2,998 words
British television in the 1970s punched way above its weight in an arena dominated by America. While the US ruled the mass entertainment market, Britain held the prestige drama niche in the palm of her hand. Britain sold more finished programs than formats, whereas the reverse is now the case, and received industry awards at a disproportionately high rate. Its actors had mostly been trained at venerable thespian institutions such as RADA (the Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts), and were as comfortable with Shakespeare as they were with a situation comedy. (more…)