So here we are at the second of The Voice UK’s Battle Round episodes as twelve more acts attempt to get further in the competition either by winning their battle or being stolen by another coach. As I mentioned last night, I wasn’t a big fan of the Steal Option and that feeling continued with tonight’s instalment.
One of the criticisms levelled at last year’s series of The Voice UK was that there were far too many singers in the final live rounds. To counteract this we’ve been promised a lot more knockouts at the battle round stages but, after watching the first battle episode, I see no evidence of this. Instead each coach will see their teams decrease from twelve to six but they’ll also have a seventh team member who they’ll pick from one of the eliminated artists. This is due to the new ‘steal’ feature in which the other three coaches are offered up the chance of adding one of the Battle Round losers to their teams.
As we reach the penultimate week of the blind auditions, The Voice UK appears to be running out of steam. Instead of using the shorter running time to focus more on acts they seem to be doing the opposite. So tonight we had plenty of montages and saw the four coaches’ teams grow quite rapidly. But I believe there were no memorable auditions tonight nor was there an act that really made me stand up and pay attention.
So, after three weeks of complaining that it’s far too long, The Voice UK’s episodes have been shortened to one hour. After watching this episode I have to say that this is the ideal length for this programme. The pace of the show definitely feels more balanced and doesn’t drag like it has done over the past few weeks. However, I have to say I was surprised at who was the first contestant to audition this week.
To me this is possibly the most important episode of The Voice UK 2013. That’s because Britain’s Got Talent returns tonight with the two shows going head to head for well over an hour. You would think that because of the competition, The Voice would put on its strongest show this series. But in the end this was the same old mix of scripted banter, excitable relatives and 90s stars looking for a comeback.
It appears as if I wasn’t alone in my verdict on last week’s opening episode of The Voice UK’s second series. Indeed the show didn’t perform that well in the ratings, losing to Ant and Dec’s Saturday Takeaway which continues to thrive on ITV. I personally believe that the ratings will continue to tumble following the return of Britain’s Got Talent unless the talent behind The Voice really up their game. I found that this second episode was a slight improvement on last week’s episode, as it didn’t drag as much and the coaches weren’t as annoying as they had been.
When The Voice first came along last year people were intrigued by a singing show that promoted talent over joke contestants. Indeed it got off to a great start as people were entranced by the blind audition rounds in which our coaches would spin their chairs around if they were interested in representing a certain act. However, once the live shows kicked off, audience interest waned and the ratings rapidly plummeted. Despite those problems The Voice has returned for a second series but some changes have been made. This year there will only be three live shows while the incredibly popular Blind Audition rounds have been extended. Meanwhile Will.i.am, Jessie J, Sir Tom Jones and that other bloke are all back in the spinning chairs.
Channel 4 will once again air a massive star-studded Comedy Gala next month, featuring a whole host of top comedy talent from around the world.
Channel 4′s Comedy Gala will be a spectacular two and a half hour-long show to air in May and will take place a London’s 02 Arena in front of a massive 14,00 strong audience of enthusiastic spectators, waiting to be tickled pink by the likes of Lee Evans, Alan Carr, Michael McIntyre, Jonathan Ross, Keith Lemon, Paddy McGuiness, Micky Flanagan, Sean Lock, Kevin Bridges, Jo Brand, Jack Whitehall, Jack Dee, Jon Richardson and Lee Nelson, with yet more acts still to be announced. Combined they will make it the biggest live stand up show in UK history.
N-Dubz’s inimitable star Dappy and rapper Tinchy Stryder are revealed today as the backstage presenters of this year’s MOBO Awards in association with Lebara Mobile which will be returning to Glasgow’s SECC on 5th October.
Having worked together on chart-topping tracks including Number One, they will team up as a double act once again as they go behind-the-scenes in search of news and gossip to bring fans closer than ever to the stars of the show. Their backstage antics will be broadcast on the big screens inside Glasgow’s SECC on the night. The duo will also take to the stage with a medley including their recent hit Spaceship, which is nominated for Best Video.
In this week’s Graham Norton Show on BBC One, Matthew Fox talks about Lost and working in the West End, German-born actress Diane Kruger reveals she was a professional mourner, Brit-winner Jessie J talks about her Brit and meeting Justin Bieber, and Liverpudlian comedian John Bishop is lost in translation.
Talking about his TV success Matthew says: “I have been really lucky and can now be really selective in what I do – my choices are creative rather than having to take a gig to pay the bills.”
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