You may have been looking for something lately to restore your faith in the British voting public.
Last Sunday the nation was asked to choose between an underprepared, 57-year-old, maraca-shaking, party animal in a watermelon helmet... and a competent breakfast TV reporter.
With all due respect to Ria Hebden, I was delighted to see that the public got it right. Bez from the Happy Mondays escaped the Dancing On Ice skate-off.
Good job he did too. Because Bez being Bez, he promptly tested positive for Covid and would have been unable to compete in this Sunday's show.
We can only hope that he recovers in time to take his place on the ice in Week 3, because the show needs him.
Heck, the entire nation needs him! ITV 's creative darlings might not enjoy hearing this, but the audience reaction to Bez's Todd Carty -topping turn confirmed exactly what the public wants from the so-called "greatest show on ice": Spills 'n' thrills and tellyaches.
Obviously, no one wants to see anyone get seriously hurt. However, Dancing On Ice at its most risky is also Dancing On Ice at its most watchable.
Anyone who still believes this show should sit alongside Strictly Come Dancing is plain deluded. To survive and thrive, it needs to plant its flag more firmly in the territory of I'm A Celebrity and The Masked Singer. The producers should definitely adopt a "the sillier, the better" approach.
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I reckon half the cast would be on board with that. BMXer Kye White, boybander Connor Ball and rugby player Ben Foden seem up for a laugh. Having seen Kimberly Wyatt on Murder In Successville, I definitely know she is.
More importantly, given Jane Torvill and Christopher Dean 's "Oh, so this is what fun feels like" reaction to Bez, I strongly suspect they would enjoy a less serious approach.
To that end, ITV should divert all available resources into finding an angry bull that can skate. Those old Bolero routines need spicing up.
Dancing On Ice continues on ITV this Sunday night from 6.30pm.
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