# Radio Soap Operas **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [October 24, 2001, 12:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/radio-soap-operas/89297 "2001-10-24T12:36:10Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 5\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![HeyHomie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/heyhomie/32/207_2.png) [@HeyHomie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HeyHomie)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2001, 12:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/radio-soap-operas/89297/1 "2001-10-24T12:36:10Z")
We have some radio commercials around here that spoof those old, melodramatic, cheesy radio soaps from back in The Day. You know what I mean… with the organ music in the background, hyper-emotional characters that would put Scarlett O’Hara to shame, etc. When did those soaps end? I have vague memories of being in a hair salon when I was a kid, waiting for Mommarasta to get her hair done, and there was one of those soaps on the radio in there. I specifically remember that the employees would sometimes stop what they were doing to listen more closely, or gasp at the developments. This would have been in the mid-70’s. And while we’re on the subject, when did serial radio programs in general disappear? Let’s discount the Saturday-morning kid-oriented Christian programming (“The Adventurers Club” or something) that’s heard around here. ---
**Author:** ![sirjamesp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@sirjamesp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sirjamesp)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2001, 12:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/radio-soap-operas/89297/2 "2001-10-24T12:56:49Z")
“The Archers” is a radio soap opera still running in the UK. ---
**Author:** ![AndyJ](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/8491ac/32.png) [@AndyJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AndyJ)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2001, 12:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/radio-soap-operas/89297/3 "2001-10-24T12:58:40Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by sirjamesp \* > \*\*“The Archers” is a radio soap opera still running in the UK. \*\* Never listen to it but… I heard they had a, close your eyes kids, sex scene in it last year. ---
**Author:** ![sirjamesp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@sirjamesp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sirjamesp)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2001, 1:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/radio-soap-operas/89297/4 "2001-10-24T13:11:01Z")
MY GOD! I bet “Points of View” had a sackful that week. I don’t listen to it either, but it must have been funny: “I say, Lady Wilberforce-Courtingham-Smyth, would you mind awfully if I take you roughly from behind?” “Oh, if you must.” “Righty-o, then, here we go.” “Oooh.” “Aaahh.” “I say!” “Whoopsie-daisy, wrong hole.” “Oooh.” “Okay, the Thames is flowing.” “Super job, absolutely spiffing. Let’s have some tea.” ---
**Author:** ![CC](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f1d935/32.png) [@CC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CC)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2001, 1:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/radio-soap-operas/89297/5 "2001-10-24T13:18:13Z")
I don’t know how to put those fancy links in a post, but I do know where you can get an answer to your question: A guy named Chuck Schaden is one of the foremost experts on old time radio. He has a store that sells old tapes and a weekly radio show of his own on which he plays the old shows. He now works out of WDCB, a public radio station associated with the College of DuPage, here in the Chicago area. You can no doubt contact him through that station at [http://www.cod.edu/wdcb](http://www.cod.edu/wdcb) He can probably tell you the last broadcast dates of any show you name. Now - my own recollection of the end of the soaps is earlier than your citation. I think it occurred in the early 60’s. At least the ones I used to listen to stopped about then. Good luck.