OK, that headline gives me the chills, but it's a TV question worth exploring. The imminent departure of Jonathan Ross from the BBC prompted speculation that Graham Norton was being lined up to fill his chat show shoes. (Try repeating those last three words very quickly!) While Norton has maintained his 'quirky' chat niche on BBC2, there's someone over on ITV who's been grabbing all the column inches.
Piers Morgan is someone who is far from loved by the British public. (He has an odious personality, but his book The Insider, which documented his years editing The Mirror, is a fantastic read.) Yet despite widespread antipathy, he somehow seems to have wheedled his way into a prime-time TV career. In the States he judges America's Got Talent and was also crowned Celebrity Apprentice in 2008. In the UK he judges Britain's Got Talent as well as presenting an ITV travelogue series, Piers Morgan On.... (Visiting destinations such as Dubai and Monte Carlo.) He presented a BBC programme called The Dark Side of Fame, but it is his ITV series Piers Morgan's Life Stories which has been making waves recently.
An hour-long interview format focusing on one celebrity each week, it's an in-depth look at their lives. While it is always sympathetic towards the subject (you get the feeling that the audience is packed with their fans), Morgan isn't afraid to ask some very probing questions. And despite myself, I have to say... it works. As a massive Dannii Minogue fan, I found his interview with her last year to be insightful and revealing. (It helps that she is such an engaging subject.) His recent coup of an interview with Gordon Brown, managed to do the almost unthinkable: It showed our PM as someone who can be witty, self-deprecating and even human. To say that the show was a PR masterstroke is an understatement.
What Morgan is also skilled at is provoking the modern interview money-shot: tears. Whether it's Dannii crying over her father's reaction to her 1990's Playboy shoot, or Gordon Brown's tears over the death of baby daughter Jennifer, displays of emotion are guaranteed. Sometimes however, I think he goes too far. His non-stop hounding of Brown to reveal the exact details of his proposal to Sarah was excruciating.
And his attitude towards younger women is sometimes questionable. He recently queried Kym Marsh about her decision to hide the fact she was a mother while auditioning for Popstars. He stated that some people would applaud her for doing what she had to do, while others would say she was "ruthlessly ambitious" and would do anything to get ahead. Do we seriously think he would put a similar question to a man? He is also prone to hyperbole, comparing Marsh's cover-up to Saddam Hussein's weapons of mass destruction denials! He harshly criticised Celebrity Big Brother winner Chantelle Houghton when interviewing her. His line of enquiry centred on her lack of talent and thirst for fame, yet this is slightly hypocritical from someone who is so clearly desperate to be famous himself. He obviously loves the spotlight, and was recently more than happy to joke around when interviewing Simon Cowell about whether either of them have had Botox.
Having said all that, I've never been a fan of Jonathan Ross, and was always at a loss to understand why he was considered to be so good at his job. Even pre-Sachsgate, his constant need to talk over his guests, make lewd comments to any vaguely attractive woman, and endlessly reference his heterosexuality left me cold. On a recent show, he interviewed Lady Gaga – one of the hottest entertainment acts in the world at the moment -- in exactly the same manner as he'd just used with Michael Ball! No attempt to modify his approach or come up with something new. At least with Piers Morgan's approach there are skills learned from his tabloid days in extracting illuminating answers from guests. (A tenner says that if Cheryl Cole speaks to anyone about her marriage, it will be to him.) If he is the new Ross I for one think it's generally an improvement. What do you think?
I have to say Jonathan Ross was good a few years ago now I do wonder if he is as good at his job as people say. Pier's Morgan I was weary of but now he has become a fantastic presenter with is 'Life Stories' show and yes he may at times push the boundaries when getting answers for his questions but they do work and I find each show very interesting and sometimes fun and sad as well but very addictive to boot. Keep Pier's Morgans Life Stories around for a long time their are plenty of celebrities to interview yet!
I can't bear Piers Morgan, but like yourself, I'm also left cold by Jonathan Ross and have never watched his show, so I won't feel a void by his absence.