Untapped, unsigned and often unhinged: a deep dive into TV TikTok | Tv

TikTok and telly belong together like Ant and Dec before the driving ban. Most obviously, TikTok is good for reliving highlights from past daily and reality shows. Do you remember that iconic “Dear-lord-what-a-sad-little-life-Jane” moment from Come Dine With Me? Or did an outraged Curtis from Love Island decide to make coffee instead of cuddling up in the morning? Or everything Gemma Collins has ever said and done? All of this has been faithfully hacked, churned up, lip-synced, and praised by accounts like Greatbritishmemes, Qualitybritishtelly, and Loveofhuns. It just lets the forced commercial breaks on All 4 and ITV Hub slip by.

However, this is only the beginning of this sweet symbiosis, because TikTok also provides a glimpse into the future of television. Outrageously talented Munya Chawawa has finally hit Channel 4 as a co-host of Complaints Welcome, but his viral music parodies have long threatened to break out of the smaller screen and into the mainstream. And since TikTok allows high quality content to bypass the traditional gatekeepers and connect directly with an audience, there’s a lot more to where it’s from. Bigmiko (if Shakespeare were a roadman …), Abi Clarke (assignable queen of the banal office chat) and Harry Trevaldwyn (he was cast in the British remake of Call My Agent) are becoming the regulars of tomorrow’s panel show.

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In fact, there are so many untapped, under-contracted, and often deranged talent here that it can feel like a huge auditorium full of school kids pedaling for attention (“I’m Brendan and I’ll be everyone’s reactionary face to White Lotus … “). Then it’s time to move to another corner of TV TikTok – and Gen Zs first discovering classic Millennial / Gen X era shows always feels like a safe place.

Buffy fanatic’s colleague Ellie Addis nailed the aesthetic with her post, “Outfits I Would Wear To Kill Vampires in Sunnydale,” and Tannai’s TV Guides earnest appreciation for the life lessons gleaned from random episodes of Grey’s Anatomy, is a tonic. Many TikTokers also plan to “cancel” Saved By The Bell’s Zack Morris retrospectively. The case against him is on Funny or Die for everyone to see.

But be careful of the slippery slope to nostalgia. It starts out innocently enough with a quick scroll through the Friendspaperclips feed – Chandler Bing was HOT back then, you know? Then, before you know it, lose yourself in a super cut from Successions Kendall gum to suggestive R&B tracks or a, um, respectful slo-mo tribute to the Peaky Blinders cast.

At this point, only an up-tempo remix of your favorite subject can get you back into the room. Oxide and Neutrino have known the casualty slaps since 2009, but how about a Vanilla Ic / Game of Thrones mashup from @tee_tow? It makes undeniable sense when Daenerys describes herself as “Deadly / When I hear a dope tune”. Doctor Who: The British Garage Remix? (Thanks, @fnp_music). Or, somehow inevitable, Squid Game with a drill beat? (@DDark).

Even so, all TikTok streets eventually lead back to the GC. Stop fighting it: type in “Gemma Collins in Squid Game” and let this FYP algorithm really get to know you.

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