Long story Shorty

Insiders from our longest-running soap, which was universally panned on release, reveal the secrets to its success.

- PAUL LITTLE

The thing about a soap opera is that the format means it can theoretically last forever. Very few do. Coronation Street (1960) is the world’s longest-running TV soap. Only two others, both from the US, survive from that decade: General Hospital and Days of Our Lives.

Australia’s longest-running contender, Neighbours, created by Grundy Television, turned 37 in March. But in the same month, current owners Fremantle Australia announced it would cease production next month.

Notable past local efforts Close to Home and Gloss survived for just eight and three years respectively. Yet this month, Shortland Street, whose debut in 1992 was greeted with a chorus of derision, will mark its 30th anniversary.

The median age in New Zealand is 37, meaning nearly half the population have never known life without Shorty. According to TVNZ, it is consistently the top programme week to week, overtaken by 1 News this year only during the parliamentary protests in February. It has reached more than 1.5 million people aged five and over on TVNZ 2 and 173,000 on TVNZ OnDemand so far this year. It is firmly entrenched in the cultural landscape and there is every indication that there will be many more birthdays to come.

“Everyone kept thinking it was going to come to an end at the end of the first year,” says Simon Bennett, whose involvement as director, producer and executive producer began in 1996 and who now runs the international hit show Power Rangers, which is made in Auckland.

So, why didn’t it? First, it got the basics right – archetypal characters, flexible basic setting, relatable situations and cliffhangers are all essential parts of the mix. But you can get those from an idiot’s guide to writing soaps.