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Why the Brits may be better than Americans
The Olympics, with its fanfare and grandeur, are gone from London, leaving only memories behind.The one thing I can’t seem to forget is the opening ceremony, which highlighted all of Britannia’s grand history, its literary genius, its musical prowess and blah diddy blah blah blah. If ever there was an event to tell the world, “We are better than you,” that was it. My sneaking suspicion? They may be right. You know how I know? They have ugly TV stars.
Storified by Jammie Karlman At Work · Thu, Aug 16 2012 02:03:34
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Martin Freeman, above, stars as Dr. Watson in “Sherlock Homes.”
Rosie Cavaliero, below, plays Marcus’s social worker in “Spy,” a British comedy. In the last episode of “Spy,” season1 , she whips off her shirt to reveal some serious bra overhang.
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OK, ugly might be too strong a word. But “decidedly underwhelming” can be said. I’ve been watching more British shows lately, like “Spy,” “Sherlock Holmes,” “Party Animals” and “Luther.” While there are pretty people on these shows, there are d.u. people too, in starring roles.
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Andrew Buchan, left, was the “hot guy” on “Party Animals.”
I thought it strange, as I’m sure there is no shortage of good-looking people over there (Kate Beckinsale, Colin Firth, Kiera Knightley, Jude Law, Sienna Miller, Hugh Grant and the Beckhams, to name a few).
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Jude Law, above, and Kate Beckinsale, below, just a few of the prettier Brits.
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Yet, on most of their TV shows, little if any attention is paid to makeup. Bags, wrinkles, gray hairs and fat rolls are seen in wanton abandon (no one seems to be shy about showing their body, no matter what shape it is in.) It is highly doubtful if most of their TV actors have a gym membership or take any pains to refuse that second helping of pudding.
The TV show “Luther” is somewhat of an anomaly. When I first started watching it, I was amazed at the number of good-looking leads it has: Idris Elba, Indira Varma, Ruth Walker. But dude, the guest stars:
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Rob Jarvis, above, and Linda Walker, below, guest starred in Season 1, Episode 6 of “Luther.”
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In contrast, even the extras on American TV look good. Those making a guest appearance on a show, whether it be as a homeless hooker addicted to meth who’s also a thieving crack addict, still have perfect, straight white teeth. And for the stars themselves — heaven forbid they have one super shiny hair strand out of place or a splotch of uneven spray tan!
(Of course, Americans are not the only ones who set impossibly high standards for beauty in their TV shows. From what I’ve seen of South Korean and Mexican soap operas, the same holds true there: “poor” people are still fairly well-dressed and obviously have access to all things MAC.)
Why the shameless disregard of the Brits for painted-on beauty? Why the obvious lack of six-packs on their small screen? Could it be that the British value intriguing plot lines and intelligent dialogue? Could it be they care more about their actors’ ability to well, act, than how they look?
Are the Brits actually less shallow and superficial than Americans??
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The cast of “Serenity” was ridiculously attractive.
I would’ve said yes, but then I noticed another Brit TV show, “The Only Way is Essex.”
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It has been described as “Britain’s answer to ‘The Hills’ and ‘Jersey Shore.'”
Sigh.
Jammie Karlman is the entertainment editor for the Chico Enterprise-Record. Contact her at buzz@chicoer.com. Follow her on Twitter @JammieKarlman
That was funny, I’ve noticed it also on the few of their shows/movies that I have watched
I like the storify!
Thank C! I didn’t notice it before when I watched BBC shows and movies (Dr. Who, anything that came on Masterpiece Theater) but once I watched a batch of them in a row, the pattern started emerging… 🙂