I grew up thinking Jersey was a dangerous place, full of crime. Thankfully, within the average half-hour timeframe, DS Bergerac seemed to have it all sorted, leaving time for a fumble with any one of a number of women and a pint with Charlie Hungerford in the Old Court House. The eponymous hero’s crime capers defined the island for a generation. At the peak of its popularity, Bergerac got thirteen million viewers in the UK alone. That’s more than double any soap in the UK gets now. Jersey was MASSIVE.
I bet you know someone that was in it too, don’t you? Everyone seems to have a Bergerac story. Filming a TV show in a confined space is always going to be a spectacle and Jersey’s two degrees of separation ensures that local happenings are never too far from sight. Your hairdresser did the hair, you dog ran on the beach in the background, your Dad had a bit-part in a pub. Maybe it was you? Now that a Bergerac reboot has moved from ‘rumoured’ to now ‘in the process’. It means that you could soon be in the background of some scene shot at The Dolphin or The Farmers (depending on your geographical affiliation) as the producers hunt for locations and our ficticious crime rate spirals out of control. Chance again for the world to marvel at our little island.
But wait. There’s no need to wait! Jersey is already in the spotlight once again. The Style section of The Sunday Times is already spewing over what derogatory hashtags they can apply to something coming way sooner – something on the lips of every islander. We have our own ‘Housewives’ show coming; It’s filming for the next month.
Having a show like RHOJSY (Johanasberg has nabbed RHOJ) is great for the island. The format is designed to be televisual crack, and all publicity is good publicity. Sure, there will be unfounded social media hatred and scorn by keyboard warriors. Probably even on the island. Stop it! Sure, you may not want to put yourself out there but if these ladies do, let them. It’s going to make for interesting conversations with friends in the UK. The Cheshire version has now done 11 seasons! Grace takes a satirical look at the concept over the coming pages but as you can probably identify elsewhere in this edition, we’re supporters. You should be too.
BD
