You really haven't got much to choose from when it comes to watching daytime TV.
The BBC generally shows you all sorts of people mulling over the decision to buy a sixteenth century house even though the previous owner converted it so it comes equipped with a replica of the Star Wars deathstar.
But ITV’s offering of morning television is substantially better. Or worse depending on your view of things. Known as the student’s favourite because they’re too hungover to get up and go to lectures, Jeremy Kyle is the king of confrontational TV. What this basically means is that for the duration of the show, we get to laugh and poke fun at the misfits of society before Jeremy Kyle loudly calls them scum. He's done this successfully in the UK – and now he wants to go to America to do the same.
This sort of TV isn't exactly new to us. If anything, Jeremy Kyle is simply copying what the likes of Jerry Springer brought to the American viewing public. Secret transsexuals, random spouts of violence and, of course, good old fashioned racists – it was classic family viewing at its greatest. Here?s just one of many examples:
Even if some of it was staged, the issues raised on the Jerry Springer show could never really get onto UK TV. So while we don't quite have shock tales of pensioners being porn stars like our American friends on their confrontational TV, we simply laugh at pikeys. Like so…
Mums, dads, uncles and aunts all appear on the Jeremy Kyle show. If you ever wanted to find out if you're the father of a child after a mass orgy with a local whore, then this show is perfect for you. All you need to do is go onstage, argue for a bit and then sit around nervously whilst the results are delivered to you.
And now, having explained to the majority of British citizens that they are in fact scumbags, Jeremy Kyle wants to hop across the pond to do the same to Americans. Speaking to BBC Online Jeremy Kyle said:
?I am particularly looking forward to meeting ordinary American people and hearing about their extraordinary lives. This show isn’t about me; it is about their issues and problems and how we can face them together – with complete honesty and openness – in front of US audiences.”
Despite the programme showing off the failings of the UK, the show has remained high in the ratings since its launch in 2005. But it looks like Jeremy might be flying the nest. After all, he can do the same job in America where the people have funny accents, plus he’ll look super skinny there, and he might even get away with properly swearing at his guests.
Of course, if Jeremy Kyle does mouth off to an American guest on the show, he may be badly beaten. Something we could all probably live with.
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