David Tennant is on the other side of the Channel, driving a lovely old Citroën DS. Is this Le Broadchurch? Actually no, it’s a fascinating documentary about the economic and political doo-doo France finds itself in. Is he an odd choice of presenter? Again, actually no, because it’s not in fact Tennant in front of the camera; this is Quelle Catastrophe! France with Robert Peston (BBC2). The pair look more alike than ever, now that the BBC economics man has also gone floppy-haired. But Peston is not just an economics man and proper journo, but a French-speaker and francophile, and a fan of Jean-Paul Belmondo. He’s just right for this.
Everything is catching up with France – generous welfare, preposterous public spending, a feudal system of rules and regulations, a workshy workforce. The country is struggling to compete worldwide. Globalism? “Pah!” the French shrug, and vote in the left on a non-austerity ticket. Which can’t deliver, so then the French threaten to vote in the far-right on a non-Europe ticket. Or else they leave; that’s why vast swathes of London are now no-go areas for the non-French … No, of course they’re welcome, we love them, the cars, and wine and cheese, the pretentious films, as Peston does.
It’s clear it’s Peston, not Tennant, the moment he opens his mouth. THAT delivery, part-Dalek (appropriately), part‑thespian. It’s all in the intonation, he lingers for longer than anyone else dares at a constant rasping high pitch before swooping down emphatically. The effect is one of both drama and nonchalance: I know what I’m talking about, but hey, take it or leave it. It’s not an entirely original way of speaking – Andrew Marr has been doing something similar for longer, but Peston has taken it to new levels. Now he’s being imitated, I’ve noticed, not just by Rory Bremner but by other presenters of news and current affairs. BBC English might still be RP, but where once that meant Received Pronunciation, it now increasingly stands for Robert Peston.
On top of which, you’ve got all the gesticulation, appropriately Gallic here perhaps, but what about the praying, the karate, the hip-hop dance moves? Why can’t people on telly just speak and act and be a bit more like people not on telly? That’s all.
