Television: Soaps - Life imitating Art?
'All that I desire to point out is the general principle that life
imitates art far more than art imitates life', Irish poet/playwright Oscar Wilde famously declared.
This is actually true in relation to the latest happenings in two of the nations favourite soaps Coronation Street and Eastenders.
Corrie fans will have to wait a bit longer for the riveting 'Tony Gordon's siege on the factory' storyline to play out. It had been scheduled to broadcast six episodes, instead
of the usual five, throughout the week as the plot unfolded on screen. Viewers will now have to wait with baited breath for the story to evolve - where a possible three characters are being held hostage and a potential two are to be killed off by the crazed vengeful Tony who has just escaped prison.
The episodes were postponed in light of Wednesday's "tragic events in Cumbria"
where taxi man Derrick Bird shot 12 people dead and injured a further 25 at random. 
Due to the same horrific circumstances in north-west England, Eastenders are also looking to edit footage this week in terms of the crazed Reverend Lucas Johnson and his wrath on young Ben Mitchell.
What was planned was a continuation of the murdering holy man's strange antics on a more terrifying level, but they have now decided against airing the scenes due to the Cumbrian cab driver shootings. Sources at both ITV and the BBC say the actions to delay the action sequences are being taken in sensitivity to the friends and families of Derrick Bird and his victims.