General Hospital (UK TV series) productions to fill in the extended schedules. Among the first of these shows, which were aimed at giving advertisers access to housewives, were the long-running rural soap "Emmerdale Farm" (YTV) and the twice-weekly medical drama "General Hospital". Set in a fictional Midlands town, the series followed the romantic and professional lives of its doctors and nurses. While the location and the characters names had been changed, in most other respects "General Hospital" was almost identical to its predecessor, "Emergency – Ward 10", a deliberate attempt to recreate its success. In 1975, after 270 twice-weekly episodes, "General Hospital" was given a
Soap opera Soap opera A soap opera is an ongoing drama serial on television or radio, featuring the lives of many characters and their emotional relationships. The term "soap opera" originated from radio dramas being sponsored by soap manufacturers. BBC Radio's "The Archers", first broadcast in 1950, is the world’s longest-running radio soap opera; the world's longest-running television soap opera is "Coronation Street", first broadcast on ITV in 1960. The first serial considered to be a "soap opera" was "Painted Dreams", which debuted on October 20, 1930 on Chicago radio station WGN. Early radio series such as "Painted Dreams" were broadcast in