Question

[Trần gia huy]

IV. a. Read the article and write headings a-d in gaps 1-4.

A. The reasons we love soaps.                                                           B. The origin of soaps.

C. Popular soaps made in Spanish.                           D. Popular soaps made in English.

Soap operas are one of the most popular types of television programme in the world. Charlie Price investigates the world of:

22. .................. In the United States, drama series started on the radio in the 1930s. The main audience was women, so many of the advertisements on the programmes were for soap. And at the time, western films were called ‘Horse Operas’. Soon, people started calling the drama series ‘Soap Operas’.

23. .................. In the USA and the UK, soap operas can be on the radio or television for years. In the UK, The Archers is about people in a small village in England. The programme started over 55 years ago and it's still on the radio three times a week. Over four million people listen to each episode. TheBold and the Beautiful is a US television soap opera. It began in 1987 and is on television in almost 100 countries all over the world with an audience of over 300 million people!

24. .................. In Latin America, TV soap operas are called telenovelos. A typical telenovela is on television five or six days a week for about three months. People watch Latin American telenovelas all over the world - even in countries like China, Poland and Russia. And the stars are often more famous than film stars. When the Mexican telenovela actress and singer Thalia, star of Maria Io del Borrio (Mona from the Neighbourhood) went to the Philippines, the President met her at the airport!

25. .................. A recent survey asked 300 people why they watched soaps. The most common answers were "They're relaxing", "They’re part of my routine", "I like the characters”. People also said that they had to find out what was happening in their favourite soap. When the Venezuelan telenovela, Kossandra was on television in Indonesia, the government became worried because some people were taking days off work to watch the programme!