Dancing on Ice- The ice thaws for rapper Rob

Rapper Vanilla Ice failed to melt the hearts of the judges with his Spanish Matador routine on Dancing on Ice’s World Tour themed show last night.

 

The US star, who was voted off the competition following comments from Jason that his Matador poses looked like Space invaders, lost to children’s TV presenter Laura, who was saved by all three judges in the skate off for her Charleston on ice.

Now with only six couples left after last night, it’s getting harder to predict which celeb skaters will go, admitted the judges, who made it no secret that they thought the weakest skaters Denise and Johnson should be the ones to leave, despite the public saving them week upon week.

However they had nothing but praise for top skater Sam, who they said was back on form after performing a Riverdance on ice routine filled with complicated step sequences, jumps and lifts, which earnt him the highest mark of the series, 27/30.

Laura and Chloe were hot on his heels, both scoring 24.5. In forth position was Jeff, who Emma said was ‘the dark horse of the competition’, after pulling off a Vietnamese waltz on the ice.

The couples with the lowest score were Denise and Johnson. Denise donned an ugly wig to skate a samba, which earnt her strict criticism from Jason. ‘You looked like you needed a MRI scan afterwards’, he said. ‘It was messy and hard to watch as you played catch up to partner Matt’, and ‘You and up beat tempo’s don’t match.’

Johnson’s tango didn’t go down much better as it lacked sexual tension, according to the judges.

Both were awarded 14.5/30.

New ITV drama- Monroe

Next month James Nesbitt, my guilty guy crush, returns to our screens in a major six part medical drama series for ITV1. Nesbitt plays brilliant neurosurgeon Gabriel Monroe who performs cutting edge brain surgery, but at home is afraid to admit to himself his life is falling apart. Nobody is more aware of this than his colleague Jenny Bremner, played by Sarah Parish, who has no time for the depleted surgeon. However he has an ally in anaesthetist Lawrence Shepherd (Tom Riley), and determined to unearth her sense of humour.

In the first episode on the 10 March Alison Corby is admitted with a brain tumour and Monroe has to help her make a frightening decision. To go ahead with an operation could leave Alison paralysed, but without surgery she is likely to die within a few years.

The naive teens who get into modelling-CH4's The Model Agency

What does it take to be a Premier model? Over five foot five tall, less than a C cup-over and you’re considered big boned, giving up a regular life and under the strict control of management, who ‘nurture’ girls from the age of 14.

Welcome to Premier modelling agency who are the subject of a new reality documentary on CH4- The Model Agency.

The first episode last night saw the agency’s bookers at their most stressed during the start of fashion week last September. The team, who have model looks and build including the office dogs, are all owner Carole’s friends, and the MD her brother and trainee her daughter, talk about a family business.

Under the spotlight was Head of Faces- Annie, who desperately struggled to convince 16-year-old model India to stay in NYC where she was booked for shows. Annie was even sent to the Big Apple to persuade India from pulling out, despite the teen feeling home sick, jet lagged and having been told she was fat. Not really a life for a confused teen who confessed she wasn’t sure what she wanted to do in life having joined with the agency at 12, so she quit, all the while tearful Annie telling her to not take her decision lightly as she may regret it. And just to find what Premier call a ‘top model’, a ‘rarity’ confesses owner Carole.

Then we were introduced to model scout Charlie, who throughout the one hour show is seen bringing in new potentials and meeting with young girls and their parents, who enter into the industry with their eyes wide shut.

‘It’s a game of poke where girls are the product’, says Carole of the business.

What I watched last night- Heston's Mission Impossible

Heston spoke for us all in saying hospital food is bland, uninteresting and lacks nutritional value. Before you even taste a hospital meal you’re put off by the smell.

In the first episode of Heston’s Misson Impossible (CH4 at 9pm) last night, the chef aimed to put the fun back into food for the patients of Alder Hey Hospital in Liverpool. Not an easy task with a strict budget of £4 per person, per day, and wards of nutritionally starved, fussy eaters undergoing medical treatment. ‘It’s not like a restaurant where they choose to come here’, acknowledged Heston.

Up against catering manager Geoff, Heston went about swapping ‘homemade’ meals of potato waffles, baked beans and pizza for a ‘Bet You Can’t Eat That’ menu, with worm topped pizzas, eyeballs- stuffed tomatoes, snot shakes- apple and kiwi smoothies, and vomit soup-chicken and vegetable broth. If given the green light by Geoff he would present the new dishes to the hospital board in the hope to roll them out across the wards.

The first hurdle he faced was the hospital’s chefs, a team of six, just two of which cook meals for the children, the rest make dishes for staff and Alder Hey’s canteen- the money maker.

Heston with Michael and the new dishes (CH4)

He won the stone faced chefs over by his use of themed foods and the children’s reaction to them, before letting them loose to create their own lunchtime concoctions. Sceptic Elaine made flying saucer sarnies, which to her surprise went down a treat with the kids. But it took a little more convincing to persuade them to give the gruesome dinner menu a go. Although in the end even Geoff came round to Heston’s way of thinking despite the meals being over budget and against health and safety regulations with the use of dry ice, old dog new tricks?

Next was the hospital board, who agreed to trial the dinners with the children, after the lunch-time menu proved such a hit and many plates came back empty. And as all good stories go, the children loved the new dishes, after initial doubt, with the hospital’s full time resident 17- year-old Michael, who has been in and out of the ward since he was three days old with spina bifida, giving the Michelin starred chef the thumbs up.

Soap Spoiler- Corrie

Arrogant Dev is worried about money after being refused a loan and Owen is chasing him for payment on refubishing the shop. Sunitia is confused as she believed the insurance would cover the costs, but Dev has some shocking news for her, which he later admits to Steve in the pub, very private??? They later hit a casino, but Steve wins big with £5000 rather than Dev.

Meanwhile, Nick is drowning his sorrows now that he has lost Leanne for good and makes plans to move away from Weatherfield, hurrah. But romance is not dead at Tyrone's pad, when Julie helps out with his chores and cooking his dinner. She even introduces him to self help books.

In another of the homes on the street, Owen breaks into the Grimshaws to take action on his unpaid VAT bills. He riffels through Eileen's drawers to discover incriminating paperwork, then calls the police to report a case of fraud.

David returns from his holiday to announace to his mother and grandmother that is in love with a cage dancer called Candy.

My new TV crush

I'm absolutely addicted to the new US drama The Big C on More 4, which deals with cancer in a fun, witty and laugh out loud way.
The series follows reserved suburban wife and mother Cathy Jamison, who vows to dramatically shake up her life after being diagnosed with terminal skin cancer. However she keeps the news of the illness between her and her fitty of an oncologist, Dr Todd.

Wanting to live life to the full, she orders only desserts and alcoholic beverages at posh restaurants,throws her infantile husband Paul out of the house after coming home to him and his friends playing computer games, and orders a pool to be built in the garden so she can teach her teenage son Adam her favourite dives from her childhood.

She also starts to make amends with her recluse of a neighbourhood, grouchy Marlene, whose dog she confides in, and encourages an overweight student (Andrea) she teaches at summer school to lose weight and stop smoking by bribing her.
All this and she has to contend with her eco maniac brother, who chooses to live in the carpark of a supermarket warning shoppers of the damage they are doing to the environment, and her unruly son, who she vows to teach manners and essential lessons in life, but not before she cancels his trip to soccer camp.

The Big C is on every Thursday @ 11pm on More4.

Must see TV coming soon

This month a new show portraying model agency Premier begins on Channel 4. The programme, The Model Agency, starts during the agency's busiest periods- New York Fashion Week, when staff at Premier organise models for shoots, catwalk shows and castings, as well as carrying out the day to day running of the agency and liaising with walk-in models, parents, scouts, designers and photographers.

The show also includes individual interviews with members of the team, away from the office, with Carole and her bookers talking of their nerves around the fashion weeks and the pressure to the 'the girl' and models for shows each season. But as normal the agency works through its usual dilemmas with its usual jokey squabbles, jibes about tattoos, and the all important group fag break. 
The first episode is on Wed 23 @ 10pm.