The items included a bicycle, a first edition James Bond novel, a skeleton, a commode, antique shoes, and an Indian rug that Philip immediately dismissed as modern tat, but Lorraine insisted was one of the " gems" Sir Alan's hidden in the mix. But, despite the fact Lorraine actually spent some time researching the rug (which, yes, was worth £200), she's one of those people everyone chooses to ignore, especially Philip -- despite his opening pep talk about teamwork and cooperation. It's her energy-sapping personality and half-melted claymation face, I reckon.
It was easy to spot where both teams went wrong. Nobody could be bothered to spend a few hours studying their items to find out how much they were worth. I can understand why. With the clock ticking, the few experts they initially visited for guidance were worryingly slow and not always helpful. So, both teams just relied on judgement. An old commode? We'll shift it for fiver. A James Bond novel? Ooh, a bookworm offered us £100! Result! A skeleton? Well, Empire chanced upon a bar where someone fulfilled their lifelong ambition to own one, giving them just under the £200 valuation. Ignite trundled theirs through the streets, then gave it to a medical student for a paltry £60.
This was also one of those episodes where the actual task was completed by he 30-minute mark, meaning half the show was spent in the boardroom discussing the results. Philip had his nose rubbed in the fact the rug (which he offloaded on a punter in the street) was very expensive, and Margaret compared Lorraine to disbelieved soothsayer Cassandra. They made a loss, overall. But, the loss wasn't as bad as Empire's...
Amusingly, when asked who he wanted to bring back into the boardroom with him, Ben chose Debra and James (the latter for the empty reason that he didn't really know what he did.) The audible gasps from everyone forced him to backtrack and change his mind, choosing Noorul instead. For, well, essentially the same reason he chose James.
Debra caused a stir by arguing with Nick over his claim she wasn't involved in closing the deal on the Bond novel, which I thought was refreshing to see. Nick and Margaret are held in high esteem as Sir Alan's "eyes and ears" on the ground, so most people don't bother to argue with their take on events. But Debra seemed to genuinely believe she should share the kudos for selling the book, as anyone can walk up a bookseller she'd arranged to meet and shake their hand on a £100 he offers. She has a point, doesn't she? I closing a deal more important than facilitating a deal? Anyway, Sir Alan didn't like her tone of voice and told her to shut it.
Anyway, to cut a long story short: Ben escaped the chop because, again, there was someone more useless on the team. Noorul, who had undersold a few items and hadn't been pulling his weight in previous tasks. It was only a matter of time, really. Ben will surely be a goner, too, unless he seriously starts to impress Sir Alan. And I wish he'd stop bleating about his scholarship at Sandhurst (which, we're told, he never actually accepted!) Debra showed a bit of attitude and lip, but hasn't really earned the right to be so confident and aggressive. I'm struggling to even remember a highlight from her in any of the six tasks.
As it's the halfway mark, can I predict a winner? Well, Philip's in with a chance if he stops being such a self-obsessed prat. And I think James is beginning to show some form of late (especially in last week's advertising task). But, for me, Kate looks like she's the front-runner: she's personable, bright, confident, funny. I like her manner and she seems like someone you'd enjoy working for, or with. I just hope she has the business acumen to leave her competition in the dust, as the tasks get a little more challenging and there's less dead weight around like Noorul for Sir Alan to focus on.
What do you think? Did Noorul deserve to go? Does Kate have this competition in the bag?
29 April 2009
BBC1, 9pm
