Thursday, 8:30pm
ITV1
I mean I’m not really expecting much discussion of this to be honest, and you do rather get the impression it’s been designed to a) fail and b) get people talking about (the current state of) ITV.
But saying this shepherding is a proper skill so there’s no real reason why you couldn’t make a celebrity reality thing out of sheepdog trials (Which have and indeed still do have an audience) and if it goes badly it might end up being quite funny which I expect will be the appeal. Whatsmore it’s only half an hour a week so it’s not an ordeal. It sounds like a straightforward knockout competition with two celebs battling it out each week, tonight Brendan Cole and Amanda Lamb.
Other celebs are Lesley Joseph, Lee Pearson, Wendi Peters, Richard Rawson (i.e. Fazer from N-Dubz), Kelle Bryan (from Eternal) and of course Tony Blackburn. Gabby Logan hosts.
Nobody (2.5m) watched this, as suspected everyone basically made their mind up before the show even aired, but in truth it was a perfectly entertaining (and light) way to spend half an hour that doesn’t really do much wrong (although grr, would prefer an on-screen clock, and largely expect that we’re being fed sheep droppings with all the ‘ooh they didn’t do very well in rehearsal’ lines only to see them improve by a minute + on their showing), it doesn’t take itself especially seriously but did a decent job of making the skill look like a fine line between success and disaster. I quite liked the clock music.
Also awww animals.
Also it’s nice to see Jim Rosenthaal employed.
My notes on Flockstars, for a future Week.
Competitive sheep-herding. Done in a sandy arena, so we can’t look at the countryside.
Format: A celeb guides a micro-flock (four sheep) around a course: turn them around, get them to cross a bridge, go round a bush, and into a pen. Time penalties for failing any of the elements.
Jim Rosenthal commentates. Time trial format, faster of two celebs wins the night. Show winners and two runners-up advance to later phases.
Catchphrase: “Release the sheep!”
The opening shows look set to have lots of talking, and less than 20% actual shepherding.
Felt a bit like a computer game at times: dogs and sheep did pretty much what the celebs wanted them to do. Either that or B Cole and A Lamb were good.
Did they have to adopt northern accents so the dogs would understand them? (Insert points about television reflecting the whole country, not a metropolitan elite. Refback Fferm Ffactor.)
Lots of cute puppies, if that’s your sort of thing.
“Professional” telly critics hate it, because it’s easier to spill bile than to watch a show with an open mind. This unthinking herd can flock off.
Of course, 21 years ago we had celebrity sheep shearing on BBC1…
http://genome.ch.bbc.co.uk/d8ff799396b4442dbdaa0e10e4ecad40