Dan Douglass on direct

Dan Douglass

From St. Paul's letter to the Corinthians to 'Strictly Come Dancing' and the bombshell that John Sergeant has walked off the show as revealed in a Sun 'exclusive' today. Last weekend, this respected political commentator-turned-national treasure sailed through another round of 'Strictly Come Dancing' and onto the front page of the tabloids.

The judges cried foul as the nation voted silky Saga poster girl Cherie Lunghi out of the competition. Craig, Arlene, Len and Bruno watched with mounting incredulity as Sergeant won the dance-off with all the finesse of a Maris Piper potato. Fresh on the heels of Ross and Brandgate, the scandal saw the media community's dirty laundry set on another furious spin cycle. More public votes have been cast for Sergeant than for candidates in the last General Election.

So what does this tell us about the audience's appetite that they were minded to respond in these numbers and with this intent? That no matter how much the judges want them to swoon at the technical brilliance of an immaculately performed dance routine, the great unwashed would much rather watch John Sergeant's Paso Doble any day - even if the handling of his professional partner resembled an overworked postman dragging a heavily-laden mail bag to the sorting office. It's called entertainment value. It's called understanding your audience.

It's what we do as Direct Marketers. And, as times get tougher, it's what everybody craves. Let direct marketers take note of the overwhelming response Sergeant's performance elicited and how the high-mindedness of the judges who mistake this for a dance contest, not a prime-time light entertainment vehicle, have deprived the nation of what they want. Entertainment. Pure and simple.

Sergeant connected with the audience because most viewers are like him - a lot of the time people are crap, unfit for purpose, a little muddled in their execution, ungainly, but nevertheless persevering through the rounds and routines of life. They identify and empathise with the blundering, self-apologetic everyman. This is the new celebrity in our culture - we hunger for authenticity, connection and entertainment. The more austere the times, the more voracious that appetite becomes. No amount of technical brilliance can substitute that. And John Sergeant's response rates prove it.