They even have signs, lights etc. on shows with audience where they instruct audience to laugh.

Yep, this is how TV programmes are made.

It's all an illusion 'yknow.


Seriously though, it would not make good TV (for the audience at home) if an audience (or stars) did not react at all to a comment or joke, regardless as to who delivered it and how weak or off-target it was

Participants being told how to react by producers is to be expected, but what I find excruciating is when Bruce tells one of his jokes, and then he himself tells the audience how they're supposed to respond ... 'That was the funny bit' etc - it's too painful for words :/

It's more honest than turning on some laugh sign

Its just a shame those in the studio haven't got the benefit of time shift - it would be an impossibility for me to watch without it. I delay 15/20 mins or so, then whizz through Bruce's inane jokes and Tess's toe-curling cheesiness with gay abandon!

Of course all celebs etc, are told what to do, laugh, smile, etc, it is a TV show after all, it happens all the time, and they are paid a fee so they will go along with the hype

Yep. I've been at TV shows and being told when to laugh/clap/boo whatever is part of the whole thing. It's is quite easy to tell a spontaneous laugh from a false I'm laughing because I've been to laugh

The tabloids report today that the shows producers to laugh at Forsyth's cheap gags. Do you think this is right and does this make the show too contrived?

http://metro.co.uk/2013/10/17/strict...jokes-4149890/

they cannot force us?

They frighten me sometimes, why can't we have a sophisticated stylish presenter, in keeping with what the show is supposed to acknowledge, ballroom dancing, and not an episode of the two Ronnie's......... Which Bruce and his like can only seem capable of achieving! The perfect presenter would be................ You see the BBC doesn't have any......that's why I can't think of anyone, can you .

I always laugh at Sir Bruces jokes, the old ones are the best ones.

This is already discussed in another thread with virtually the same title.

I have requested this be merged with the original.

What happens to the person that laughs the shortest? Do they get sent to Siberia? Or is it Salford?
Or do they murdered with an umbrella in an unfortunate prop-incident?

It's standard practice for any TV show where there's a live audience and jokes are delivered, be it a sit-com, quiz show, TV talent show or whatever. Quite why the Sun is acting as if Strictly is the only show to do this, goodness knows!

Perhaps, given that Bruce's jokes are usually so pathetic, it looks far more obvious than on other shows?

I think you are funnier Terry.

I laugh to scorn, at Brucie's cheesy jokes, and then I simply sneer when he didn't get the right type of response and had to tell them how to respond.

A laugh is a laugh, much like a fart. Short farts, long farts, loud farts, silent farts, smelly farts, wet farts, smelly farts and even farts that's supposed to be farts but becomes an 'accident'. The key point is that you ATTEMPT it. The outcome is not important.

The forced laughter is so obvious, as for Bruce one liners being central to the show, more like central to Bruce grabbing every chance to hog the limelight
I hope he leaves, Tess/Claudia make a good presenting duo, the show flows better and there's no silly jokes or time wasting.

Not to Uncle Joe (Beeb). Didn't you ever read the Salford Archipelago?
Hey, what's that smell around here?

Indeed, in a noisy live studio with audiences, crew, contestants, band, presenters and judges all making noise, I imagine an awful lot of people wouldn't hear the jokes unless the sound systems were very good/loud. Its pretty established lore that in many music talent shows the judges can't hear the singing in the studio except down an earphone with whatever noise the head or throat mike picks up.Thats why comments often reflect rehearsals, or the TV audience hears something different or the studio audience looks to react differently again. On one of the celebrity Fame Academy shows they actually lost the mike sound from the singer and played the sound from a studio mike on air and the singer is barely audible.

Dammit! You are TOO CLEVER for me!

Strictly wouldn't be the same for me without Brucie, he is a legend.

His jokes are fine, some are funny and some not so, but they can be so bad that they still make me laugh.

If they get rid of anyone it should be Tess Daly

Tess is dreadful, I cant bear her bit with the contestants afterwards, and her great big elbows sticking out, she behaves like a stupid little girl and not a mature woman, isn't she in her 40s. But I think this is standard for BBC. Sorry to bang on about older women presenting but I have noticed that we have these little girlies as I am getting older. And the men remain old and grey.
As to the audience, I went to a Gino lunchtime thing (in my defence it was free!), and the warm up man should have been taken out and shot. He sat in the audience all the way through and every time Gino did something marvellous or funny he stood up and tried to get us to clap, yell or cheer louder. He laughed loudly all the way through and very falsely I may add. The other chat shows are the same, I think they put in an extra laugh track because when I was actually in the audience, the laughter was never that loud as on the tv.