, and finally old Uncle Stavely who carries his friend’s
ashes around his neck in a box and only enters the constant bickering with a cry of "I ‘eard
that! Pardon?".1

This can be strongly compared to the BBC sitcom ‘Early Doors’ based in Manchester, in a
small pub called ‘The Grapes’ dealing with everyday occurrences from love to blocked
urinals. This can be compared to ‘I Didn’t Know You Cared’ as it is fairly similar with the only
difference being the setting as they both stereotype heavily with the dialect. Along with the
daily ‘humorous’ events.

1
http://www.sitcom.co.uk/didnt_know_cared/