Dame Maggie Smith shone on The Graham Norton Show,Jeremy Vine was a Thriller on Strictly and David Attenborough showed stamina on ambitious unique series The Hunt
Well, this is engaging. It used to be that Strictly near Dancing was a guilty pleasure, and deeply uncool and a bit conventional-fashioned. But without saying that Strictly is edgy (it absolutely isn’t),The X Factor (Saturday and Sunday, ITV1) suddenly looks the cheesier of the pair. The arrangements for the songs are dated, or the song choices either tacky or obscure. The dancers in black-and-white tuxes and nothing on underneath look like they belong in Stringfellows. And the sets seem to be modelled on Gladiators circa 1992. I keep expecting Wolf to walk on. I feel he would fill got on very well with Bupsi. The X Factor has its moments but,when it does, they feel painfully calculated. Louisa Johnson’s inspired cover of The Beach Boys’ God Only Knows was electrifying. Was everything else designed to be intentionally mediocre to make her shine all the more? Is this Cowell’s unique master plan, or that the 17-year-conventional blonde ingenue is the unique One Direction? Astonishingly talented though Louisa is,for her sake, I sort of hope not. Cowell’s most over-used word this weekend? “Relevant.” Protesting too much?Continue reading...
Source: theguardian.com