Spacey Complains About BBC TV Casting Series

Old Vic artistic director Kevin Spacey (pictured) today revealed that he has complained to Sir Michael Lyons, the Chairman of the BBC, about Saturday night reality television casting shows unfairly “crossing the line” commercially.

After discussing his new film 21 on this morning’s BBC TV’s Breakfast programme, Spacey said that he had “had a bit of a complaint” about BBC One’s series of Andrew Lloyd Webber-led musical theatre competitions. Referring to last year’s hit Any Dream Will Do, which found Lee Mead to take the title role in the current West End production of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, said: “I felt that was essentially a 13-week promotion for a musical and I felt, where’s our 13-week programme? When are they going to do one for a play?”

Spacey continued: “I have spoken to your chairman – we had a discussion about it over lunch – but he has yet to get back to me. You are not a commercial operation, and I felt it was crossing the line unfairly.” Asked if reality casting shows are impacting on theatre in a bad way, Spacey replied: “They made £22 million at the box office so I don’t think they’d say it’s impacted (badly) on them, but I do think it’s imbalanced.”

In a statement the BBC said that it doesn’t have any commercial interests in the West End productions or spin-offs relating to How Do You Solve a Problem Like Maria?, Any Dream Will Do and I’d Do Anything, the current offering to cast leads in Cameron Mackintosh’s upcoming revival of Oliver! , adding, “They provide quality Saturday night entertainment and are about finding new talent.”

Following earlier complaints, some changes have been made to the format for this year’s TV offering. Unlike the resulting revivals of The Sound of Music and Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, Lloyd Webber is not producing Oliver! – although the musical will run at the Theatre Royal Drury Lane, which is owned by his company, Really Useful – and Oliver! producer, Cameron Mackintosh, is not on this year’s panel of judges, as David Ian and Bill Kenwright, the producers of the earlier musicals, were for I’d Do Anything’s predecessors.

– by Roger Foss & Terri Paddock