Seven- day TV guide
Peng Life
Channel 4, 11.05pm
THESE are challenging times for the traditional TV channels, who find themselves competing with not just satellite and on- demand services like Netflix, but also YouTube and social media.
And it seems that Channel 4 at least is taking the “if you can’t beat ‘ em, join ‘ em” approach by recruiting some of YouTube’s most promising talents. Hot on the heels of The Big Narstie Show, which was presented by the grime MC and Mo Gilligan, who both made a splash on social media, comes Peng Life, which offers a showcase to Elijah Quashie, AKA the Chicken Connoisseur.
If the name still isn’t ringing a bell, his reviews of chicken shops became a viral sensation, but just because he found fame online, it doesn’t mean he never watches terrestrial TV.
In fact, it seems he was inspired to start reviewing his local chicken shops by Gregg Wallace – or, as Elijah described him, ‘ the bald one on MasterChef’.
Elijah said: “I wondered to myself, what makes his opinion more valued than anyone else’s? Is it because he’s been eating more food, so he has an experienced palate? I’m not sure.
“I thought, no one is doing this for the type of people who eat at chicken shops.”
He’d clearly identified a gap in the market, but Channel 4 is now giving him a chance to expand his range.
Elijah says: “On YouTube I do the chicken ting, but now on Channel 4 I’m reviewing everything. The cheapest stuff to the most expensive stuff. Basically the deadest stuff you’ll ever find to the most expensive, baller- status stuff. I’ll see if it’s worth the moolah. Hold tight.”
He won’t be doing it alone though. He’s joined by his twin mates Nelson and Wilson as they hit the streets to sample some of the most deluxe experience money can buy. In the first episode, that means test driving a Lamborghini Gallardo – and then taking a spin in a Mazda MX5 to see which offers the most bang for their buck. To help them make up their minds, they’ll be able to call on the expertise of model and race car driver Jodie Kidd and Sam, who runs the automotive YouTube channel SeenThroughGlass.
The boys then drop in on London’s barber- to- the- stars, Daniel J, to see how the top- end, celebrity experience compares to the legendary North London barber Damo.
The trio are then back on more familiar ground ( for Elijah at least) as they check out the world of takeaways, and in particular kebabs. They sample the world’s most expensive kebab to see if it really is more of a taste sensation than a standard takeout donner.
Finally, for this episode at least, Wilson and Nelson get to try out life at the very top as Elijah gives them a mission to spend time in a five- star hotel penthouse with supermodel Winnie Harlow, which sounds like the sort of job most people would be happy to accept.
But will the lads find that sometimes street beats the elite?