Jonathan Ross: will he be crowned king of chat on ITV?

Jonathan Ross returns to chat this Saturday with his new ITV show. But will it be a success? Industry experts – including Michael Parkinson – give their views On Saturday, ITV1 will premiere The Jonathan Ross Show, marking the return of the rhotacistic rascal to primetime chat – a format which will allow Ross to interview a rarefied raft of celebrities and also, perhaps, rehabilitate himself in the public affection after the fallout of the Sachsgate scandal. The question is: will Ross be a success on ITV? The broadcaster’s last defection at the same level was when Michael Parkinson transferred from the BBC to ITV in 2004. And we know how that went. The chat legend lasted three not entirely successful years before retiring in 2007. His first show has a pretty strong line-up with Formula One driver Lewis Hamilton, singer Adele and someone ITV would like described as “A-list American actress” Sarah Jessica Parker all perching on Ross’s new sofa. Sometimes his BBC show, Friday Night With Jonathan Ross, did rather lag when it came to the quality of guests. One outing just before Ross’s fall from grace featured Andrew Marr, Anthony Head and Yazoo featured alongside SJP. To say it dragged a little would be being kind. Even before his suspension there was talk Ross had lost his touch and that his chat show had become too dull and toadying. And his new show also has the disadvantage of not going out live – it will be pre-recorded on a Thursday night for broadcast on ITV1 on Saturday evening at 9.45pm, following the results show for Red or Black? the latest Ant and Dec vehicle. So does Ross still have anything to prove? Will he be constrained by ITV? Will they allow him to ad-lib in the way he seems to like – but which can get him into trouble? Will his flow be upset by the commercial breaks? Or will it be business as usual? You may even think the chatshow format as a whole is finished in this age of PR hegemony where stars can communicate direct to their audiences on Twitter and the like. But tell us what you think. In the meantime here’s what critics, contemporaries and fellow broadcasters make of his return to screen – with Parky weighing in on his erstwhile rival. Michael Parkinson, broadcaster and former chatshow king Jonathan needs no advice from me – he has been doing the job for as long as anyone and he can look after himself. I wish him well. I have always been a fan. Of course he will meet a different audience, and he will have to deliver the show a little differently, but he has already worked quite a lot for ITV and he is long enough in the tooth to know the ropes. He’ll be able to dance rings round any problems because he is very good at what he does. Of course he doesn’t appeal to everybody, but Jonathan has had a long career – and you don’t have a long career without actually having what the public want. He has made some mistakes as a presenter but he will do well wherever he goes. It wasn’t the easy option in ratings terms at the BBC, so I don’t think there’s a great deal more pressure there [at ITV] than he’s had before. He will have to shape the show around the ad breaks and use them as punctuation points but that won’t be a big problem. Andrew Billen, TV reviewer, the Times The waters close quickly over TV celebs these days. The X Factor and talent show format is king. But a more mature reinvented Ross would be worth checking out. He should ask advice from Chris Evans on how to do it. He is use to, from his Channel 4 days, to the constraints of ad breaks etc so technically it should be no problem working on ITV. As for the audience, he will need to woo them not take them for granted. He will need to be both gentler and funnier. Change comes from within they say. Mark Borkowski, publicist and branding expert My only worry about this is the slot – they are putting him in a key Saturday night moment which will put a lot of pressure on him and that’s not the best place for him. He will cross with Match of the Day. It will all come down to whether or not he is given the freedom to be Jonathan Ross – that’s the key. Wossy’s downfall could be the show is a pre-record – they should take the risk and have him live. He has done well because of who he is: the danger, cheekiness and boyishness. He is a real enthusiast and if ITV make him a sub-Parkinson pastiche then it won’t work. He has proved that he is unique and brilliant and people such as Graham Norton haven’t really been able to fill his shoes. He is a big name and needs to be left alone. TV without Jonathan Ross is a sadder place. Victor Olliver (AKA Madame Arcati blogger) former Teletext

Posted by on September 2, 2011. Filed under News, Politics, World News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.