WE love our soaps. And a man who has played a leading role in TV for many years admits: "I'm a fan, too."
David Liddiment, a Huddersfield man who made his name with both ITV and the BBC, is to examine our love affair with the likes of Coronation Street, EastEnders and Emmerdale tomorrow.
The rise of those programmes is the subject of How Soaps Changed The World, on Channel 4.
The programme-makers have made an intriguing choice in selecting their host.
It could have been a former Corrie star, such as Julie Goodyear - better known as Bet Lynch - or an ex-East- Ender, like Todd Carty, aka Mark Fowler.
Instead, they have chosen Mr Liddiment, one of the most important and influential people in British TV.
He's held top jobs at the BBC and ITV and knows the industry back to front. He's also a huge soap fan.
"It's an area I've always had an affection for and I ran Coronation Street for five years as executive producer. So I've always been fascinated by the nature of an ongoing serial," says Mr Liddiment, 50, who was born in Birkby and grew up in Lindley.
"Some of the most stimulating and interesting experiences of my working life have been either chairing or sitting in on story conferences. These are the engines of soaps, where the writers gather every few weeks to invent storylines.
"For this programme, we actually had the rare opportunity to film at the Coronation Street story conference, a real privilege," added Mr Liddiment.
His love of the genre isn't just professional. It began at an early age.
"The whole family watched Corrie when I was a kid," he says.
"I was brought up in Huddersfield, on a street of terraced houses. So it was very similar to Weatherfield.
"I remember that when I was 11, Pat Phoenix, who played Elsie Tanner, and Philip Lowrie, who played her son, Dennis, came to open a launderette in Huddersfield.
"It virtually closed the town centre, because 3,000 people came to see them in the flesh.
"Soap stardom is by no means a recent phenomenon. The actors in Coronation Street in the 1960s were actually superstars compared to where we are today.
"There's extraordinary footage of four of the Street stars - including Pat - going to Australia, where the soap was very successful.
"They had a motorcade and thousands of people were at the airport to greet them. It was like Beatlemania," said Mr Liddiment.
Back then, there was little competition for the Street - but things are rather different these days.
"There are things to be admired in all these shows," says Mr Liddiment.
"I do try to stay in touch with them, but there are simply too many episodes to keep up with.
"They're a phenomenon in British TV. They've been the most-watched shows for so long it's extraordinary.
"There's no doubt they provide huge entertainment and enjoyment for a large number of people."
Mr Liddiment explores the British public's obsession with soaps, their characters and the actors who play them.
Along the way, he introduces various classic clips and charts the genre's defining moments, such as the birth of Coronation Street, the influence of Brookside, the impact of imports Dallas and Neighbours and the effect EastEnders had on turning such programmes into a tabloid obsession.
* How Soaps Changed The World, Saturday, Channel 4, 9.55pm.
* At present everyone is preoccupied with Dev and Sunita's on-off affair.
* But Todd and Carl's kiss on Coronation Street has been one of soap's most talked-about moments this year.
* Television's greatest soap character is deemed to have been Hilda Ogden
* One of the biggest-ever TV audiences was for EastEnders, when Dirty Den left Angie
* The most evil soap villain was the Street's Richard Hilman, played by Brian Capron
* Grant Mitchell is the character most soap fans want to see brought back
* The sexiest female soap star, according to viewers, was Beth Jordache, of Brookside
