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Jeremy Vine took the hot seat today for his first new Channel 5 show and if there’s one thing this show needed, it was a shot in the arm. Did it get it? Well, first a bit of info about how I started watching the original show and where things went wrong, and then whether Jeremy Vine appears to have overcome these.
I first got into The Wright Stuff not too long after it started, as my original TiVo brought it up as a suggestion, and then until its end, I’d record it while I was at work and then watch some sections when I get home. There isn’t always the time for a whole two hours in the evening, but some guests were always worth a watch, and you can’t pass up on the TV review at the end of the week, brought to us then by Ian Hyland (albeit on a Monday), and now on a Friday, and usually by Kevin O’Sullivan.
I used to upload a lot of videos to the TWStuff Youtube channel I started, but in early 2011, Channel 5 stopped me from doing so. I wasn’t making any money from it as the content wasn’t mine, and they weren’t bothering to highlight clips on a channel of their own, but still, they got pissy about it and that’s why the videos stopped being uploaded when they did.
That said, it was also around that time that The Wright Stuff started to fall apart. More and more of the topics were just dumbed down rubbish taken from the Daily Mail as if that publication actually lived up to the hype of the word “newspaper”. These days, a lot of the topics come from the man-hating Mumsnet website and were so ridiculous that I’d forgotten about them as soon as they’d ended.
Another element the show needs to get rid of is the 11am run down of subsequent comments viewers have made on topics during the show until that point. Since the first topic was discussed at 9.30am, no-one cares about those – and if they did, they could check the show’s on Facebook page. Also, they’ve still got one more topic to go, so it’s just eating into the time for that one.
One bug-bear that’s been around for too long, has been the time-wasting brief topic at 10.45am. I understand the show has to hit specific advert breaks at 9.55am and 10.55am, but in the hour between 10-11am, the paper review is not given enough time, then there’s a second main topic at 10.30am, and the shorter one just before the top of the hour.
When news anchor Claudia Liza recently presented for a short spell, there were two days when she changed things such that the papers ran up until about 10.35am, with an ad break in the middle, and then the second main topic ran from 10.40am up until 10.55am.
THAT WORKED!
It got rid of the brief topic, it gave the papers longer, and it meant (for the show) that they still got the same number of ad breaks in. However, after that short-lived experiment, it was all over…
In doing this new show, Jeremy Vine has his hands full, as he also has to host his Radio 2 show from midday, so how can he do that if his Channel 5 programme ends at 11.15am? Because it won’t end at 11.15am. It’ll be shown on a one-hour delay, so they’ll start at 8.15am in the studio, but it airs at the same time. I don’t think any of this is sustainable in the long term. Some give it a year, while I think that if there aren’t any major changes to the proceedings, then it’ll be dead on its backside by Christmas.
And then it started. They haven’t updated the set or theme, we still have the same tired guests – the first show featuring ex-Tony Blair spin doctor Alistair Campbell, part-time singer Jamelia and the ever-tired Anne Diamond, who was only presenting the Friday before on the final Wright Stuff.
So, what were the topics? A second vote on Brexit, First day in a new job: Fearful or fun? And an interview with Celebrity Big Brother‘s Roxanne Pallett who walked off the CBB set after some fuss with another moron in there (I don’t follow that crap). It was 10.40am before the news review started, so the papers are shoved to the back-end of the programme when everyone wanted them to be earlier, as often, that’s all they really care about.
Oh, and don’t forget that he described Pallett’s flouncing off the reality show as “the worst moment of her life”. Really?! Bwahahahahaaa!!!
Tomorrow’s guests will include Rose McGowan. I think I’ll pass. Even at the end of this first show, they “celebrated” with cups of drink, which from the rear shot of the audience showed… they were empty(!)
He also gave up hosting Points of View (well, doing the links inbetween the pieces), and as that came back yesterday, it has an insipid voiceover from occasional BBC Breakfast sofa hogger Tina Daheley.
Still, at least they didn’t go with what was teased yesterday, since on the day before Vine’s show even aired, if you were hoping for hard news, then your fears were quickly realised, as they were promising to begin with runaway hamsters, below. Hard news, eh, Jeremy? This junk will sink by by the end of the year.
Oh, and Matthew Wright is starting a new radio show next Monday, September 10th, with more details to be revealed at the time of posting this review. So much for wanting to spend more time with Mrs Wright! But we knew that anyway. It was ITN that wanted to get rid of him, so they didn’t renew his contract, so, effectively, Matthew Wright was sacked.
After hearing the story of a runaway hamster that spent eight days munching its way through its owner's car, we want to hear about the havoc your pets have caused! Have you ever come home to disaster and wreckage? If so, we'd love to hear your stories and see your pictures. pic.twitter.com/VprHv0GCox
— Jeremy Vine On 5 (@JeremyVineOn5) September 1, 2018
Previously on DVDfever:
June 11th:
Jeremy Vine takes over Channel 5’s The Wright Stuff
Jeremy Vine has, today, been announced as the new host of The Wright Stuff, or The Vine Stuff, or whatever it’ll be called. The actual title has yet to be announced.
Matthew Wright recently announced stepping down from the show because he’s finally been called out for being bloody arrogant. ITN took over the production of the show in January 2018, and they’ve put their foot down early. Matthew He didn’t say it in so many words, of course – he claimed it was so he could spend more time with his wife, even though he admits they sleep in separate beds, and he frequently goes on fishing holidays on his own! As for his attitude on the show, look at how he talks to the callers! Shouting over them endlessly. Perhaps Jeremy might let them get a word in…
The show has long since needed a shot in the arm. An endless stream of Z-list ‘stars’ from reality TV, and the same bloody panellists all the time. It’s become a running joke that Dr David Bull keeps telling us how much he enjoyed living in America (although if it was so great, why did they send him back?), and whenever alleged comedian Dominic Holland is on, you have to have the vodka ready to down a shot every time he mentions that his son, Tom Holland, is more famous than him, and that was before he was announced as Spider-Man! Now, when you play the drinking game, you’ll be paralytic by 9.30am!!!!
ITN have issued a press release which tells us:
Ben Frow, Director of Programmes for Channel 5 said: “Jeremy Vine is a brilliant broadcaster whose supreme ability to make challenging stories accessible to a wider audience, not to mention his intellect, energy and wit, makes him the perfect choice to present our daily current affairs show. Jeremy joins the likes of Michael Palin, Michael Portillo, Bettany Hughes, Sian Williams and BAFTA-winning Jane McDonald on the channel. This high calibre of talent across our news, documentary, current affairs and factual output demonstrates the evolution of the Channel 5 content slate. I’d like to thank Matthew Wright, who has helped make the show such a success for nearly two decades.”
Jeremy Vine added: “Matthew Wright has built a brilliant show that’s a big part of the British TV landscape. I’m delighted to be carrying on all the conversations he has started, with all the guests he’s made me feel I know over the years. Radio 2 has a beautiful editorial overlap with the serious but accessible agenda of this show. I am proud to be Channel 5’s choice to front it.”
Daniel Pearl, Channel 5 Commissioning Editor, Factual chipped in: “From Eggheads to Election Specials, Jeremy has proved to be one of the most talented and versatile presenters in the UK and I am delighted to team up with him again at Channel 5. I’d like to add my appreciation to Matthew Wright for his huge contribution to our current affairs output.”
Ian Rumsey, Director of TV Production, ITN Productions waffled: “We’re delighted to welcome Jeremy to the helm of this much-loved show. As a giant of popular live broadcasting Jeremy brings with him his own distinctive style and charm. He’s a respected journalist who’s at ease with both the important issues which get people talking – and the less-serious subjects which make people smile. We’re very proud to make this programme and Jeremy is the perfect person to take it forward.”
I wonder if Jeremy Vine will be taking a pay cut? The BBC are cutting back a lot, now, and he already rakes in the cash with Points of View, Eggheads, Panorama, and all his election stuff.
Who else could have presented it long-term? Richard Madeley’s often amusing, as long as he doesn’t descend into endless bloody anecdotes. Then there’s also Kevin O’Sullivan, or Storm Huntley, or perhaps, the return of Kirsty Duffy! 🙂
What we do know, is that until September, guest presenters will sit in Matthew’s chair, and the show continues each weekday at 9.15am on Channel 5.
Reviewer of movies, videogames and music since 1994. Aortic valve operation survivor from the same year. Running DVDfever.co.uk since 2000. Nobel Peace Prize winner 2021.