Amazing as it is in these politically correct times, but tomorrow night on Chanel 4 you will be able to tune in to watch a freak show. It will be dressed up as a sympathetic fly on the wall documentary of people with gross deformities struggling to lead normal lives and form normal relationships, but make no mistake, The Undatables will be as much a freak show as anything Barnum & Bailey were able to present in the 1900's.

If the people on the program were not deformed or otherwise grossly different the program would not have been made, the people not appearing on it and the public not viewing it. This makes it's only 'draw' the shocking abnormalities of the 'cast' and thier stuggles to overcome them. Joseph Merric, the famed Elephant Man had the same kind of 'sympathetic' viewing from the droves of visitors who qued to see him in the rooms at  The London Hospital who's only real reason for coming, as in the case of viewers to this program, was to see his hideous deformity. Still - I suppose in fairness this interest in the bizzare is inherent in us and is not necessarily separate from a degree of conjoined sympathy. But lets not pretend we don't know whats going on, for this is to let the program makers believe they have hoodwinked us with thier 'we're the kind sympathetic ones here' approach, when in reality there in it for the big bucks that rubbernecking can bring.