Pramface Babies, Channel 4, Thursday
Wonderland: The Curious World of Frinton-On-Sea, BBC2, Wednesday
It has been quite an odd week. There has been some great stuff on the telly, such as a couple of excellent documentaries and several programmes on the fifth anniversary of the Iraq invasion. (Just in case that sounds like I’ve gone all highbrow, I’m looking forward more to Max apparently getting buried alive in Enders this week.) Delia opened more jars and packets in the kitchen, happily enraging food critics up and down the land and even leading to one of our news journalists to sadly opine that she’s lost it. Delia that is, not our news journalist, although it could probably accurately be said that the jury is still out on that one.
But, as I have found since starting this column, my view of the goggleboxing can be coloured a tad by what is happening in my life at the time. The best week in TV ever, which was close enough this week, means nothing if I am watching it through a scowl and wishing violent death on all concerned. Yes, even Bargain Hunt. It has not been a good week.
But it would have put anyone in a bad mood, watching Channel 4’s offensively titled Pramface Babies last Thursday, following four young mothers from Liverpool as they gave birth to their bairns. It opened with 19 year old Laura, sprawled on a hospital bed about to go into labour, with her mobile clamped to one ear as she tried to track down the errant father. She ended up giving birth without him and months later was still forlornly saying to the camera that she hoped they had a future together. "Sorry to disturb you," she said to errant dad’s mum "but I’m giving birth to your grandchild here."
Linzi was in hospital having her second child to her boyfriend, in genuinely disturbing scenes as her mum and idiotic spidey other half told her during labour to "stop moaning and just get on with it." I knew as soon as Linzi hit twelve that she’d be coming home pregnant, her vile mum said, clearly not caring about labelling theories and self-fulfilling prophecies.
It was good, strong TV, and very interesting if sad to watch, but through it all there was a sneaking sense of a "let’s laugh at the poor people" approach from the director. Quotes from the four young women, about things like finding someone to love and to love them, were put up on the screen to frame segments of the programme, and may as well have had "Laugh here" on them. Worst of all was the title Pramface, a term given to the Vicky Pollard style of parenting with WKD swigging mums swapping their babies for Westlife CDs, but not applicable here. Someone isn’t automatically an ASBO candidate just because they’re poor, something that shouldn’t even need said. Still, best contraceptive I’ve seen on TV for a while.
More exploitative yet fascinating stuff with The Curious World of Frinton-On-Sea, (BBC2, Wednesday), looking at the longer-term residents of the seaside town, many of whom had been there for decades. It was a very well made film, but again, had an even clearer sense that the director was inviting us to make fun of people who had done nothing wrong except be born as the people they were. There has been some fallout from the show, with most of the criticism focused on the fact that director Mark Isaac seemed to hone in on the more vulnerable residents, without telling them exactly what the Wonderland series – a look at eccentrics – was about. Margaret, the curio shop owner who confessed to having a long standing crush on fellow resident Geoffrey, clearly had some mental issues and was only in the programme to laugh at. Nothing wrong with a portrait of lonely residents in a small town, but there are better ways to do it. So there.
But anyhoo. Tanya flips in Eastenders this week and tries to bury Max alive. Not that I’m saying my less than great week had anything to do with men, but, well, hell hath no fury…You go, girl.
Wonderland: The Curious World of Frinton-On-Sea, BBC2, Wednesday
It has been quite an odd week. There has been some great stuff on the telly, such as a couple of excellent documentaries and several programmes on the fifth anniversary of the Iraq invasion. (Just in case that sounds like I’ve gone all highbrow, I’m looking forward more to Max apparently getting buried alive in Enders this week.) Delia opened more jars and packets in the kitchen, happily enraging food critics up and down the land and even leading to one of our news journalists to sadly opine that she’s lost it. Delia that is, not our news journalist, although it could probably accurately be said that the jury is still out on that one.
But, as I have found since starting this column, my view of the goggleboxing can be coloured a tad by what is happening in my life at the time. The best week in TV ever, which was close enough this week, means nothing if I am watching it through a scowl and wishing violent death on all concerned. Yes, even Bargain Hunt. It has not been a good week.
But it would have put anyone in a bad mood, watching Channel 4’s offensively titled Pramface Babies last Thursday, following four young mothers from Liverpool as they gave birth to their bairns. It opened with 19 year old Laura, sprawled on a hospital bed about to go into labour, with her mobile clamped to one ear as she tried to track down the errant father. She ended up giving birth without him and months later was still forlornly saying to the camera that she hoped they had a future together. "Sorry to disturb you," she said to errant dad’s mum "but I’m giving birth to your grandchild here."
Linzi was in hospital having her second child to her boyfriend, in genuinely disturbing scenes as her mum and idiotic spidey other half told her during labour to "stop moaning and just get on with it." I knew as soon as Linzi hit twelve that she’d be coming home pregnant, her vile mum said, clearly not caring about labelling theories and self-fulfilling prophecies.
It was good, strong TV, and very interesting if sad to watch, but through it all there was a sneaking sense of a "let’s laugh at the poor people" approach from the director. Quotes from the four young women, about things like finding someone to love and to love them, were put up on the screen to frame segments of the programme, and may as well have had "Laugh here" on them. Worst of all was the title Pramface, a term given to the Vicky Pollard style of parenting with WKD swigging mums swapping their babies for Westlife CDs, but not applicable here. Someone isn’t automatically an ASBO candidate just because they’re poor, something that shouldn’t even need said. Still, best contraceptive I’ve seen on TV for a while.
More exploitative yet fascinating stuff with The Curious World of Frinton-On-Sea, (BBC2, Wednesday), looking at the longer-term residents of the seaside town, many of whom had been there for decades. It was a very well made film, but again, had an even clearer sense that the director was inviting us to make fun of people who had done nothing wrong except be born as the people they were. There has been some fallout from the show, with most of the criticism focused on the fact that director Mark Isaac seemed to hone in on the more vulnerable residents, without telling them exactly what the Wonderland series – a look at eccentrics – was about. Margaret, the curio shop owner who confessed to having a long standing crush on fellow resident Geoffrey, clearly had some mental issues and was only in the programme to laugh at. Nothing wrong with a portrait of lonely residents in a small town, but there are better ways to do it. So there.
But anyhoo. Tanya flips in Eastenders this week and tries to bury Max alive. Not that I’m saying my less than great week had anything to do with men, but, well, hell hath no fury…You go, girl.
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