The Proof of the Elvis Pudding

Earlier this month I wrote a post entitled Elvis: The Myth and the Marketing; the gist was that the Elvis phenomenon was more to do with marketing than talent and, as if to prove my point, on Saturday night the BBC launched the World's Greatest Elvis contest: a competition for Elvis impersonators to prove that they are the best. Loathe as I am to watch this sort of thing - I usually eschew X Factor and the like - I felt that,in the name of blogging journalism, I just had to watch. I wasn't disappointed.

Elvi from Wales to Memphis, from Japan to Belgium took part in what amounted to a great hip-swivelling, lip-curling exhibition of the best in karaoke; for that's what it looked like. No amount of earnest commentary from the judges: Suzi Quatro (on singing?); Craig Revell Horwood (on hip swivelling and general Elvis-like movement) and Joe Esposito (who was a mate of the real Elvis and seemed to be there to just assess the actual Elvisness of it all) could escape the fact that this was simply one big glitzy Elvis themed karaoke.

Sitting through it I imagined Colonel Tom Parker would have been rubbing his hands at the endless possibilities of the marketing miracle he had created: just imagine - Elvis Big Brother, Elvis Who Wants to be a Millionaire - the possibilities are endless.

Just when I thought the I could bear no more of this contrived nonsense I was hit by a bolt from above when I noticed the red button on the Digibox remote control - it seemed to be glowing and whispering 'press me'. We have not had Freeview very long and are still settling in to the wonders of interactive telly, so I was amazed when, having pressed the button, all of the song words to each of the songs sung by each of the Elvi miraculously appeared on the screen - just like a real karaoke. My evening was transformed - in fact the evening of the rest of the Crofty Clan was transformed (not quite what they said; but it was what they meant)... did I ever mention that I can do a mean pub singer impersonation?...