ABSTRACT
This excerpt, from a 1989 Sydney Morning Herald report titled ‘Invasion of the Aussie soaps’, strikes a familiar tone for many readers, and not only in Australia. It barely conceals a protonationalist delight in the reverse imperialism that such ‘invasions’ indicate-the Empire striking back and all that-while at the same time eliding the great variety of cultural acceptance or impact that Australian programmes may have achieved in world markets. This article, part of a longer study of the increasingly international orientation of Australian television, outlines first some of the methodological issues that must be considered in cross-cultural and reception analysis of peripheral nations’ television export activity, particularly soap opera. Then we focus, as a case study, on modes of explanation of the popularity of Australian soaps on British television.
