Jonathan Ross and Russell Brand aside, isn't it time Sir Trevor McDonald was put out of his misery?
I was watching the National TV Awards through my fingers last night (professional interest, you understand), in disbelief that this charisma-free old goat is still presenting this shit. I think ITV are under the mistaken impression that it gives the occasion gravitas. They're wrong. His poorly scripted topical 'jokes' just don't suit him, he gets few titters from the teenage audience, and the grimacing stars who are forced to sit in line for hours on end suffering through it. He makes it even more dull than it is already. He's entirely personality-free.
I've been to the NTAs many, many times, but last night I was glad I wasn't in attendance. It's got to be the most boring ceremony, with the loudest aftershow party ever. I've been to all sorts of awards ceremonies, but everyone in the industry, stars included, agree it's the dullest one. You can't even get a drink until afterwards. I've seen it all over the years, in the press room and outside of it - the Spice Girls collecting for Top Of The Pops, Judy Finnegan's wardrobe malfunction, Michael Barrymore coming out - it's all been going on, but it doesn't make it any more interesting.
Now they've lumped actors' and actresses' performances into one cumbersome category, and the rest of the show is more or less a plug for ITV shows, much as you'd expect. But even Sir Trev must have baulked when they bought the Brittania High cast out - no one's watching that, it's shocking. I went to launch and felt like I was trapped in an 11-year-old girl's bedroom in hell.
The problem with the NTAs is it suffers from delusions of grandeur. There's no kudos here. People are forced to go to make ITV look good. And now they've fiddled about with and reduced the size of the categories it's become kind of meaningless, more so than before.
I bet they'd all rather have been at the Quantum Of Solace premiere.
*The only interesting thing to come out of last night, plus, it should get the hit rate up no end. Did someone say Emma Watson's tits?
