Spicing up variety for new royalty
THE ROYAL VARIETY PERFORMANCE ITV, 7.30pm
AN OLD-SCHOOL British institution this may be but this year’s show seems to have been given an injection of youth and energy.
It’s partly down to the attendance of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, aka, Harry and Meghan, which means we all immediately want to tune in just to watch their happy newlywed faces.
And comedian and actor Greg Davies is a brilliant fit as host of this show that has been going since 1912.
He immediately notes the “young, vibrant couple” sitting in the royal box at the London Palladium, as opposed to the scattering of grey heads in the stalls, likening this to a reverse muppet show.
Then he lists the top five most ridiculous things his mum and her friends have said about royalty (his mum’s in the audience). And Greg has a hilarious song for Prince Harry, called “My nan, your nan”.
The whole thing leaves Harry in stitches and Meghan looking a bit bemused.
You can only begin to wonder what she must make of this thoroughly British humour.
It’s an ingenious start from Greg and kicks things off nicely, which is just as well – this is a whopping two-and-a-half hours long.
But there’s plenty to entertain, including performances from Take That, the West End cast of hit musical Hamilton, George Ezra, Clean Bandit and Andrea Bocelli & his son Matteo – to name a few.
“I am delighted,” says Greg. “It is a role that I am wildly unsuited to and I will no doubt offend a great many people.”