To buy or not to buy. Most times, they choose not

Posted by Remote Control on April 2, 2008 4:42 PM | Permalink

There are probably many reasons why the return of Ricky Butcher to Eastenders is good news.

He is a good actor. The soap does need a few more realistic characters (though the fact Bianca is returning may kick that into touch). And it needs to have a plot which doesn't involve a character with the surname Slater.

But the real bonus of his return to the Square is that it probably rules him out of filiming more editions of To Buy Or Not To Buy (BBC 1, 11am daily).

As property shows go, it's pointless. Coming from the viewpoint that there has to be a very good reasons to ask TV programmes for help in buying a house (ie they will do the work, and you get free access to experts), it's a failure.

Why? Well they don't use experts for a start. Dominic Littlewood with Kristian Digby were the original hosts, and from seeing them on other things, they do know a thing or two about buying property.

Then they went off to film other things, but the show continued. In came people like Simon Rimmer (great chef, but would you let Gordon Ramsay mend your car?) and Melinda Messinger (she knows what about surveying, other than spending the 90s being surveyed by men on page three of The Sun?)

And then Sid Owen, aka Ricky, did a few episodes. And then up popped Lowri Turner, and pretty soon the programme has become a veritable casting couch for celebs with a few spare weeks on their hands.

Each celeb, there are two in each show, choose a house suitable for the people who want a new house. They then sit outside with headphones and listen to the people who might want to buy (but won't) going round the house. Celebs make "witty comments" as the "contestants" go around. Then they chuck in a random, third choice which doesn't conform with anythin the contestants want.

It isn't billed as "Help a celeb choose your home" but that's what it has become. Daily.

That's not the way to run a property show. There's no point going on it if you aren't going to get an expert.

Still, it's a sure-fire way to make sure To Buy or Not To Buy (Wikipedia link here) conforms to the most important property show convention of the lot: People rarely take their advice and buy.