Introduction: theorising motherhood on the small screen
Soap opera: challenging the "good" mother stereotype
Situation comedy: the (un)funny mummy wars
Teen drama: absent, inept and intoxicated mothers
Dramedy: struggling, sexual and sisterly single mothers
Reality parenting programming: fragile, failing and ineffectual mothers
Celebrity reality television: maintaining the "yummy mummy"
Profile
Factual television: pregnancy, delivery and the new mother
Conclusion.