EastEndersWiki:Manual of Style

Since March 2019, the admins of this site have decided to give it a whole new regime and way of editing. This idea came along when the admins collaborated a group chat and discussed the future of the site and the general outcome we all desire.

Below is a whole new way of working that all USERS must follow; however, this isn't the definite way and ideas are welcome to be observed and discussed, but from the upcoming future the rules currently displayed must be FOLLOWED when you are editing on the site.

Episode titles
All episode pages follow the same kind of design; the only difference is, they carry out different information. When creating an episode page, the title must follow the episode number and the date of broadcast, for example, episode one is titled Episode 1 (19 February 1985). We also don't use ordinal indicators like other soap wikis, due to the fact that it's easier for a reader to find an episode as episodes designated with ordinal indicators don't come up manually in the search box when you search by the date of broadcast, they only show if you search the episode number.

Original episode titles from the BBC differ from our style in the first nineteen episodes as before then every episode was given a unique title rather than an episode number. We don't include this in ours, we stick to the standard episode numbering and instead add the unique episode title to the notes section. The reason for this being is that it may confuse both the viewers and editors of this site on the episode numberings.

Infobox episode
EVERY EPISODE PAGE must include the infobox episode template, to go further into detail on how to use the infobox, your best using this as an example. A few golden rules on information that should be added to the template are EPISODE NUMBER, BBC TRANSMISSION DATE, WRITER, DIRECTOR, NEXT EPISODE and PREVIOUS EPISODE. When adding this information, everything from the transmission date onwards MUST include links. Examples on using links are below:

BBC transmission date
 * Info - 23 July 1987 (Thursday)
 * Using links - [[23rd July]] [[1987]] (Thursday)

Writer
 * Info - Tony Holland
 * Using links - [[Tony Holland]]

Director
 * Info - Julia Smith
 * Using links - [[Julia Smith]]

Next episode
 * Info - Episode 256 (28 July 1987)
 * Using links - [[Episode 256 (28 July 1987)]]

Previous episode
 * Info - Episode 254 (21 July 1987)
 * Using links - [[Episode 254 (21 July 1987)]]

Other information such as script editors, storyliners, designers, producers, series producers and executive producers must also be included if the individual editing the episode has access to the on-screen credits or if they were included in the Radio Times. However, NOT every production crew credited on-screen should be included in the infobox. Before creating or adding more info to an episode, your best checking what data has been built into the infobox template and if that kind of data was screened on the credits.

Synopsis'
For many years, editors and even administrators have simply copied the summary that was designated from the BBC and added to the BBC iPlayer or the EastEnders website page. This way of working stopped when the new regime came in. From now on, EVERY episode pages synopsis section must include information such as a summary on the start, middle and end of the episode or the overall plot or vital information. Screen fillers, which are scenes incorporated into a show to meet the overall time slot, aren't necessarily that important and shouldn't need adding to the synopsis, however, if something important happened or was said, then they can be included.

The synopsis must also include links when a characters name is mentioned, a location featured in the show is mentioned and anything else that leads to another article. The synopsis should also be written in past tense rather than present tense, to avoid the Wikipedia concept, on more info on how to write in past tense your best checking out this.

Cast lists
The majority of cast lists on episode pages on this wikia, don't include links and are written in a different format to the new regime. Both editors and administrators are currently working on these and changing them while also creating new episodes, so any editors who feel they would enjoy changing the cast list to the new format, feel free to do so. Your work will be appreciated and save a lot of time on getting this site to the best potential it can be.

When adding the cast to the episode page, the list MUST follow the on-screen credits. However, if this were to differ and the individual didn't have access to the episode, then the next resort is the list they were credited in the Radio Times magazine, and if this info was to differ, then the cast list must be formatted in order of appearance in the episode.

When adding a character and actor to the list, the character must include a link to its character page and be incorporated with a bullet point on the left-hand side of their name and a line must be incorporated before writing the actor and the actor must also contain a link directing a reader to the actors unique page, and when adding the next character, the same regime follows. An example is below:


 * [[Ian Beale]] - [[Adam Woodyatt]]
 * [[Den Watts]] - [[Leslie Grantham]]

The regular and guest cast must also be separated with a heading rather than bold text, which was a regime the site carried out for many years. Below is an example of how a cast section must be formatted altogether.

Regular cast

 * [[Ian Beale]] - [[Adam Woodyatt]]

Guest cast

 * [[Reg Sparrow]] - [[Richard Ireson]]

Locations
Locations is a new set of information from an episode that has come with the new regime. If possible, when a user comes to the point of creating an episode page they MUST include the locations that were used in the episode and also used links forwarding the reader to the unique article of the location/building.

When ordering the locations, rather than ordering them in the list of appearance from the episode, we concluded that it would look neater in formatting them in the way they are designated on the set. For example if Albert Square, The Queen Victoria, 1 Albert Square, Bridge Street and Turpin Road all appeared in the episode but in the order of Bridge Street, 1 Albert Square, The Queen Victoria, Bridge Street and Turpin Road, then they would be ordered in the list given below:


 * Albert Square
 * The Queen Victoria
 * 1 Albert Square
 * Bridge Street
 * Turpin Road

When it comes to adding rooms that were included in the building, we feel as if it would look better formatting them in the way of room importance and when listing the rooms you must also draw a line between the building/location and link and use italic text, so for example if a bedroom is seen first and then the living room is seen second then you would flip the pair around and add the living room first and then the bedroom. When it comes to public places, such as The Vic and The Dagmar, then if the bar is seen you would class this area as "public" and if the downstairs hallway was seen you would class this area as "hallway" and if the upstairs flat is seen, rather than ordering all the films that were used, we concluded it would be easier just to put "upstairs flat". An example is given below:


 * The Queen Victoria - Public, hallway and upstairs flat.

When it comes to unknown places, rather than not including the location in the list, we would prefer if the editor would class it as an "unknown location".

Important dialogue
Important dialogue must only be added to the episode page if the dialogue presented from the character has a meaning or gives off some kind of stimulation.