Catching up with my gaping lack of TV this last month, I found Cleverdick on Sky Anytime. Airing on the normally reputable Sky Atlantic, Ann Widdecombe comes off poorly here in every light which, not to be too mean, should have been expected by any who have seen her in the light. I doubt the producers will be "toasting their success", to borrow one of her more famous phrases.Looking like a decayed Anne Robinson - I'd say older, but it's amazing how well plastic and toxins can hold up - she's out of place and out of synch with the world.
Despite being quite an interesting new quiz show - the format strongly similar to a DVD home pub quiz I played last month - it needs some swift restructuring. The opening title sequence is some noir attempt reminiscent of Mad Men but lacks any of that shows humour or engagement. The panel is made up of regular people it seems, although at least two are professional quizzers, so that may be a requirement.
A clever dick is defined, by Ann Widdecombe, as someone "irritatingly and ostentatiously, knowledgeable or intelligent", and despite claiming herself to be one, she matches up to only the first pairing of adjectives there, so logically she becomes half a cleverdick, although I doubt it would be the former half in this comparison.
She cites her own qualifications for being a c-dick as having "read Latin with Greek supplementary" and that she "almost ran the country" a fact which is repeatedly brought up.
Moving away from the Widde-rant, for now, the show does provide a nice range of information and some challenges to stay-at-home quizzers. It is, Ann professes devoid of any pop culture - at her apparent own personal edict. Which is then followed by questions on music, football and most gratingly for the host, Lady Gaga, who becomes part of a mocking diatribe after the round.
The contestants could have been better selected. Not to come off too sexist, but the one woman, Susan, on the show would have been better off elsewhere. She scored the lowest and lacked any presence or personality. The two established quizzers are, if not personable, at least engaging - David producing a phenomenal opening round, and the other, Rob, being quite endearing, and reminiscent of a young James May. The remaining contestant Steve, is the most "everyman" of the four, not for his presumed male genitalia, but for being the one most identifiable to the every day viewer.
The subjects of the questions cover an interestingly diverse range, even with the proclaimed boycott on popular culture; film, music, football, the Oscars ... And of course history, geography, art, animals etc etc
Aesthetically, the set is a bit dour and somber, a merge of red and blue and black, and the podium has a notably phallic implication when aligned with the four contestants and the show name.
It's a tolerable show, but to become something worth watching for entertainment, it needs rebranding, rehosting and rewriting. The tone should be decided upon instead of flitting between Widdecombe's barbs and the pompous nature she exudes, or if a mix is required, a more host with which the audience can empathize with should be recruited.
There are a few smirks, mostly at rather than brought about by the jokes, and the contestants should be more involved, with time spent talking to them so that the audience can become invested in their successes and losses. The apparently unintentional riffs on the show name could also be more self-deprecatingly addressed for some cheaper humour if the possible offence to the more erudite viewers is weighted as worth the engagement of the rest of the television tribe.
