WHO said variety was dead? After watching When WiIl I Be Famous? on BBC1 on Saturday night you certainly couldn't accuse television of not offering something different.

Whether different equates to quality, I remain to be convinced but the sight of a human Slinky battling it out with some deranged bagpipe players for a £10,000 cash prize certainly made a change from Casualty.

I'm really not sure whether the Beeb wants us to take it's Saturday night talent show seriously or not.

Even with the choice of host, Graham Norton, it's a mixed signal. On one hand he is potentially one of the BBC's great assets, on the other they are paying him a fortune and don't really know what to do with him.

Then there are the judges. Oh Dave Spikey, what are you doing on the show?

Plus there's some American called Chuck who looks like Alan Carr's dad and has two TV screens for glasses.

The final judge is that well known talent spotter Max Clifford.

One Saturday the pipers won - they deserved too simply for their name, the Red Hot Chiili Pipers, and the Slinky man was told he'd got a great future on children's TV.

Previously the show has given us a dancing dog and some roller skaters.

But if the Beeb is really serious about showcasing new talent, why not recreate Opportunity Knocks, complete with the clapometer?