TFI Friday returned for a live anniversary special last week. Everyone involved – apart from Peter-Pan-like producer Will McDonald – looked a bit older and wiser, but otherwise it was business as usual for the show. Besides of course the fact it pulled in more viewers – around five million with on-demand and catch-up viewers added in – than the show ever did during its heyday. Chris Evans has said the future of the show is in Channel 4’s hands, which begs the question; who should present TFI Friday if it were to return?
Nick Grimshaw appeared as a guest on Friday, with Chris Evans describing him as the future of this show. “This has been good fun for us oldies, but if this show comes back, he is the guy,” he said, before asking him to introduce Years & Years as if auditioning. Admittedly, Grimshaw is good on TV and has the sort of celebrity-guest pulling power Evans had back in the 1990s, although his Radio 1 breakfast show may be a problem. Back when Evans presented TFI, he too was the Radio 1 breakfast host. On one occasion he was fined a day’s wages for taking the his Radio 1 team out on a boozy night out before their morning broadcast, and tried to negotiate Fridays off so he concentrate on his TV show. He eventually left under a cloud in 1997. Surely C4 and BBC bosses won’t want to risk history repeating itself like that?
Like Grimmy, Annie Mac has the clout to pull in celebrity guests. She’s also got the knowledge and charm to make interviews interesting, and if things got a bit boring on stage, she could pop down and do a live remix. She also hosts her Radio 1 show Monday to Thursday, so her Friday nights are free. Alternatively, the revamped show could also take the Have I Got News For You approach, and have a guest presenter each week. It worked for that show, and it’s worked for US staple Saturday Night Live since 1975, too.
One person we’d like to see with their name in the ring is Lauren Laverne. She’s very smart and funny, and her previous outing on Channel 4, The 10 O’Clock Show, didn’t do justice to her considerable talents. She’s also old enough to have watched the show first time around – her band Kenickie could have even played on it – but young enough to appeal to all ages. She’d also be unlikely to let it tread into the borderline laddy territory the show sometimes ventured on its first run. All of which, coupled of course with the fact she knows her music, would make for a decent update, dragging the show’s format and politics into the 21st century. But enough about our favourites. Who would you like to see in the hot seat? Vote below or have your say in the comments section.
