You know it strikes me as odd yet obvious at the same time that no-one has, to date, taken the piss out of any of those reality / expert shows. Take, for example "The Real Hustle". If ever there was a show requiring it's wings clipped its this one. All you'd need to do is wait for them to try one of their carefully staged hustles, and then get them with an even more elaborately staged sting. I don't think it would be too difficult to pull off either. Flatter a researcher into letting you know where they are, what "scam" they are playing and then take it from there. Or even just call at one of the Hustle team's front door, and try one of their "hilarious" scams on them. Or seemingly at least, as this would merely be the opening gambit. No doubt, if you were to do this they'd take it with all the good grace of Noel Edmonds**. And its not all. There are opportunities aplenty, enough for to make a TV show. Other shows vying for attention include those cheap daytime antiques shows. Just deliberately buy junk, or better still, bring something extremely valuable along, feign ignorance and then see how much (or how little) you'll be offered to take it off your hands. I'm sure the valuations would be interesting.
When you think about it, the potential for mischief is almost limitless. Take "Dragons Den" for example. It strikes me if someone was clever, determined and devious, they'd be able to sell the panel snake oil. Now I don't like Dragons Den. Why? It's that "pretend real" shtick it has, a trait it shares with the equally unappealing "The Apprentice". As I see it there are a couple of things which make "Dragons Den" a prime candidate for someone to successfully attempt this. The first is the vain arrogance of the four panellists, but the second is more important. It's the controlled, vetted environment, it exists in. I mean, if you were sitting there on the panel you'd be pretty confident, or at least assume the BBC had rooted out the all the snake oil purveyors, leaving you with ample time to focus on the real business of the show - dismissive, unchallenged hubris. But if someone was planted on the show purely to con the panel? It's something they'd never take into account. And that's what leaves it exposed. Be honest, I can't be the only person who'd pay good money to see how they'd react if they found out someone they'd backed was in fact selling them magic beans? Of course if this was successfully attempted then, much as Smashie and Nicey did to a generation of DJs, it would completely undermine the ersatz integrity the show depends on. Programmes like "Dragons Den", seemingly immune to criticism, are susceptible to something much more damaging.
Ridicule.
And, of course, the "reveal", when it came, would be utterly fucking hilarious.
*You know even by my standards this post is a convoluted mess. What I'd originally planned as a snappy diatribe has spiralled off into comma riddled incoherence.
**A man happy to dish it out less happy, as demonstrated when Chris Morris did it to him, to be on the receiving end.
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