Microsoap

Microsoap
Genre	Live Action Childrens Comedy
Starring	Rebecca Hunter Paul Terry Suzanne Burden Jeff Rawle Ivan Kaye Ryan Cartwright Lucy Evans Albey Brookes
Theme music composer	Tony Flynn
Opening theme	"Microsoap Theme"
Country of origin	United Kingdom
Language(s)	English
No. of seasons	4
No. of episodes	26
Production
Running time	24 minutes
Production company(s)	BBC The Disney Channel
Broadcast
Original channel	CBBC on BBC1 The Disney Channel
Picture format	SDTV 576i (1998-2001)
Audio format	Dolby Surround (1998–2001)
Original run	1998 – 2001

Microsoap is a children's sitcom, co-written by Mark Haddon and co-produced by the BBC and the Disney Channel. A total of 26 episodes were made, lasting over four series, and airing from 1998-2001. The series Producer for all episodes was Andy Rowley. Directors were Juliet May, Baz Taylor, Graeme Harper.

The story is based around the lives of two children, Joe and Emily Parker, who are brother and sister. The series begin with the split of their parents, Colin and Jane, who decide the marriage isn't working. They don't want to make life for their children difficult, so they remain friends. Jane begins to see a builder named Roger, a single parent of three children, David, Felicity and Robbie. They move in next door, and Roger knocks through a wall making one big house. Meanwhile, Colin sees Jennifer, the marriage therapist he and Jane used. This forms the background story for each episode of the series, that starred Suzanne Burden, Paul Terry, Jeff Rawle and Rebecca Hunter.

Series overview

Season		# of episodes	Date originally aired
	1	7	1998
	2	6	1999
	3	6	2000
	4	7	2001

Character summaries

Main characters

Emily Parker

Played by Rebecca Hunter.

Joe Parker

Played by Paul Terry.

Jane Parker

Played by Suzanne Burden.

Roger Smart

Played by Ivan Kaye.

David Smart

Played by Ryan Cartwright.

Felicity Smart

Played by Lucy Evans.

Robbie Smart

Played by Albey Brookes.

Colin Parker

Played by Jeff Rawle.

Recurring characters

Jennifer Parker

Played by Lou Gish.

Jim

Played by Scott Hickman.

Toby

Played by Stephen Geller.

Lisa

Played by Shauna Shim.

Pogo

Played by Sarah Mogg.

Novelisations

Front covers of both novels, published by BBC Books in 1999.

Following the success of the television show's first season, two novels were published in 1999. Both are based on the original scripts by Mark Haddon, with writing by Stephen Cole and illustrations by Philip Thompson and Atholl McDonald. They were published by BBC Books and are fully endorsed by both the BBC and the Disney Channel.

• "My Dad Is An Armed Robber" - ISBN 0-563-55618-8, is a novelisation of episodes 1 and 2 of the first season.

• "Lodgers From Hell" - ISBN 0-563-55619-6, is a novelisation of the 3rd and 4th episodes of the first season.

The novels are written in a first-person narrative style, with Emily and Joe sharing the role. The switch between the narrators is always signified by a change in the type-face.

References

• Lewisohn, Mark (2003). Radio Times Guide to TV Comedy. BBC Books. ISBN 0563487550. 

External links

• Microsoap at the Internet Movie Database