Coronation Street brought working class lives to telly and became an international phenomenon

December 9th marks the 50th anniversary of the enduring TV program Coronation Street, one of the early examples of “kitchen sink drama” that emerged in Britain during the 1950s and 1960s. In what was cutting-edge drama, the program “used a style of social realism which often depicted the domestic situations of working class Britons living in rented accommodation and spending their off-hours in grimy pubs to explore social issues and political controversies.” [Source: Wikipedia] It also skillfully mixed comedy and pathos, a Coronation Street trademark approach that continues to this day [opens to YouTube]. (more…)

Annual event highlights the importance of youth literacy with in-person poem-ing

Poets across Canada will visit juvenile detention centres, alternative schools and youth centres October 4th to 9th, 2010, during the seventh annual Random Acts of Poetry event, sponsored by The Canada Council for the Arts. For the first time, the event is focused this year on bringing poetry to young people. Organizers want to draw attention to youth literacy, which they consider to be a crucial issue for Canada’s future.

Nanaimo poet Kim Goldberg’s latest book is RED ZONE, a poem diary of Nanaimo’s homeless population. Kim is a frequent performer at spoken word events on Vancouver Island. (more…)