I am beginning to wonder if this is possibly the natural reaction of a

generation raised on TV from a young age. Could be that because we
didn't
own one until I was twelve, my perceptions in this regard aren't as
finely
tuned as yours, and my expectations regarding polished delivery much
lower.

I don't think its just the technology, very few US politicians would
get beyond
local councilor level in the UK. With very rare exceptions they just
don't
have public speaking skils.

Much was made of Georgeous George Galloway's appearance in the Senate,
but the performance that got rave reviews from most quarters was
technically
sub-par Galloway won because he had weak opposition who treated him
with
too obvious contempt. If you look at his UK performances of years past
there
have been several occasions where a skilled interviewer made him self
destruct.

Appearing natural and relaxed on camera as Reagan or Clinton could do
is
amazingly difficult, it is even harder if you are having to deal with
the
unexpected.

I don't often do TV work, its mostly press but even that is pretty
exhausting. When I do interviews there is almost always something I
feel I should have done better afterwards. And in press you always have
to work through the reporter who can sometimes print the exact opposite
of what you said - or in some cases the editor will stick a headline on
the article that is completely wrong.

Marks does look stilted but that is not his problem, putting the actors
at ease is the Director's job. Getting the right director/producer
combination is the agent's job. At this point Marks has done 8 series
and has an independent reputation, what he needs to do is take more
control over the process. DIYTV and HGTV are both running continuously
and have an almost unlimited appetite for material. Marks should have
an agent who is making sure that the format of the show best showcases
Marks.

To me, what you see as "stilted" is not surprising (and actually more
"real"
and believable then the slick talking, pretty boy, DIY carpenters with

nothing but their buns to recommend them for the job) since DJM is so
obviously not an actor, and apparently delivering lines exactly as he
is
required to do.

The DIY network have a really irritating guy who my wife describes as
'too cocky by half'. His performance is really polished but his
craftmanship isn't. This wouldn't be too bad if he presented himself as
an amateur having a go but he presents himself as an expert. The 'fix
it up' pair that used to come on after Norm when he was on HGTV don't
look too expert either but thats ok because the premise of the show is
that they are DIY'ers having a go.

Early on in the New Yankee Workshop Norm is doing the same sort of
thing at the very start the premise was he is a carpenter doing cabinet
work so if you have a little knowledge you can do like he does. That
started to wear thin after a few series and twenty years on it would be
ridiculous. But even so Norm does not talk down to his audience,
neither for that matter does Marks. The pretty boys with nice bums for
the benefit of the female audience frequently appear to be patronising.

The main difference between the Marks/Norm shows and the 'B-team' shows
as far as I can see is that Norm and Marks both spend time making jigs
to do the work properly and on the B-team shows the rarely use anything
more complex than a stop block.