Am I alone in liking this show? It's hardly a revelation or a particularly clever idea, but it's just nice to have a reality series that isn't overstaying its welcome (it ends next week), isn't accompanied by a pointless sister show, and isn't irritatingly being shoved down your throat by marketing men. It's just doing its thing, quietly on Thursday nights. And whoever signed up Malcolm McLaren for this series deserves a pay-rise...
Malcolm's the saving grace for a show that might have been better represented by a one-off documentary. A culture swap special. The aging Sex Pistols manager, with his plummy voice, fondness for muted grey attire, and lilting walk (seemingly weighed down by a permanently-attached satchel) is just the kind of compelling, eccentric, controversially opinionated character shows like this thrive on. I can see now why his absence in last year's I'm A Celebrity came as such a blow.
As the "godfather of punk rock", everything about devoutly-religious Gardenstown rubs Malcolm up the wrong way. On the surface he's relatively pleasant and cordial (cooking his evangelical hosts a meal), but his politeness hides a superiority complex and the personality of a naughty schoolboy. As fellow baron candidate Mike Reid affably helps a local paint their boat, Malcolm refuses to muck in – only stretching to vandalize the vessel with an anarchy symbol.
With Mike painted as the salt-of-the-earth hero, with Malcolm as the snake in the Gardenstown of Eden, poor Suzanne Shaw is left fighting for TV scraps. She's a nice enough young woman, but comparatively boring. This episode focused almost entirely on Malcolm, so Suzanne was given just a few comedy scraps (like a meet-and-greet with a toothless groundskeeper.)
The thrust of episode 2 was centred on another of the village's seemingly endless excuses for a fete. The barons were instructed to create a stall to entertain the villagers with, before giving another speech to the voters. Mike was uncharacteristically peeved at being left alone to think up an activity, even taking the director to one side for a quiet chat. Creativity isn't Mike's forte, and he clearly expected to be led around by the thirty-strong production team, instead of having to think on his feet. Anyway, Mike's brainwave of having wet sponges thrown at him smothered the seed of revolt.
Suzanne decided on a dart-throwing stall (with photos of Mike and Malcolm pinned to the board), and Malcolm's escalating hatred for "dreary" Gardenstown fuelled the idea for a Sinner's Tent (where people can be free to have sex, take drugs and get drunk in peace.) Unfortunately, Malcolm's popularity has plummeted and nobody wants to help him – so he turns, once again, to the people living on the outskirts of the village. Those on the fringe. Sadly, an artist he taps to create his Sinner's Tent banner doesn't want to risk being ostracized by villagers after Malcolm leaves. So it's a no.
The day of the fete arrives. Mike pokes his head through a cardboard cut-out to get soaked, Suzanne squeals with delight whenever kids win at her dart-throwing game (meaning her butcher host has to suck juice from a pair of underpants) and Malcolm's tent receives no visitors. But he does become a source of amusement and curiosity for the cheerful local kids, who have never met a real life Grinch.
Having spent the day exasperating a vicar, vandalising a boat, irritating local shopkeepers and peeing into the harbour, Malcolm's speech is the last straw. Whereas Mike and Suzanne extol the virtues of community and the friendly people, Malcolm uses his time on the microphone to rubbish the village and criticize the peoples' beliefs. Attempts are made to break-off his speech, but Malcolm's protests about being "censored" keep him on the podium... until he unwisely decides to call Jesus "a sausage". With that remark, he's pushed off the stage and disappears up a street, as the production team try to broker peace with the outraged locals.
It would be a tedious programme without Malcolm's involvement, but the clash between rebel and religion ensures a fair amount of entertainment. The villagers all come across rather well, and there's a cartoon-y lightness that's quite pleasant to watch. The underlying idea is stupid and the outcome of the village vote isn't going to be exciting or surprising (Mike has it in the bag), but watching cynical, casually offensive Malcolm McLaren tottering around the village causing mischief is a curious treat.
1 May 2008
ITV1, 10.35 pm
Malcolm's the saving grace for a show that might have been better represented by a one-off documentary. A culture swap special. The aging Sex Pistols manager, with his plummy voice, fondness for muted grey attire, and lilting walk (seemingly weighed down by a permanently-attached satchel) is just the kind of compelling, eccentric, controversially opinionated character shows like this thrive on. I can see now why his absence in last year's I'm A Celebrity came as such a blow.
As the "godfather of punk rock", everything about devoutly-religious Gardenstown rubs Malcolm up the wrong way. On the surface he's relatively pleasant and cordial (cooking his evangelical hosts a meal), but his politeness hides a superiority complex and the personality of a naughty schoolboy. As fellow baron candidate Mike Reid affably helps a local paint their boat, Malcolm refuses to muck in – only stretching to vandalize the vessel with an anarchy symbol.
With Mike painted as the salt-of-the-earth hero, with Malcolm as the snake in the Gardenstown of Eden, poor Suzanne Shaw is left fighting for TV scraps. She's a nice enough young woman, but comparatively boring. This episode focused almost entirely on Malcolm, so Suzanne was given just a few comedy scraps (like a meet-and-greet with a toothless groundskeeper.)
The thrust of episode 2 was centred on another of the village's seemingly endless excuses for a fete. The barons were instructed to create a stall to entertain the villagers with, before giving another speech to the voters. Mike was uncharacteristically peeved at being left alone to think up an activity, even taking the director to one side for a quiet chat. Creativity isn't Mike's forte, and he clearly expected to be led around by the thirty-strong production team, instead of having to think on his feet. Anyway, Mike's brainwave of having wet sponges thrown at him smothered the seed of revolt.
Suzanne decided on a dart-throwing stall (with photos of Mike and Malcolm pinned to the board), and Malcolm's escalating hatred for "dreary" Gardenstown fuelled the idea for a Sinner's Tent (where people can be free to have sex, take drugs and get drunk in peace.) Unfortunately, Malcolm's popularity has plummeted and nobody wants to help him – so he turns, once again, to the people living on the outskirts of the village. Those on the fringe. Sadly, an artist he taps to create his Sinner's Tent banner doesn't want to risk being ostracized by villagers after Malcolm leaves. So it's a no.
The day of the fete arrives. Mike pokes his head through a cardboard cut-out to get soaked, Suzanne squeals with delight whenever kids win at her dart-throwing game (meaning her butcher host has to suck juice from a pair of underpants) and Malcolm's tent receives no visitors. But he does become a source of amusement and curiosity for the cheerful local kids, who have never met a real life Grinch.
Having spent the day exasperating a vicar, vandalising a boat, irritating local shopkeepers and peeing into the harbour, Malcolm's speech is the last straw. Whereas Mike and Suzanne extol the virtues of community and the friendly people, Malcolm uses his time on the microphone to rubbish the village and criticize the peoples' beliefs. Attempts are made to break-off his speech, but Malcolm's protests about being "censored" keep him on the podium... until he unwisely decides to call Jesus "a sausage". With that remark, he's pushed off the stage and disappears up a street, as the production team try to broker peace with the outraged locals.
It would be a tedious programme without Malcolm's involvement, but the clash between rebel and religion ensures a fair amount of entertainment. The villagers all come across rather well, and there's a cartoon-y lightness that's quite pleasant to watch. The underlying idea is stupid and the outcome of the village vote isn't going to be exciting or surprising (Mike has it in the bag), but watching cynical, casually offensive Malcolm McLaren tottering around the village causing mischief is a curious treat.
1 May 2008
ITV1, 10.35 pm
