These Days

These Days
These Days is an urban and darkly emotional continuing serial drama produced by Imago Productions. Its longstanding home is the creative writing forum Writers Express; creator Chloe Jones hopes to have it published on various other websites in the future, such as fanfiction.net, Walford Web and Digitial Spy.

Two previous versions - one running from 2011-2014, the other 2015-18 - preceded the modern version, and both were published on the Proboards forum Writers Express (known as 'Lit' in 2018), from 2011-2018. These Days 1.0 (as it is retrospectively known) ran for 173 episodes, with These Days 2.0 running for 75 episodes. As the new version began in 2020, 2019 was the first year since 2011 that These Days was not published on Writers Express in some form. Explaing that decision back in 2019, Jones observed: "I needed a break from These Days, but also having it absent for a couple of years from the forum (Writers Express), allows memories of characters and storylines from the previous version to fade, so that readers are more likely to approach this new version with fresh eyes and an open mind."

Premise & Success
The project is set in and around two fictitious Leicester suburbs: the urban Newben - which has featured in all three versions - and a more suburban area where most of the characters live. In 2.0, this suburba was known as Linford. In 1.0 and 3.0, it is known as Middlehampton, which is a suburb of Leicester, although Linford is also mentioned. The project has always been produced by Imago Productions, but under previous names, such as Noxy Productions, Impossible Princess Productions and Equanox Media. It originally ran from November 2011-September 2014 (version 1.0), followed by another stint from February 2015-April 2018 (version 2.0).

These Days 1.0 ran from 14th November 2011-29th September 2014, though it wasn't officially cancelled until 1st December 2014. It is the most successful soap project to date on the Writers Express forum. A critical success from the outset, These Days 1.0 scooped a record 41 WRIXFAS (Writers Express Forum Awards) in total, including 'Best Soap' (or equivalent accolade) eight consecutive times. It was also named 'Best Project' at WRIXFAS 8 in September 2014, where it broke records by winning 9 awards at one ceremony.

In spite of this success, creator and writer Noxy felt she had taken 1.0 as far as it could go by the time it ended, and a new version of the project was officially announced on 5th January 2015. Like its predecessor, it is initially set in the near future, but once it caught up, fell behind real time, and so was ostensibly set in the past. In TDS time, the show aired three days a week - Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays - for both the previous versions.

In stark contrast to the previous incarnations, 'These Days 3.0' - known simply as These Days - was retooled as a one-hour, once-a-week serial drama, its format in the vein of drams like Casualty or Holby City. This means that the continuity timeframe is looser and more flexible than in the past, however narratively events still happen close together, and there are no self-contained stories, for example. In effect this is a hybrid of the soap/drama genres, what Jones terms as a 'soapra'. Explaining her decison to reformat the show, Jones explained: "Previous version of TDS were always most popular when there was plenty of drama. During quieter times I felt that interest in the project waned, rallying again when the drama picked up. A soap simply cannot be constantly dramatic if it is to survive long-time; its narratives need breathing space and filler scenes to keep it going. That never really seemed to work for TDS, and so the reformatting is in response to that, to some degree. With only an hour a week of material, there's not much time for filler, and so there can be more drama more often without the show burning out. And given the often emotional and powerful nature of some stories, those scenes need more time to breathe, which they wouldn't get in a half-hour soap as there's no real time for that. So all in all, a one-hour format just seemed to make the most sense to me in the end. It took an awful lot of thinking about though, it was not a decision that was rushed into."

Social Media
These Days was present on Twitter since November 2011 (the month the first version began), making it (probably) the oldest Writers Express project still in existence with a Twitter account. However, it was finally deactivated on 12th August 2020; producer Chloe Jones felt it would have more presence and impact on another social media network. As such, since 12th August 2020, the project is now only active on Instagram.

Title Card
The current title card was revealed along with the return of the project on 20th March 2019. The background of the previous title card - which was of generic, orange-brick, suburban housing - has been replaced by a rather grimy, concrete-clad, littered alleyway, hinting at a darker, grittier tone to this verison. The logo however is identical to previously; made up of two red squares, the left of which is almost transparent save for the outline. The words 'THESE' (in red) and 'DAYS' (in white) appear alongside each other in block capitals, in two different boxes, the left of which is slanted higher than the lower, and the combination gives a winged-like image. The background image is slightly blurred and darkened, to emphasise the logo more. Of the look, Jones said: "This is the happiest I've been with a TDS logo. The progressive, quite futuristic logo hints at a modern, urban environment." The font used in the logo is Open Sans Semibold. In addition to the new look, the previous 'Break' label is instead replaced with an all-red 'These Days' logo, to space out the different parts of each episode.

Theme Tune
In 2.0, the theme tune was 'Distance', a 2001 downtempo song by Schiller ft. Kim Sanders. Noxy felt that the song's 'ethereal atmosphere and emotional lyrics' captured the essence of what the show was about. In 1.0, the theme was 'Unfinished Sympathy (Paul Oakenfold Remix)', an orchestral trip hop song by Massive Attack. The 1.0 theme returned as the closing theme to the modern version. There are no opening credits; Episode 1 opens with a flashback sequence which then segues immediately into a brief, five-second sequence of the title card. Since Episode 2, each installment begins with a recap of previous scenes and storylines (similar to Australian soaps), before again, seguing into a brief title sequence. Each episode usually begins with a montage opening sequence dubbed over by a song, though not every episode does this.

Locations & Sets
These Days is set across three fictional, neighbouring Leicester suburbs: the urban Newben, and the suburban and more wideley seen Middlehampton. Linford is referred to to a much lesser extent than in 2.0. There are also several distinctive landmarks in the show. These include the following:
 * Doyle's - a local caf&eacute; run by proprietor Liz Doyle. Liz lives alone in the flat above the eatery
 * The Moonshine Inn - a pub run by parents Maxine Donnelly and Phil Donnelly. Maxine's retired, ageing mother Trish Hobson helps out there occasionally. Phil and Maxine's teenage children Noah Donnelly and Sammy Donnelly also live there. Anita Johnson is a barmaid
 * Wheel Deals - a garage and car dealership owned and run by mechanic Jack Hornby. It is adjacnt to Nice Price (see below)
 * Nice Price - a newsagent's owned and run by couple Jason Warren and Hari Kapoor
 * Hotel Republic - a chain hotel run by Martin Rogers, though he is forced to quit in the first episode. His staff include deputy Steve Rogers, Martin's son, head receptionist Chandra Patel, and assistant chef Paul 'Woody' Woodley. Vanessa Warren is head of housekeeping, whilst her husband James Warren oversees all of  Hotel Republic's branches in the East Midlands. Bigwig Gavin Archer works for head office
 * Restaurant Republic - offscreen hotel restaurant run by an offscreen manager. Woody Woodley works there as an assistant chef
 * Linford Park - a public park bridging the suburbs of Newben and Middlehampton. Its name now stands as a tribute to the defunct suburb of Linford (not used in this version)
 * Harborough House - a multiple occupancy enterprise business building; the name is a nod to the Leicestershire district of Harborough, as well as the town of Market Harborough. Currently only two businesses are seen there - a missing persons charity called Lost & Found, run by Lisa Wright, and her husband Glen Wright's law firm
 * The Attenborough Academy - a local secondary school named after British TV naturalist David Attenborough, who grew up in Leicester and lived there for some years. Matt Archer and Rachel Hornby both work there as teachers - the latter only recently. Students there include Danielle Parfitt and Sammy Donnelly (Year 13); Declan Jenkins, Kai Rogers, Reuben Symanski and Freya Bayliss (all Year 8)
 * Newben College - a tertiary education facility
 * Rendezvous - a small student cafe within the college
 * Sanco (referred to verbally as 'Sanco's') - a rarely seen but occasionally mentioned fictional supermarket. 'Sanco' is a portmanteau of Sainsbury and Tesco. In addition there is also a Sanco Mini, often referred to as 'mini Sanco's'
 * Leicester St. Mary's - a fictional hospital. Nurses Rosy Lyons and Keeley Archer work there
 * The Archers - an alternative but rarely seen pub to The Moonshine Inn

Formation, Style and Original Demise
'These Days' was first conceived as an idea in the autumn of 2001. Creator Chloe Jones has said she was inspired by ITV soaps Crossroads (2001-03) and Night And Day (2001-3), and has also cited Australian soaps Neighbours and Home And Away as influences, stating that TDS has 'the warmth and family feel' of Neighbours mixed with 'the edge and vibrancy' of Home And Away. Australian soaps also influence the style of TDS in several ways:


 * Every episode begins with a recap of the previous episode; this is standard practice for Australian soaps but not British ones
 * A 'filmic' look is used for TDS, unlike major British soaps which use standard filming
 * TDS has a mixture of working class and middle class characters and values, as opposed to most British soaps which tend to focus on only the working class

Another somewhat unconventional trait of the show is its broad setting. Unlike standard British soaps, which are almost invariably set on one street, cul-de-sac or relatively small area (e.g. a village), TDS is spread across fictional Leicester suburbs, and makes regular use of several external sets, including a hotel, a multiple occupancy enterprise business building&eacute;and a public park. These types of set are atypical in British soaps.

Jones described naming the show as difficult, admitting that she went through several titles, but instinctively felt that 'These Days' was the 'right' title and 'had a ring to it'.

She began writing 'These Days' towards the end of 2001. She had written 9 episodes before launching it, but then suddenly stopped, feeling they were not of a high enough standard. The show then restarted a few weeks later, running for 12 months across the whole of 2002. In 2005 a second series began, set three years after the original, and this continued in sporadic installments all the way up to 2009, when the show stopped at around Episode 211. Jones stopped writing the show as she felt it had 'stalled' and had lost direction and purpose. As such, it was abandoned indefinitely.

First Revival (2011)
In August 2011, Noxy joined a creative writing website called Writers Express, which she would later own and run.

In November 2011, a revamped and modernised version of These Days began. It was largely unchanged from the original until around Episode 40, but gradually the material became increasingly and then predominantly original. The project was critically acclaimed from the outset, and won 41 WRIXFAS (Writers Express Forum Awards) in total, more than any other soap opera project in the forum's history to date. It was also the first project ever to acquire 40 WRIXAS. On the 31st August 2014, it was named Best Soap for the eighth consecutive time.

The full list of accolades includes:
 * BEST SOAP (six times in a row)
 * BEST (SOAP) EPISODE (6 times) - 27/1.27, 75/1.75, 100/2.16, 131/2.47, 144/2.60 & 164/2.80
 * BEST CAMEO, NEWCOMER OR RETURNEE (5 times) - Ben Warren (Newcomer), Hannah Cartwright (Newcomer), Sabrina Patel (Newcomer), Rosy Lyons (Returnee) & Connor Mason (Newcomer)
 * BEST SOAP FEMALE (four times) - Lisa Hopkins (twice), Rosy Lyons & Joss Wykin
 * BEST SOAP SCENE (four times) - Steven & Ricki's Bittersweet Airport Goodbye (75/1.75), Rachel Hornby's Death (84/1.84), Holly Wainwright's Death (131/2.47) & Bezza Shot Dead By An Unknown Assailant (164/2.80)
 * BEST EXIT (thrice) - Sarah Reuban, Ben Warren & Bezza
 * BEST SOAP MALE (thrice) - Glen Wright & Ben Warren (twice-in-a-row)
 * BEST SOAP PLOT - Ben Warren's Fatal Meltdown, Spikegate & Who Shot Bezza?
 * BEST PROJECT (first project to win this new award)
 * BEST RELATIONSHIP - Glisa (Glen & Lisa)
 * BEST SHOCK - Ben Hastens Rosemary's Death With A Heart Attack

However, on 29th September 2014, Episode 173 was published. It was announced on the 1st December 2014 that this was to be the last ever episode of this version, and the project formally ended. Shortly after, it was hinted that the show would return, but restarted and refreshed for a new, modern era.

Second Revival (2015)
On the 5th January 2015, an official article was published giving an insight into the new version. It began on the 1st February and aired on-and-off until 20th April 2018. This version involved a number of changes, including but not exhaustively:
 * Lisa Hopkins was now known as Lisa Wright, her married name. This was to give the complex family she comes from the umbrella name 'the Wright family'
 * Lisa now ran a salon called Fabulous! initially alongside her gay best friend Jason Warren. Neither Fabulous! or Jason had previously existed. There was no modelling agency in this version. Jason left the salon to take over the running of gym Sweat in Episode 12
 * The Moonshine Inn pub was previously owned and run by James Warren, and was introduced halfway through the first series. In the second revival, the pub is owned and run by the Donnelly parents Maxine and Phil, and appears from the outset
 * Lee Rogers no longer ran a newsagent's, but a petrol station. This petrol station was adjacent to the garage
 * Newben General Hospital was renamed Leicester St. Mary's
 * In the first revival, the Blue Royal&eacute; hotel later became Hotel Republic. However in 2.0, it was known as Hotel Republic from the outset. Originally, Ricki Wells ran it with an iron fist. This time Ricki - now known as Ricki Marshall - was drafted in as a new manager; partly because of the sudden death of the hotel's previous manager (and Ricki's father-in-law) Max Marshall, and partly because the hotel had just been downgraded from four-star to three-star. Alarmed by this, CEO Bob Emerald drafts in Ricki - a tough but efficient operator with an excellent track record - to 'turn it around'
 * Woody - AKA Paul Woodley - is a new character at the hotel, a Brummie playing the role of assistant chef in the unseen hotel restaurant
 * Anita Johnson - previously a model but later a barmaid - is now a barmaid from the outset
 * Middlehampton no longer exists; it is now Linford, a suburban area of Leicester adjacent to the more urban Newben
 * Doyle's, the show's famous eatery, has been scaled down from a restaurant to a café
 * East Midlands University (known as EMU) is an inivisible set AKA it is mentioned but is never seen. Current undergraduates at the time were Rosy Lyons, Keeley Thompson and Tom Hornby

Third Revival (2020)
To be added

Episode Recaps
Each episode has its own individual episode breakdowns on its own page on this wiki. To find these, go to the search box on this wiki and type in the word 'episode,' followed by the episode number you are looking for.