All over bar the shouting

And wailing and gnashing of teeth, and that’s just ALW and Cameron Macintosh. We have our Nancy, and it’s … Jodie! A bit of a surprise that one, given the concerted effort during the course of the final to ensure that the part went to Jessie.

None of the final three were my favourites, but then I’ve struggled to see anyone, apart from perhaps Rachel, as Nancy. They’ve continually been at pains to remind the voting public that ‘it’s a casting competition, not a singing competition’, and yet have almost totally focussed on the performances on the night, with any glimpses of acting being shown in the pre-recorded results show.

But, of the final three, Jodie was the only one I could see as Nancy, and it seemed that the Great British Public agreed. The young girls just didn’t seem to have the experience for the role. Samantha has always seemed very bland to me, and after a few weeks I really tired of Jessie. I can do a better cockney accent than she can, and I’m terrible at accents.

There was a lot of discussion about re-defining the role, and playing Dickens’s Nancy, but that’s not what they were casting, it was Lionel Bart’s Nancy. The musical is very far removed from the book, which is much darker in tone.

In the end, the attempted manipulation backfired, and Jodie won. I was thrilled to see a shot of John B and DVO hugging, as she’d been their choice, and rather disgusted with the lukewarm responses of both ALW and Cam Mac (whose ‘I’m thrilled…for Jodie’ was like a kick in the teeth for the poor girl).

This result does make me wonder whether they’ll do it again* though.

*there has been a rumour that the next search will be for Jesus for JCS. Whilst I would always have mixed views about that, it might be worth it for the potential for Jesus jokes**, and for Graham saying to them all, ‘you could be Jesus’.

**Don’t start me, really, don’t!