Who can fill Wossy’s chat boots?

For many people who lived in the land of only two channels growing up, the weekend meant three things: The Late Late Show with Uncle Gaybo on Friday night, Kenny Live on Saturday and Where in the World followed by Glenroe on Sunday night.
This was the routine and it was kept with rigour.
The Late Late was considered the programme for the whole family. It was the flagship. Kenny Live, meanwhile, was for a slightly younger audience, maybe those in their 20s or 30s, and the neon pink graphic just made it seem a lot more trendy. We’re talking 80s/90s trendy here – so it’s Deirdre Barlow glasses on Pat and a lot of floral headbands on the ladies.
Sunday evening was brilliant. I loved Teresa Lowe. She was glamour personified as far as I was concerned. As an eight-year-old I would have given anything to be old enough to don a vibrant pink, green, yellow or blue polo shirt and compete in the quiz. I really think someone should bring it back.
That and Number One with Def Leopard front man Joe Elliott as team captain. I would make Ian Dempsey the host – I wasn’t the biggest fan of Dave Fanning.
Anyway, what am I getting at? Well it’s simple. In the 80s/90s we had two successful chat shows on Friday and Saturday night. I am not forgetting Bibi Baskin or Sandy Kelly of course they were also very successful but really the stand-outs were Byrne and Kenny. They held the attention of the audience and love them or hate them, because we had only the two channels you watched them and generally it was enjoyable enough.
However, would they hold up nowadays with the satellite-dominated market? Absolutely not.
The Late Late was an institution but the axing of Kenny Live was not a mistake. The Tubridy Tonight Show was a different kettle of fish and it did very well but again, I don’t think it ever captured the country’s imagination in the same way.
It had its followers and the fact that Tubridy, although not every one’s cup of tea, is a fairly good presenter who can command an audience well didn’t hurt either. But this is the problem with The Saturday Night Show with Brendan O’Connor. Firstly, he looks awkward on camera. He looks like he is about to burst out of his suit at any minute and unleash the hulk on all of us. He is not good at listening to his guests. He seems to stick rigidly to the script and avoids the most obvious of questions. In short it’s boring and if RTÉ want to increase ratings they would be better served trying to capture the Jonathan Ross followers.
Good old Wossy’s show last weekend was simply hilarious and its success could be attributed to one simple reason – it doesn’t take itself too seriously.
It may all be planned and I know that Ross picks the best bits to air but still, it is funny stuff.
RTÉ have a long way to go claim those viewers back on Saturday night. When the choice is between awkward and funny, funny will win every time. A change of format is needed for The Saturday Night Show to succeed and one can only hope that this is realised and executed soon.
There has never been such a good opportunity for RTÉ to make inroads into this area. The impending departure of Ross leaves a huge chunk of the market open to seducing and, with a little bit of clever behaviour on RTÉ’s part, the national broadcaster could so easily have us on their side. The Saturday Night Show is on Saturdays at 9.40pm.
Although released a good while back, The September Issue was screened on Channel 4 on Sunday night after The Devil Wears Prada.
The film is based on the author of the similarly titled book’s experience working in American Vogue. The film itself is a comedic look at the fashion industry and Vogue editor, the famously fearsome Anna Wintour. Known as the ice queen of fashion and both feared and revered in equal measure, Wintour is noted for hiding her face behind over-sized sunglasses and being the person who can make or break you in the fashion world.
Following Wintour and her creative team, the documentary crew was allowed unprecedented access to the production of the all-important September issue of the magazine – the biggest and most influential of the year. It is the fashion world’s most sacred book and this issue marks the beginning of the industry’s calendar.
The preparation period for the issue is five months and, during this time, all the fashion shoots, content and trends are selected, decided and produced. What the documentary showed is the huge involvement that Wintour has in the magazine.
Every word, item and photograph is passed under her eye for scrutiny and she has no qualms in cutting anything. She is completely assured and decisive. When she enters a room people are on edge, not because she is likely to burst into rage but that she will give them the eye – a cutting look that basically says you have failed me in every way.
Is she a tyrant? I didn’t see any evidence to support this. I think she knows her mind, expects people to do their job as she does hers and is accessible for those that need her.
Does she bother with the underlings? Probably not. But why should she? She is the captain, she doesn’t need to know the deckhands, that’s why there are division leaders and ranks within the company. She is clearly devoted to her children and comes from a strong background. Definitely not the Wicked Witch.