The Prague Post Online ....successful North American shows like Desperate Houswives and Lost have also recently started airing here, Czech-made shows continue to top viewer preferences. It makes sense, TV Nova spokeswoman Veronika Šmítková says. "People like to be able to identify with the characters in the story. And they like seeing their favorite movie actors."In the 1990s, the country saw a massive influx of Latin American soap operas. Now, it seems as though viewers are becoming bored with shows from exotic settings and want something closer to home, producers say."It's become clear that our viewers prefer original Czech series to dubbed foreign shows," ČTV spokesman Martin Krafl says. "They can relate to them better."

Some of the new soap operas named are Ordinace and Rodiná pouta. As I mentioned before, serialized drama has a long-standing tradition on Czech TV but the new soap opera format is relatively new. It will be interesting to watch what will come of this new crop.