Amanda Holden should spend less time throwing tantrums at journalists and more time on why Royal Variety gig was really panned, opinion by Alex Davies
On Sunday night, Amanda Holden and Alan Carr took to the Royal Albert Hall stage to oversee a night of entertainment in the presence of King Charles III.
The two had plenty to get through during the pre-recorded show, introducing a wide range of chart-topping singers, stand-up comedians, and performers from the West End’s biggest show.
Carr and Holden also got the opportunity to reel off a few minutes of scripted back-and-forths as they introduced proceedings.
Their set included several bits to try and rouse laughter from the crowd, from poking fun at their appearance as a double-act – “we look like a disappointing Love Island couple” – to quips about Holden’s notoriously racy ensembles – “just the right side of an Ofcom complaint”.
But – as I and several other reporters covering their respective desks on Sunday evening soon discovered – the routine fell flat with viewers at home.
In fact, that’s putting it lightly as X soon was awash with viewers branding Carr and Holden’s opening dialogue as “dreadful”, “painful”, and at “rock bottom”.
Now, it’s worth noting Carr is a stand-up comedian – and quite a good one at that. Holden is not. Yet their appointment may have seemed a good idea thanks to their chemistry and success as a double-act on a series of BBC travel shows.
Inevitably, the outpouring of disappointment in the two’s Royal Variety set hit headlines. I even wrote about it myself.
But Holden wasn’t pleased and took to her own social media platforms the following morning to blast digital journalists for doing their job- I mean, being negative Nellys.
“I know we should ignore. But it seems the same headlines literally word for word appear EVERY year,” Holden wrote alongside a series of screenshots of the reports.
The BGT judge then took aim at reporters directly, claiming: “This journalism is unspirited and awful to wake up to after such a joyous and successful evening.
“Me and @chattyman loved every second. All the big shows get battered… Merry Christmas you lovely lot. Our ratings were brilliant so that’s what counts xx.”
In response, famous faces like Claudia Winkleman, Gemma Atkinson, David Walliams, Romesh Ranganathan, Eamonn Holmes, Dermot O’Leary, and many others began the back-slapping and decried digital journalists for being the devil.
Carr even followed the example of his co-host, writing: “Amanda! You were brilliant and looked stunning – I loved every minute of being on that stage with you.
“The tabloids cherry picked some spiteful unhinged tweets three years ago when I hosted it!!! It was like they’d seen a different show. Predictably mean-spirited sadly. Look, we felt the love and laughter in that room and someone not very well on Twitter can never take that away from us! Positive vibes only for Christmas!” (sic)
Now, I’m not for one moment even going to pretend I can comprehend the scrutiny and pressure that comes with hosting an event of this magnitude.
And it’s a testament to Holden, her work ethic and mental fortitude that she’s been a familiar face on screens for decades on some of the country’s biggest shows.
However, that doesn’t mean one should be exempt from criticism or hearing what the paying general public thinks. And I will stick up for digital journalists for reporting so.
On Sunday evening, it was neither here nor there what I and several other journalists in my field thought of Holden and Carr. That’s one issue.
Every article published about the reception they received was based on viewer reaction. Not personal attacks by the journalists.
The crux of the argument in reporting in this manner is that, for better or worse, social media is now a necessity in the daily working life of a reporter.
It’s where news breaks first, where high-profile people release statements, and where everyone is able to have their say.
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And it’s not a new concept that journalists would produce articles based solely on the public’s perception or feedback regarding an event – in this case, the Royal Variety show.
Thanks to social media, I can see in real-time people’s reactions via the hashtag feed on the platform. I can see what the consensus is among viewers and witness the number of people who feel the same way.
I’m not going to doorstep my neighbours and ask them what they thought of the Royal Variety Performance. Social media has become an evolution of the humble vox-pop.
Digital journalists also have access to trends and analytical tools that allow us to gauge what people are searching for and are interested in at any given moment. It’s no surprise that late on Sunday evening, the Royal Variety took centre stage.
And unfortunately for Carr and Holden, the overwhelmingly common theme within the show’s opening minutes was one of disappointment.
Carr branded it “cherry picking” by journalists. Believe me, if that were the case, I’d have had enough to keep Mr Kipling’s Bakewell Tarts topped for centuries.
You may question whether if there wasn’t anything positive in viewers’ feedback, then why cover it? Well, why not?
Why would journalists not write stories that we can see in front of our eyes would resonate with and reflect the views of hundreds of people watching?
Going back to the fun analytical side of things, once reporters publish articles, we are then able to see again in real-time if they are resonating with an audience. For context, my article has garnered a little under 100,000 pageviews since it was published.
I wish I could write about unicorns, rainbows and cuddles 24/7 but then that would be doing a disservice to the public.
And we’ve seen what happens when members of the public feel their voice isn’t heard. Certain news stations pop up to offer an alternative view and a platform for the unheard to speak out – and they do it bl**dy well.
Encouraging a pile-on of abuse towards digital journalists who were merely fulfilling their objective to report on the reception that the biggest telly event of the weekend received isn’t fair.
Digital journalists receive dog’s abuse each and every day no matter how mundane the subject matter – and many of us don’t 2.4 million followers to voice our complaints to.
And we certainly don’t have Strictly presenters, This Morning stars, or other celebs to pat us on the back and tell us it’s okay if we were to do so.
Perhaps Holden would be better served addressing the real issue at play here and that is how social media has rendered the public fearless in pinging off a strongly-worded tweet without any prospect of repercussion.
And maybe she should instead ask whether it is time to begin a frank and honest dialogue about the detrimental impact the immediacy and anonymity of social media has had on our cognitive and societal skills given the fact that it is still in its infancy and there’s been little to no restriction or measures implemented to ensure we use it without becoming faceless, angry avatars screaming into a void.
But nah, no one’s got the attention span for that anymore. #MuskForNumberOne.