TF1's passion for Trash TV as "Qui veut épouser mon fils ?" returns for season 2

After a first series back in 2010 of "Qui veut épouser mon fils ?" ("Who wants to marry my son?") in which overbearing mothers, totally unaware of the camera's presence of course, did their level best to help their stay-at-home sons find the perfect partner, you would think TF1 might allow viewers some respite from such obvious Trash TV.

But no - it's not to be.

Sadly the programme has returned for a second season, albeit in a late Friday evening slot which should deter too many French from watching (although its debut got off to what TV critics consider a reasonable start with an audience of almost two-and-a-half million).

Contestant Frédéric doesn't have "any particular preference why it comes to what a woman looks like (screenshot TF1 "Qui veut épouser mon fils ?")

Yes, France's most-watched television station, is treating its viewers to yet another pile of televisual dung masquerading as "entertainment".

Of course TF1 doesn't have a stranglehold on Trash TV.

Another private and generalist channel, M6, has offered up its fair share of McDonald's type fast food TV over the years including its infamous ground-breaking (please help us) "Loft Story".

But TF1, which is after all France's most-watched channel, seems to have made a speciality of providing viewers with the largest assortment of...well you fill in the blanks, but "merde" while a somewhat vulgar description might perhaps be the most appropriate.

Some are "concepts" unique to France. Others are reinterpretations of similar fodder to be found abroad.

There have been a fair number of flops, usually those "starring" (apologies for the need to revert so often to inverted commas) "celebrities"  such "Je suis une célébrité, sortez-moi de là ! (do you really need a translation?) and Carré Viiip, which was cancelled midway through its run.

And there have been those that continue to draw big enough audiences for TF1's execs to take the decision to order yet another batch: "Secret Story" ("Big Brother" - sort of - season seven is in the pipeline for 2013), "Koh Lanta" ("Survivor" which has been broadcast at least once every year since 2001 and has just begun yet another run on Friday prime time TV) and of course "MasterChef".

The list also includes; "Quatre mariages pour une lune de miel" (based apparently on the UK show "Four weddings") in which brides judge and mark each other's big day with the winner being whisked away to a dream destination with her groom; "Bienvenue chez nous" (based yet again on a UK show, "Three in a bed") which proves itself to be the snarkiest possible of programmes as chambre d'hôtes owners do battle to determine who offers the best value for money, and allowing its participants to betray just how mean and inhospitable some of them can be; and "Mon incroyable fiancé", the French version of the US reality TV programme "My big fat obnoxious fiance" but whose title allowed for a variation in the second season where the unpleasant and overweight actor masquerading as a potential beau was replaced with one pretending to be gay.

Are you still following? Or have you, like TF1 bosses it seems, completely lost the plot?
Anyway back - as briefly as possible to "Qui veut épouser mon fils ?"

The novelty of the first series was - wait for this, especially as the debate about same-sex marriage looks set to heat up in France - one of the five mothers looking for a husband for her son.

Just to spice things up a bit for the second season, not all those looking for potential brides for their sons are overbearing mothers: there's also a father.

Serge is looking for the ideal woman...for his son Julien (screenshot TF1 "Qui veut épouser mon fils ?")

Cool. Who do you think came up with that innovation (rhetorical question)?

Anyway, the show is on late enough for it to be effortlessly avoided.

But in case you're curious and haven't had quite enough of the...ahem..."cultural" garbage TF1 churns out with alarming regularity, here's a clip from the first programme, with some of the "best" and worst moments.

Enjoy.

Thank goodness for the remote control and the on/off button.

Incomplete UMP leadership faction - the battle of the bus, bike and hot air balloon

You can tell it's August - and not just by the weather.

Paris is full...of tourists and it ain't so difficult to park.

Trash television in the form of Secret Story is back on the small screen - actually it has been for a while now.

And although are some very serious news stories around (what's happening in Syria for example) the media is doing its very best to ignore them as much as it can and hoist upon viewers a heap of lighter, more palatable fare.

Don't want to ruin the holidays after all.

Turtle hot air balloon (from Wikipedia - author: Tommaso.gavioli)

Yes it's the silly season - in terms of what's making the headlines at least -  and not wanting to buck the trend or break with such a fine tradition, that brings us nicely to this week's factional tale - political as it happens.

Just for your delectation - or otherwise - here's a totally unfounded story revealing some of the behind-the-scenes manœuvring as the race to become president of the opposition centre-right Union pour un mouvement populaire (Union for a Popular Movement, UMP) splutters into...er...(in)action.

Actually that's probably something of an exaggeration because right now it's merely a question of preparing the foundations and each of the candidates working out how they're going to gather the 8,000 signatures from party members necessary to stand.

At stake is the presidency of the UMP - to be decided in November - effectively making the winner the party's leader and providing him or her with a potential launching pad to become its official candidate in the next French presidential elections in 2017.

But that's looking way too far ahead.

Right now the contenders - declared or otherwise - are trying to work out the best way of meeting and greeting and pressing the flesh with the party faithful.

Nathalie Kosciusko-Morizet (NKM) for example has decided to go strictly normal, plumping for the good old tried and trusted minibus.

She has already begun her Tour de France apparently, so look out for the NKM circus coming to a town near you shortly.

François Fillon shouldn't have too many difficulties getting the necessary support. After all he was prime minister for all five of those very long years under Nicolas Sarkozy, is a familiar face and not disliked...too much.

And that's probably just as well because he still needs to take it easy after coming a cropper on his scooter while on his hols in Italy recently.

Fillon is still nursing his injuries and reports say that his Welsh wife Penelope, who has made him sit in front of the telly for the past couple of weeks watching Team GB's performance at the Olympics, has put a stop to any notion he might have had about conducting his campaign for signatures on a motorbike with her along for the ride in a sidecar.

Finally of course there's the self-styled front runner who hasn't yet officially declared himself, Jean-François Copé.

All the signs are there that he's more than tempted though.

There's already a support committee complete with Facebook page.

Copé also probably won't have much difficulty in collecting those 8,000 signatures but that hasn't stopped the unfounded rumour circulating that he has been in touch with François Hollande's successful presidential election campaign team.

You see, while Hollande banged on about wanting to appear "normal" there was also apparently a Bling Bling strategy in place should everything have gone pear-shaped: a hot air balloon to take the then-prospective candidate to every corner of La Belle France and beyond if necessary.

Very Jules Verne, don't you think.

As it turned out of course, Hollande was able to take the train but there's still the small matter of what to do with the balloon.

It's apparently currently stored in the basement of the Parisian apartment he shared with his partner Valérie Trierweiler before being called to serve his country and the space it's taking up is beginning to annoy his former neigbours.

And that's where the Copé's support committee comes in.

One member, who wanted to remain anonymous, has revealed that the two men have in fact been on a trial flight - together - but Copé is still hesitating.

"He (Copé) is certainly up for it as he thinks it's and original idea and a way of blending the country's past with its future," said the source.

"The only thing that could perhaps scupper plans to use the hot air balloon - apart from the weather of course - is the design choice Hollande made when commissioning it," he continued.

"What might have worked for Hollande wouldn't necessarily be appropriate for Jean-François Copé."

And there's no denying the truth in that because some bright spark at Hollande campaign HQ came up with the idea of a turtle shaped hot air balloon.

Sigh.

All this wannabe normality and amateurish  Bling Bling.

It almost makes you yearn for the return of the good old, bad old days.

Music maestro please



Told you it was the silly season.

Yo man!

Mood's Smiley bracelets tipped to become fashion hit for French children

They've only been available since June, but already the buzz in France is that Mood's bracelets are set to become THE fashion accessory for the younger generation in particular this autumn.

Mood's bracelets (screenshot from website)

The bracelets, as described on the company's website, are brightly-coloured silicone bracelets, currently available in 10 smiley emoticons corresponding to different moods and available individually or in a pack.

As the free daily 20 minutes reports they're a "cheap, easy and fun way to express what mood you're in" and much to the surprise of their creators - two French entrepreneurs - they're already proving to be a hit.

And not just with teenagers as Florence Bougault, one those who came up with the concept explains.

"The idea came to Stanislas Henriot and me when we were thinking about all those emoticons that are being used in text messages and chat rooms and which we're very fond of ourselves," she said.

"They're aimed primarily at teenagers, but to our surprise we've seen a lot of mothers buying and wearing them or swapping them with their children."

Smiley (from Wikipedia)

Hardly surprising perhaps as the bracelets have had a healthy dollop of free promotion.

It has come in the form of this year's Secret Story - a French version of the TV reality show Big Brother, only different but by no means better - in which the candidates can (if you're watching closely) be seen wearing them.

And as the show, broadcast throughout the summer, has a daily audience of around 2.4 million viewers for its early evening slot, that's pretty nifty bit of product placement.

As if to emphasise that Mood's is a trend not just in the making, but fast gathering momentum, the French news website Melty.fr is also calling them the 2011 summer must-have among teenagers

And it should know what it's talking about as it's a site specifically aimed at teenagers and young adults.

In fact Google "Mood's bracelets" here in France and you'll soon come up with several sites and blogs talking about how they've already become the fashion accessory for summer and are expected to become all the rage as new ranges are introduced for the autumn.

Next up - coloured elastic bands as glorified fashion statements?

Whoops - they've already been and gone in the form of Sillybandz.

French TV pulls the plug on Carré Viiip

The Powers that Be at France's main private television channel, TF1, have decided to stop its latest venture into the realms of reality TV after barely two weeks.

On Thursday TF1 announced that it was dropping Carré Viiip with immediate effect.

Carré Viiip RIP (screenshot from programme trailer)

Just a refresher for those of you not in the know.

Carré Viiip was launched just less than two weeks ago amid the usual ostentatious fanfare that accompanies these things.

The "concept" (if that's not exaggerating a little) was to unite eight supposéd celebrities, who had made their names in previous reality shows, with the same number of anonymous wannabes eager to take their place.

It was meant to mark the 10th anniversary of reality television programmes in France.

Except it didn't quite turn out that way.

Instead it has come to an ignominious end with TF1 dropping it completely and replacing it with imported US series.

Officially it was because of poor ratings as TF1's director of programmes, Laurent Storch, explained on Europe 1 radio.

"Yesterday (Thursday) it only attracted 13 per cent of the total viewing public for its time slot and that's far too low for TF1, " he said.

"We've been trying hard with Endemol (the show's producers) to find a solution but it's clear that after 12 consecutive days of poor ratings, it's simply not winning over its target audience," he continued.

"The programme was stopped on Thursday and there'll be no weekly prime time show on Friday because that would be pointless."

While that might be the official version, there's no getting over the controversy that has surrounded the show especially after Michèle Cotta openly criticised it.

She's a former president of the television and radio watchdog le Haute Autorité de la communication audiovisuelle - the predecessor of Le Conseil supérieur de l'audiovisuel.

And she was also a member of Endemol's ethic committee - until she resigned earlier this week.

"I like reality TV when it's programmes such as Fear Factor or Koh Lanta because they give a voice to people who are not known," she said.

"But in Carré Viiip the candidates take part to make themselves 'known' at any cost and that's just not one of the values I hold to be important."

There was of course the case of M6 cancelling Trompe-Moi si tu peux (Cheat on me if you dare) in July last year before the programme aired because one of the candidates had committed suicide.

But TF1's decision marks the first time a show using the format of cutting of candidate from the outside world has been stopped in such a manner.

It's proof that someone, somewhere at TF1 has good judgement - although perhaps real praise could only have been heaped on the channel had it decided in the first place not to schedule such a pile of rubbish.

Sadly while Carré Viiip has bitten the dust, it doesn't look as though it'll herald the end of reality TV in France.

Secret Story is still scheduled to return for a fifth series later in the year.

Carré Viiip marks a decade of reality TV in France

It's 10 years since television viewers in France were first "treated" to the delights of reality TV.

And to mark the occasion, TF1 has launched what can only be described as a right load of rubbish - wannabe-celebrity style.

Carré Viiip - yes there really are that many "i"s in what presenter Elsa Fayer told the almost four million in front of their screens for Friday's launch - stands for "Verrry eemporrrrtant perrrrrson".

It unites eight supposéd celebrities with the same number of anonymous wannabes eager to take their place.

Celebrities Benoît Dubois and Thomas Vitello (screenshot from Carré Viiip trailer)

From now until the end of May the viewers will get the chance to determine which particular non-entity will walk off with the €150,000 first prize, and the show promises to be as idiotic as the concept.

A concept which is simple - isn't it always? - with no need for Einstein revelations.

Eight supposéd "stars" (the term has to be used loosely) - each a product of previous TV reality shows of similarly dubious taste - are challenged for their VIP status by eight "wannabes" (or Wanna Viiips).

They live together in the tackiest (it's all a matter of taste perhaps, but...) of luxury lofts and are expected over the coming weeks to "create a buzz" within the media and drum up something that resembles more than 15 minutes of fame.

At their disposal they have the support of several weekly glossy gossip rags, personalised websites, a whole machinery of self-promotion provided by the production team and daily appearances (of course) on French TV screens.

Each week the public will vote and one not-so-important-after-all person will be eliminated.

As usual the means to stay in the game are likely to be as vulgar as those that have become the trademark of reality TV: screaming, shouting, insults, lewdness, nudity and general idiocy - which shouldn't be too much of a stretch.

If anyone who flips on the television remote is under the impression that it couldn't get worse after Loft 1 and 2, Secret Story 1, 2, 4 and 4, Dilemma, Ile de la tentation, La Ferme Célébrités, Qui veut épouser mon fils ? and a whole host of other trash TV, then TF1 looks set to try to prove otherwise.

Perhaps it's all meant to be "ironic" - well apparently at least as far as the production team might be concerned.

But the line-up of celebs and wannabes somehow casts doubt on that, as most would probably be incapable of spelling "irony" let alone recognising its existence.

Yes they might be "playing a role" - or "overplaying" it might be more appropriate - in a completely fake concept destined to amuse and entertain, but somehow it's hard to imagine that the likes of Benoît, Cindy or François-Xavier (some of the so-called celebs) or their pretenders, Xénia, Aurélie or Noam will have anything other a fleeting impact on those watching.

Let's hope so.

In the meantime it's "Vive la France, vive la télé-réalité!"

French reality TV's gay touch

As one reality show disappears from the screen of France's most popular national TV channel another one takes its place.

And both have something more in common than their time slot, target audience and less-than-challenging level of mindless entertainment; what could be called a gay touch.

Benjamin and Odile - son and mother from "Qui veut épouser mon fils ?" (snapshot from TF1 teaser)

"Secret Story" finished last week and it was the openly gay Benoît Dubois who picked up the winner's cheque of €150,000.

Dubois and his sidekick Thomas Vitiello seemed to become something of a cult among younger viewers especially as they camped and cattily commented their way through the three months they spent together.

The pair met in the Big Brother-style house and quickly formed the indomitable duo of "Brigitte and Josiane" (Dubois and Vitiello respectively) aka for the purposes of the show as the "Gayssip boys" - a term dreamt up for them by the production team.

And if all goes according to (their) plans Dubois and Vitiello have said they hope they'll become a more permanent feature on French television screens in the near future!

With Secret Story over, TF1 is serving up the delicious "Qui veut épouser mon fils ?" ("Who wants to marry my son?") as a replacement.

As the title suggests it features mothers - five of them - who will try to find future brides for their still-at-home male offspring.

Except from the teaser provided by TF1, it's clear that not all of the mothers involved are looking for potential daughters-in-law.

One of them, Odile, is looking for a "husband" (inverted commas because same-sex marriage doesn't exists in France although civil unions in the forms of PACS do) for her 28-year-old son, Benjamin.

Exclu web les premieres images de l episode 1 qui veut épouser mon fils Vidéo qui-veut-epouser-mon-fils sélectionnée dans TV/Séries

His participation marks the first time a reality television programme of the genre in which contestants "search for love"on a major domestic channel in France includes an openly gay man.

And to an extent TF1 has stolen a march over its main commercial rival M6.

It was supposed to feature a gay farmer among its candidates in the last season of "L'amour est dans le pré" ("Farmer wants a wife") but he reportedly pulled out at the last moment.

Is Benjamin's involvement in the show a bold move for TF1, a reflection of changes in French society or simply a ploy to boost audience figures by attracting the "pink" viewer - or all three?

Of course it's not the first time there has been a gay contestant in a reality TV show in France.

Back in 2002 during the second season of "Loft Story" on M6, one of the eventual winners, Thomas Saillofest, came out.

In last year's edition of "Secret Story" there was a lesbian couple from Belgium who split soon after the show finished.

A similar fate befell another Belgian couple (male) after they were eliminated during the last season of Pékin Express on M6 (even though they purportedly went into show to test the strength of their relationship with a view to tying the knot officially afterwards.)

And let's not forget "Zhoom", launched earlier this month on Pink TV, the country's only gay channel.

"Who wants to marry my son?" set to hit French TV screens

Oh great, France's most-watched television station, the private channel TF1, is bringing its viewers another slice of life in the form of the seemingly ubiquitous reality TV format.

Starting at the end of the month will be "Qui veut épouser mon fils ?" ("Who wants to marry my son?") a show in which, as the title suggests, mothers will try to find future brides for their male offspring.

In total, five mothers (seven are featured in the trailer but two of the contestants won't make an appearance in the show) will be looking for the perfect partner for their sons aged 25 to 39 and who have not yet "flown the nest" and are still happily living at home.

"My son has a good job and has been very well-raised," says one mother in the official trailer to the programme which begins on October 29.

"I'm looking for a partner who will please him...and also me," she adds ominously.

Another mother introduces her son by saying, "He has a weakness for buxom girls, but they're just not interested in him."

Screenshot from official trailer of Qui veut épouser mon fils. "He has a weakness for buxom girls, but they're just not interested in him."

And a third is adamant that her son is, "Very, very (she has to repeat it) attractive and she's looking for a very (there's that word again) beautiful girl because she wishes him to be part of an exceptional couple".

The mothers of course get to choose which woman will make the "perfect partner" with the sons having to plump at the end to follow their "new love" or stay with their mothers.

Oh yes it promises to be intellectually stimulating, totally original and very cultured. Just the sort of programme that has been missing (not) from the small screen in France and brings variety and taste in abundance to viewers.

The show will fill the slot currently occupied by Secret Story - France's answer to Big Brother only more downmarket if that were possible - which comes to the end of its fourth season a week earlier.

And as TVMag.com points out its inclusion in the Friday night line up ensures that TF1 remains 100 per cent reality TV for the evening as it'll follow immediately after Koh Lanta (the French version of Survivor) currently in its 10th season and still happily pulling in millions of viewers.

Thank heavens for the on/off button!

Qui veut epouser mon fils - Petites annonces

Reality TV show cancelled after contestant's suicide

M6 has cancelled the airing of a new reality show following the death of one of the candidates.

"Trompe-Moi si tu peux" (Cheat on me if you dare) had been due to begin airing on the national commercial channel later this week.

But on Tuesday M6 issued a short statement on its website saying the programme would be withdrawn from its schedule after the death of one of the candidates.

Although the cause of death was not given "out of respect for the family" reports soon emerged in the French media that the candidate, 32-year-old Jean-Pierre, had committed suicide.

The monthly showbiz and gossip monthly Entrevue was the first to break the news reporting that Jean-Pierre had hanged himself at his apartment after leaving a message on his mobile 'phone in which he blamed his former boyfriend Hakim for his decision to take his life.

The pair had taken part in "Trompe-Moi si tu peux", shot in the Dominican Republic in April, along with what the production company said were nine other "real couples".

Speaking on national radio Matthieu Bayle, the programme's producer, said there was no link between what had happened and Jean-Pierre's participation in the show.

"We were very close to Jean-Pierre during the shoot and we're devastated by the news" he said.

"On the 'phone just last week, Jean-Pierre said how he eager was to finally see the show," he added, insisting that the contestant's death had been a "personal tragedy".

The concept of "Trompe-Moi si tu peux" was for each contestant to hide the identity of their real partner from the rest of those taking part with the winning pair walking off €39,000 richer.

At the beginning of each episode everyone was assigned a new partner and together they had to try to convince the others that they were a real pair through a series of intimate games designed to "incite the jealousy of the true partner" as the national daily Le Parisien-Aujourd'hui en France described it.

Every time the identity of a real couple was revealed they would be eliminated from the game.

M6 had scheduled the programme to compete head-to-head with another reality TV show, "Secret Story", which returns for its fourth season on France's largest commercial channel TF1 on Friday evening.

Instead, as Bayle told Europe 1 national radio, the show would never be broadcast.

French reality TV's dubious standards

As some of you might be aware, there's a very Secret Story making its daily appearance on television screens here in France at the moment.

Or the "house of deceit" as one particular contestant perhaps more accurately described it a few weeks ago.

Just as a reminder, it's in essence the French answer to Big Brother - only more downmarket.

Impossible you might think, but sadly true.

If you're really interested, you can read more about it here.

For the moment though, put aside whatever judgements you might have as to the quality and value of the programme, and what the high ratings say about the television viewing habits of the French public over the summer.

Instead let's look at just how the production team deals with personal issues and in particular family tragedies that might occur during the period in which candidates are effectively cut off from the real world.

It surely says a great deal about what reality TV programme makers now apparently consider to be acceptable.

During an interview this week with the Internet entertainment site Purepeople.com, the programme's artistic director (yes there really is such a person) Angélique Sansonetti, revealed that although there was a strict rule about candidates having no contact with the outside world during their time in the house, exceptions were, and had been made.

She told the site that the production team had received a call from the mother of one of the candidates at the end of July informing them that there had been a death in the family - that of his grandfather, to whom he was reportedly very close.

"I took the call and immediately asked the candidate to come to the 'phone so that he could talk to his mother," said Sansonetti, who went on to describe what any responsible production team would do under the circumstances; calling on the services of a psychologist who works on the show and allowing the candidate to attend his grandfather's funeral accompanied all the time by a member of the production team "to ensure that none of the rules of the game were broken."

None of the other participants in Secret Story were told what had happened.

The compassion shown towards the 21-year-old candidate didn't end there though.

He was given the choice of leaving the game permanently or returning to the house after the funeral.

"It was his decision to remain in show," said Sansonetti.

"He thought it would be easier to deal with being surrounded by people who weren't aware of what had happened," she continued.

"We respected his choice and that of his family. There was never any question of creating media hype over what had happened. That simply goes against our principles."

Ah so the production team not only has an expert on hand in the form of a psychologist able to help and advise a young man through the grieving process, it also has principles.

Presumably exactly the same principles that have ensured that another of the candidates, a 32-year-old woman, has had little or no contact with her eight-year-old daughter ever since the "adventure" began back at the end of June.

But that of course is another story.

Vive reality TV!

More Trash TV hits French screens

French television viewers love reality TV programmes.

Uh hang about a moment, perhaps that should read that French television channels think that those tuning in are fans of the genre.

At least that's what could be concluded from the number of "variations on the same theme" and amount of airtime given over to them in the scheduling.

No sooner is one about to come to an end, and another is happily entertaining audiences daily, than a third makes its reappearance on the small screen.

The latest addition to the ranks is "Mon Incroyable Fiancé 2", on TF1, the country's largest private channel. It's is a gay variant of the first series from four years ago, "Mon Incroyable Fiancé" based on the US show "My Big Fat Obnoxious Fiance".

Meanwhile over on the other main private channel, M6, "L'amour est dans le pré" ("Farmer wants a wife") is coming to the climax of its fourth season.

And currently running of course on TF1, is Secret Story 3 (for more on that gem click here), which is in fine fettle, midway through its planned summer-long run.

Yep France has been awash with reality shows for several years now and there seems to be no end in sight.

You might have noticed that the main providers of such cultural delights are the country's two main national private terrestrial channels, TF1 and M6.

Public television in the shape of France 2 so far seems to have avoided producing such shows.

It all started back in 2001 with "Loft Story" (M6), which ran for two seasons and made instant stars of its contestants, most of whom enjoyed their 15 minutes of fame and then slipped back into everyday life.

There followed a slew of shows, most notoriously perhaps seven seasons of the admirable "L'isle de la tentation" (TF1), before it was cancelled, where couples' fidelity was put to the test against the flirting onslaught of a bevvy of buxom beauties and handsome hunks.

The same reality TV formula was used in the talent show "Star Academy" (TF1), which is threatening a return for a ninth year in the autumn.

It, of course, has given France and the world a handful of "stars" (to be counted on the fingers of one hand) and a whole heap of non-entities who presumably returned whence they came, or at the very least succeeded only in disappearing from the public eye once eliminated or after the show was over.

"Pékin Express" on M6 and TF1's "Koh Lanta" ("Survivor") have both attracted viewers by combining reality TV with a game show, and so-called personalities have also been dragged in to the act with a host of minor stars taking part in "Je suis une célébrité, sortez-moi de là!" ("I'm a Celebrity…Get Me out of Here!") and "La ferme célébrités", both on TF1. The latter is due for a return to screen in the autumn after a gap of four years.

The list could go on of course, as France hasn't escaped what seems to have become a worldwide trend in relatively inexpensive-to-produce Trash TV.

But for the moment, back to "Mon Incroyable Fiancé 2".

Just as the first edition of the show four years ago, it's full of clichés as it tries apparently to entertain viewers with "humour".

The overweight and overloud actor who played the role of the intended in the last series has been replaced by one pretending to be gay.

Back in 2005, the "contestant" Adeline, was trying to fool her family into believing that she was marrying a vulgar oaf, played by Laurent Ournac. What she didn't know was that Ournac, and his equally objectionable family, were all actors.

Similarly the new series has heterosexual Christopher trying to convince his family that he has suddenly found love with another man, Emeric Dumont, and the two are planning to tie the knot in Spain, where same-sex couples may marry.

What Christopher doesn't know of course is that Emeric and the rest of the Dumont family are once again actors who have been coached, even though he must surely have been aware of the "concept" of the show (yes there is such a thing apparently) when it first aired in 2005.

Or perhaps he didn't have a television.

At stake is €100,000 worth of prize money.

Ah well, never mind that the programme relies on, and reinforces stereotypes.

It's all in the name of entertainment...and money of course.

Happy viewing.

French television's not so "Secret Story"

It's not hard to tell that summer has arrived here in France; all the signs are pointing to the fact. Some of them obvious, others less so.

First up of course there's the date - a dead giveaway although the weather is still trying to make up its mind as to which season it is.

Then of course there's the dress code, which can still be something of a concern for fashion-conscious Parisians as shorts and simplicity threaten to replace chic and sophisticated.

There are the music festivals - including La Fête de la musique (World music day) on June 21, inaugurated in 1982 by the then culture minister Jack Long, and now very much a tradition up and down the country.

Other tell-tale signs include prime time television news reports focussing on the queues at airports and the number of passengers passing through the French capital's major railway stations, rather than hard news.

The inside lanes of the motorways start filling up with bumper-to-bumper traffic including more than their fair share of Dutch cars, trailers and caravans, busting at the seams with provisions for a month.

But the real clue that the whole shebang is underway has to be the reappearance on the small screen of "Secret Story".

It reared its less-than-attractive head on Friday evening on the country’s number one national channel, TF1, and is set to be in everyone's sitting rooms for the next couple of months.

In essence it's France's answer to Big Brother - only more downmarket. Impossible you might think, but sadly true.

Basically the idea is very simple. It starts with 18 people, strangers to each other - with the odd exception, as will become clearer later on - moving into a built-for-TV house, where they'll be under the watchful eye of the production team and the viewing public.

Each carries with them into the house a "secret" - and the idea is to keep it hidden from the others for as long as possible while trying to cajole out of fellow house mates exactly what they're trying to keep under wraps.

Off camera there is also the deep bass booming tones of The Voice (La Voix), dropping hints whenever he feels like it, setting playful if somewhat idiotic tasks with cash rewards should they be completed successfully without anyone else in the house realising.

Every week two candidates are nominated and television viewers get to vote in a ‘phone poll (at premium rates of course) on who should stay in. Original stuff huh?

Yes the country which so often likes to think that it has taken the cultural highroad, brought the world classics in the fields of literature, art and music, prides itself on its language and traditions, cuisine, fine wines and haute couture - now proves once again that it can mix it with the best and worst of what the world of reality TV has to offer.

The new series, which kicked off on Friday evening, introduced yet another bevy of brainless beauties and beefcake, each seemingly desperate for their "15 minutes of fame" and probably more than likely to do anything over the coming weeks to make sure they're remembered.

Should you feel so inclined, you can read about some of their real identities and secrets here (in English) and of course discover more on all 18 of them (in French) by surfing the Net (here's where to start perhaps).

As compulsive and trashy as Secret Story might be it'll still more than likely pull in the viewers and become its own story in itself as the nation tut-tuts and hisses in disapproval and indignation at the antics of the previous night's revelations.

Oh well. In the indomitable words of La Voix “C’est tout pour le moment."

Secret Story - this year's "hall of fame"

After last year's dubious dollop of "culture" introduced to the French public amongst others a lesbian couple from Belgium (who started off the series intending to get married, but ended up going their separate ways), a black mother and her white daughter, an Anglican minister, an undertaker and a teenage father, a Don Juan with more than 750 "conquests" and such similar secrets, the production team this year has stepped up a gear to ensure maximum in-fighting and hopefully high ratings.

Among those who will be gracing French sitting rooms over the next couple of months with their presence are the following.

Probably the best known housemate (at least in this country) is Rachel Legrain Trapani. She was Miss France in 2006 and has agreed to "dress down" and play the part of Rosa, a student.

Unfortunately for her (and the programme makers), the other contestants quickly noted the slightly-more-than-striking resemblance to her real self (now there's a surprise), and her secret looks sure to be the first to be revealed.

More alter egos are on supply in the shape of Louise and her husband Didier from the Indian Ocean island of La Réunion. They've entered the house together with their trusted friend "Alicia" - in reality Didier, who likes to dress up in women's clothing.

To guarantee harmony and calm within the house there's, Emilie from the northern French city of Lille, along with her "best friend" Vanessa. The two 21-year-olds probably have a few scores to settle as apparently (their secret) the latter tried to pinch the former's boyfriend

Vancouver native, Maya, who only eats fruit and vegetables and lives in a bus (perhaps there's a link- and apparently is more than happy with her lifestyle. The 29-year-old sounds as though she could be a bundle of laughs.

Beauty and beefcake in one - well at least as far as he's concerned - are supplied by 21-year-old Kevin who says of himself, "I know that I'm good-looking and I could be the son of Brad Pitt." Nothing like false modesty there then....and that's nothing like false modesty.

Bumping up the average age of the candidates by more than a few years (by now you'll have noticed how young most of them are and could therefore be forgiven for agreeing to take part in such a show in the first place) is 53-year-old Elisabeth Fanger.

At long last someone who has lived long enough to have perhaps a secret worth keeping.

Her story dates back to 1974, when as an 18-year-old student she met an fell in love with Sid Mohamed Badaoui.

In February the following year Badaoui held up a bank in Paris, but things didn't go quite to plan and there was a hostage stand-off during which one of the cashiers and a robber were killed, and it was Fanger (then known as Lili), who first hid him in her family home and then fled the country with him.

And so began life on the run, with Fanger "tracked by Interpol" eventually returning to France to face charges and being found guilty of aiding and abetting fugitives. She was sentenced but received a pardon, and then did what anyone would do under the circumstances - wrote an autobiography, which in 2004 was made into a film "À tout de suite" (Right Now).

A colourful past by anyone's assessment, and one, which given the average age of most of the other housemates, will more than likely remain a secret from them for a pretty long time - unless they're given copious clues by the production team.

Finally, just in case your appetite hasn't already been sufficiently whetted, here are some of the other not-so-closely-guarded secrets, as far as the viewing public is concerned.

There's a millionaire in the house, someone who has decided to remain a virgin, a "genius" (presumably there's evidence to back that up), a survivor of the 2004 tsunami, a former mistress of a Ballon d'Or (European football of the year) winner, and of course the "mystery candidate" who has yet to enter the house.

The show will doubtless have the same sort of petty rivalries, squabbles and handbags-at-dawn stuff that characterised much of the previous two series. Indeed, that's exactly what it thrives on.

But breathe a sigh of relief because at least it’s all being done in the name of entertainment. And as much as some might question why and find it “outrageous”, there’ll probably still be millions tuning in.

Let’s also not forget there’s always the “off” button on the TV set or alternative viewing on other channels.