Pop Culture and Entertainment Flashcards
Explain the development of the cinema (1918-39)
- Most popular medium of entertainment
- Sold over 20 million tickets a week
- 20s - film industry became under pressure from the much larger and more powerful American industry based in Hollywood - 1/4 of all films were British (declined)
- 20s - became more respectable places to visit
- British audiences had an increased attraction to American films about cowboys and gangsters
- 1927 Cinematography Films Act - 7.5% of films had to be British, increased to 20% in 1935
- 1935 - films with spoken words were starting to be produced
- Cinema tickets grew during Great Depression
- Offered working-class escapism
- Day-time tickets were cheaper
1937-39 - cinemas provided more than 50% of all tax revenues on entertainment
Give a short timeline of the aim of film
Interwar period
- offered escapism, dominated with romances, thrillers and crime dramas
- Some films reflected day-to-day life were also popular
WWII
- important for morale during war years
(opened during war, after being shut down, due to popular demand)
- films encouraged patriotism were popular
Post WWII
- comedies were popular
- often satire to deal with harsh economic conditions that Britain was in post war
- war films in late 50s - Britain’s world role declined, done to reassure cinema-goers
- social realism produced dramas based on every-day experiences of working-class people, intending to close class gap
- 70s, Britain’s economic problems grew, films reflected dark visions of British society - fears of rising crime in films
- spy films - reflected mood of public, Bond went after big bosses and corporations
Give an overview of music in the 20s
- Ivor Novello - most successful - wrote a popular song during WWI - ‘Keep the home fires burning’
- Song appealed to families with loved ones overseas, reflecting fears and sorrow of separation
- Most people in Britain could relate to the song - made people feel less alone
Give an overview of Jazz and Swing
- Introduction of American music in Britain - 30s
- Around 20k dance bands in Britain by 1930 - shows immense popularity - influenced by American jazz bands
- American artists came to Britain during WWII, and the US army and air force radio broadcast jazz and swing across the UK
Give an overview of Rock ‘n’ Roll
50s and 60s
- Highlighted America’s impact and influence on British culture - so popular
- Reflected rise in living standards -
Give an overview of Reggae
60s
- Immigrants from Caribbean brought over reggae to the UK and gained popularity
- Reflects changing ethnic make up of Britain - articulated experiences of Back immigrants dealing with racism, police violence and inequality
Give an overview of Glam Music
70s
- Became a means of expressing and challenging ideas of gender identity and sexual orientation - ‘progressive’ Britain
- As teens had more disposable income and more leisure time, they sought new ways of distinguishing themselves from their parents
- Increased wealth enabled teens to assert their own identities in ways that couldn’t have been done previously
Give an overview of Mod Music
60s and 70s
- Close relationship with consumerism and fashion - working-class fans (mainly) spent wages on the mod ‘look’
- Being able to buy the right clothes or accessories became as important to fan subcultures as the music itself
Give an overview of Punk Music
70s
- Angry sound of punk music reflected mood of decade - shocking clothing and actions of punk bands and their fans
- Link punks appeal to decrease in living standards
- Growth in youth unemployment led to punk being labelled as the ‘music of the dole queue’ (dole queue = state of being unemployed)
- Articulated anger and frustration (middle finger to anything the government did)
Give an overview of the BBC (Pre WWII)
- Formed 1922 - British Broadcasting Company - licensed by government - close relationship to the state, giving specific news, music and entertainment - often reflected views of the government (not reflecting quality of life in 20s and 30s)
- 1927 - British Broadcasting Corporation - given a royal charter - became a publicly owned state broadcaster
- 1st Director of the BBC - John Reith - Created a template for public service broadcasting and for the arms-length public corporations that were to follow (post-WWII) - fought off the politicians’ attempts to influence the BBC
Give an overview of the BBC (WWII)
- National and regional programmed replaced with Home Service - done to prevent enemy aircraft using regional audio as navigation
- Programmes intended to boost public morale
Give an overview of the BBC (Post WWII)
- Light Programme 1945 - mix of comedies and soaps - most popular, over 10mil listeners daily
- Third Programme - Highbrow classical music and drama (only 3% of listeners)
Explain the introduction and effect of Pirate Radio
- Due to American Forces radio in Britain during the war, British radio began to change and entertainment became more of a priority
- Pirate radio stations based on ships just outside British territory became very popular
- New broadcasts gained teen audience - playing latest music
- BBC and government had no effective way of stopping these broadcasts - forced to play pop music as well
- 1967 - Pirate Radio resulted in the reorganisation of the Light, Third and Home Programme into Radio 2, 3, 4
- Radio 1 was launched - focused on pop music
Give an overview of commercial radio
- 1975 - Licences for commercial radio stations were granted and the BBC lost its monopoly on broadcasting
- Commercial stations could appeal to ‘niche’ audiences and sustained themselves through selling airtime to advertisers
Give the successes and failures of the BBC
- BBC tried to influence the tastes of the public (failed)
- People favoured ‘Top 40’ over BBC’s ‘highbrow’ (preferred pop than classical)
- BBC didn’t change society - had to change to meet demands of society
+ BBC held monopoly until 1973
+ Consistently popular - 10mil listeners
+ Many working-class had radio on at all times
