TV Fakes: See It But Don't Neccessarily Believe It

Lots of stories around about fake TV at the moment.  Apparently the Queen walked this way, not that way, and Gordon Ramsay ain't such a good fisherman after all.

Amateurs!  In my day we faked with so much more sneakiness and disregard for the truth.  Producers at one TV show I worked on thought nothing of paying people to behave exactly as they wanted them to - whether it was to cry, reunite with lost relatives or propose (programme staff even bought the ring from Argos - this was daytime TV after all, gotta be budget conscious).  I will never forget the look on one bloke's face just after he had proposed to his girlfriend on national TV for £100.  She was overjoyed, he was horrifed.  Within minutes he was avoiding her and flirting with the production staff. 

At our teleclass on Getting into TV last week, we talked about how coaching as depicted on TV is often so far removed from what a real coaching session is actually like.  In a way I think it's good that people are becoming more aware of how manufactured TV can be.  Enjoy it, be entertained by it but don't neccessarily believe that what you're seeing is real.  And if someone proposes to you on a daytime chat show, run away fast in whatever direction you like.