Now, it’s fair to say the Christmas lights on Regent Street have never really been as big as those on Oxford Street. But it seems the people in charge this year are certainly going to give it go.

And this was reflected in the pomp and ceremony in which the event took off. The road was closed, there was a stage set-up and plenty of lights flashing and spinning. The word on the street was that McFly were to be flicking the switch. Although I’m not a massive McFly fan, let’s be honest here, they’re quite a big name when it comes to pop. So, it seemed the organizers really did have big ideas this year.

With a growing sense of anticipation, I waited for the show to begin, feeling ready to be wowed. Then, as the lights dimmed and the show begun, my heart sank.

“Good evening Regent Street!”

It was the voice of that bloke from Hollyoaks, the one who’s been in it for ages. I think he was also in hideous family sitcom 2 point 4 children. Anyway, after he killed a couple of lame jokes stone dead, without an ounce of shame he began to tell everyone exactly where they should be doing their Christmas shopping. Had he negotiated a few backhanders with the stores in question beforehand? It appeared so. It was all a bit too distasteful for my liking. Nevertheless, “McFly will still take this event to the next level,” I told myself.

Next up was the London community gospel choir to keep us warm whilst McFly were preparing to blow us away. I like gospel music, I really do. But gospel music is best, when it’s gospel music. That’s what it’s about. And for the first couple of numbers I was a very happy gnome. But why, oh why, did this perfectly good choir, complete with excellent pianist, then feel the need to ‘cater for the masses’ by doing gospel covers of popular hits? Can people not just appreciate a genre for what it is?

Okay, next up, Pudsy bear for Children in Need. There’s not much to say about raising awareness for a good cause, flat caps off to them.

Then it was the turn of McFly. At last, this is what we’ve all been waiting for. After a brief interview for BBC London they pushed the button to illuminate the street. There were fireworks and cheers galore. What next? A song maybe? Unfortunately not. That was it. Literally. Bar a small bit of self- knowing banter, (with our man from Hollyoaks) promoting a forthcoming single and tour, they didn’t do a thing. They didn’t play a single note. It was a sham!

The hoards of adoring, screaming teenage fans only got to shout the name of their favourite member before being told they’d have to fork out a Wembley-tastic £50 to see them play live.

The Regent Street lights certainly didn’t live up to those of it’s neighbour, once again. All thanks to lack of commitment to the cause and too much promotion and blatant name-dropping in the guise of genuine entertainment.

The video I have created on the other hand is very entertaining and will give you a fascinating overview of the evening’s events. Enjoy!

This review and video was bought to you in association with Urban Outfitters, the home of the cool and sexy.

regent street from The Golden Gnome on Vimeo.

 

This entry was posted on Thursday, December 11th, 2008at 2:16 pm and is filed under Christmas 2008. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.

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