The BBC are really going all out to be all things to all people tonight with Holiday Hit Squad at 8pm. Pitched as a halfway house between Wish You Were Here and Embarrassing Bodies, Holiday Hit Squad caught my eye because with a premise like that who needs The Hoarder Next Door on Channel 4?
Upon reading the title I was initially confused, thinking that the BBC had commissioned a series following the exploits of small group of contract killers bumping off people on holiday. You can imagine my excitement then when I saw that the Hit Squad comprises of Helen Skelton, Joe Crowley and, most impressively, Angela Rippon. 'Blimey' I thought, 'Angela Rippon playing a contract killer. I wonder what her weapon of choice is. Probably an Uzi. Anyhow, sign me up'.
Alas, my prayers to see Kill Bill reenacted by Angela Rippon and that girl from Blue Peter go unanswered once again. The shows is infact split between tales of woe from families let down by the budget holidays and people suffering from bizarre yet broadcastable ailments brought to you live from the Hit Squad's seaside surgery.
Truth be told, assassins or not, I'm rather excited to watch Holiday Hit Squad. I miss shows like The Worlds Worst Holiday Horrors because they were a never ending thrill ride of suspense and hilarity. I know it was always at the expense of the holiday maker in question but this is mainstream TV, and if you don't like laughing at people worse off than yourself then you've come to the wrong place.
Tonight is a prime example with Angela interviewing a man who fell from his balcony in Cyprus. It sounds horrible and I'm sure it was terrifying for him. But you know that if there's a chance that ITV has some grainy amateur footage of him falling you'll be tuning in without a moments delay. The same can be said of the seaside surgery. It's pre watershed so the really nasty stuff will be edited out but you can be sure there'll be at least one poor unfortunate that's turned green after drinking the local tap water.
And if all that isn't worth sitting through the adverts then I don't know what is.
