TV Snobbery

I’ve found myself increasingly isolated recently. As I add more and more television programs to my list labeled ‘avoid at all costs’ my friends seem to be going the other way. Even a friend who’s taste I thoroughly respect has admitted an addiction to My Big Fat Gypsy Wedding.

I really don’t mean to be a snob; I just don’t see why I should sit through One Born Every Minute when there is so much quality visual treats around at the moment. Since the arrival of Sky Atlantic my Sky+ box has been groaning under the strain of series linked heavyweight dramas and groundbreaking comedies. But I have no one to talk about them with. Hardly any of my friends have even heard of Treme, let alone know enough about it to have a boring conversation with me about it’s wonderful portrayal of post Katrina New Orleans over a pint.

What they will talk about is the ‘good fun’ Take Me Out, or the ‘hilarious’ Jersey Shore. I get a lot of stick for being a snob so I decided to give these two a go. I managed to get through twenty minutes of Take Me Out. I really tried to get through it but it just made me so very angry. It is essentially a poor mans Blind Date, and Blind Date wasn’t exactly a tour de force to start with. Take Me Out was better than Jersey Shore though, that made me want to give up on the human race altogether. I had to switch over to Wonders of the Universe to remember just how insignificant the idiots on Jersey Shore really are.

I really don’t look down on these programs, or the people who watch them. On the contrary I really wish I could share in the enjoyment. They’re just really not for me. I do have guilty pleasures like the occasional X Factor series, or my frankly unhealthy obsession with Eastenders. But, in general, I think I’ll stick to being a snob.