Small Screen Surfin'
Created | Updated May 19, 2004
Well as I type the clock says 23:18 on a Monday. 42 minutes before deadline. As such this
review will be short (possibly) so off we go with SSS 29!!
To continue the Craig Charles theme into a second week, we have the actor1 alongside Caprice2 as they put their familiar faces into make-up to look disfigured. Why? Well
they're on Celebrities Disfigured, that's why!
The Channel 4 show was designed to find out public reaction to those that look different to the
populous. Craig Charles (pre-silly afro) was made up to look like a man who was burnt in a petrol
tank explosion - an accidental disfigurement - and Caprice was given the look of someone with 'port
wine' syndrome - a natural disfigurement of blood. They were both disguised and for 48 hours
were expected to feel what it was like to be disfigured and get general reaction in what was
intended to be an educational programme. Of course, you don't have to have seen it to get what the
majority reaction was: ignorance or staring.
An interesting programme but it can't be accepted as a good evaluation. For one thing, Charles'
thick black framed glasses and long black hair were the distraction, not the burn. He looked like a
Bond villain. Then again, there were those who accept people immediately and take notice although
Caprice with brown hair and half a red face does not stop Caprice looking good. Either the edit
was fixed or the main people who accepted the two straight away were those with 'differences'.
Three kids, one scarred by a dog and another, an ice skater, teaching Caprice how to ice skate had
a stammer.
The programme was good mind, don't get me wrong but these two knew that at the end of the
day(s) they wouldn't look like they did. Craig Charles taking advantage of his appearance to
attend a Red Dwarf convention to see if the cast recognised him. Although there was Chris
Barrie's ignorance of Charles' raised hand to ask a second question it came across more like Barrie
was giving other people a chance to ask than any prejudiced against the man Charles' was
pretending to be. In fact his position in the audience was too far away to notice the prosthetics and
was identified as 'man with big hair'. This experience wasn't taken lightly by Charles though,
getting depressed that he had the ability to remove the burn unlike the man whom the affliction
was based. The reactions were of note though. The actor having a distinct circle of space on the
overcrowded London Underground.
Caprice's visit to a school highlighted the divergence that kids make for themselves and others:
wincing when she first appeared and mouths scrunched in mild repulsion.
Still the show was entertaining. Not sure it was meant to be but it was nonetheless. Especially
the girl giving Caprice a manicure. Kind that she was, it was laughable when she 'failed' to notice a
difference in the hidden model's features. More like ignoring it to be nice.
Anyhoo, keep Surfin'!
