My TV Week

Amanda Mackenzie

director of brand marketing, British Gas

What are your current TV picks? The big family watch in our house is The
X Factor (ITV1) – my kids always vote. And I’ll try to make time to
watch The Catherine Tate Show (BBC2).

Amanda Mackenzie
director of brand marketing, British Gas

What are your current TV picks? The big family watch in our house is The X Factor (ITV1) – my kids always vote. And I’ll try to make time to watch The Catherine Tate Show (BBC2).

Are you a fan of TV dramas? Yes, and ITV is trying harder on that front. There tends to be a lot of what I call the amorphous programming on the BBC at the moment – and pitted against it is a bit more drama from ITV.

Any recent shows that stood out? Cracker (ITV1), and I loved Prime Suspect (ITV1), but I went on holiday and missed the last episode because we haven’t got Sky Plus.

Not up on TV technology then? I’m afraid to say our current television is 12 years old, we’ve never even had a widescreen telly though we’re soon to get a high-definition TV.

Who controls the remote at your house? Completely my husband. Well, before 8 o’clock it’s the kids, that’s the general rule, then my husband. But I will stamp my feet for a costume drama. Otherwise it’s Sky Sports, Match of the Day… he’s a mad Arsenal fan but I won’t watch it.

And when the kids are controlling the remote? They’re obsessed with High School Musical (The Disney Channel) at the moment. And my daughter loves The X Factor and Make Me a Supermodel (Five).

What did you like to watch as a kid? When I was little my dad made us all watch the wrestling on a Saturday afternoons, then we had cheese and tomato ketchup sandwiches and then it was Dr Who afterwards. But I wasn’t allowed much TV, and we then got rid of it for many years so it’s funny that I ended up earning my living out of talking to customers who watch the telly.

What’s the watercooler TV in your office at the moment? Most of the people round here are talking about Watchdog because British Gas just had a lovely little feature on it.

Are there any TV characters’ lives that mirror your own? Part of me wants to say The Amazing Mrs Pritchard. She’s a very plain speaking Lancashire lady, and when she gets home – to the flat above Number 10 – the house is a mess, homework hasn’t been done and she goes off on one. But I’m not trying to draw parallels between me and a prime minister.

What television character would you like to be? I don’t know about a TV character but I’d love to find out what it’s like to be Elizabeth Bennett for a day in Pride and Prejudice.

And who would play your Mr Darcy? That I’m willing to tell my husband about? If I have to say someone, I’ll say David Tennant.

What would be your perfect evenings viewing? Can I have a whole 12 hours? Go on then I’d definitely like a Jane Austen series, but not just an episode, I’d be happy to stay up all night to watch the whole series.

Interview by Mark Jonson

For next week’s viewing, Thinkbox recommends:
• David Walliams: My Life with James Bond, ITV1, Thursday 9pm
• New series: Codex with Tony Robinson, C4, Sunday 6.40pm