Porter: More than just Hot Patootie?
I’ve got a problem with Dawn Porter, in that I’m not entirely sure what I think about her. Usually, I’m able to make my mind up about new TV faces pretty quickly - but the self-styled ‘Hot Patootie’ has me at a bit of a loss. Is she the ditzy, cutely-curious, ‘ooh all this stuff that I’m finding out is freaking me out’, playful investigator that she plays so well? Or is she trying to mask some of her intelligence with an added bit of sexuality? OR is it all a big mess and Dawn is in fact, tottering around unable to decide if she’s trying to be a ‘cutting-edge’ investigative journo or the girl that didn’t quite make it as an actress, but still quite fancies the idea that she can still be a sex symbol on some level?
I’m not entirely sure that Dawn knows herself, which is why I’m finding it hard to make a judgement on it. On a number of levels, I really enjoy watching Dawn. In autumn last year her offering of 4 x 60 ‘light-docs’ for Channel 4 (which I’ve just caught up on, prompting this post) loosely explored a common theme of ‘girls finding love in different ways across the world’, which looked at free love in San Diego and remote German community ‘Zegg’, Geisha girls in Japan, mail order brides in Eastern Europe and polygamists in the US.
In each episode, I didn’t really feel like Dawn was truly immersing herself. While she seemed to be getting the opportunity to stay with these people, I never felt like she was doing more than scratching the surface. There seemed to be no arc to her stay with these ‘weird and wonderful’ contributors, certainly no jeopardy with any of them. The fact that these all seemed to be shot on at least two cameras gave me the sense that a larger-than-necessary crew was following Dawn around, giving her more help than she needed (possibly with one of those directors that is so anal about shooting they decide to actually film some themselves, but end up fucking the cross-shooting up and replicating the shots that the first camera was picking up anyway). I wanted Dawn to surprise me - wading in with some of the questions that might have made her slightly more unpopular. Challenging her contributors to face up to their underlying fears and insecurities.
Having said that, Dawn Porter quite clearly loves what she does - which is slightly paradoxical seeing as she generally bricks it when it comes to a potential story crescendo. There’s still something which made me sit through four hours of her most recent docs after already seeing her BBC 3 work. It HAS to be more than her flirty giggles, come-to-bed eyes and slightly over-whitened teeth. Don’t get me wrong, Dawn Porter has huge sex appeal, she’s civilised enough that you wouldn’t be embarrassed taking her home to your parents to talk about ‘that piece on the Today programme’. And at the same time, well, as she says herself… she is/has a ‘hot patootie’, depending on your understand of the phrase. She also has a slightly trendy ‘come on girls, we’re going to find out the truth about this..’ kind of attitude to her programmes. Aiming at the forward-thinking ladies of the country who might be watching that slot. You know the ones I mean, the ones that want to be reading Heat but read Gracia instead because they care what people might think about their celeb-infatuation. The same ones that end up marrying chaps at least 20 years older than them, because although they still flirt with hot young men, they need to go home to a Range Rover Sport, decent childcare options and a house near the Common. Yep… you know who I’m talking about.
But I’m not going to offend Dawn by suggesting that all she’s got going for her is a nice tan, white teeth and a trendy fringe. I think she has the potential to be a great reporter. She boasts the enthusiasm and drive to form relationships with a good cross-section of interesting characters and in some cases she does venture out of her comfort zone (although she does seem to get her kit off in pretty much everything she takes part in). I just wish she’d trade in those scenes where she’s tottering away from her contributors in 5-inch heels, a big pink suitcase full of shoes and flashing her ‘LA smile’, proclaiming; “Whoa! Those lot were proper mental!”, for a decent closing reflection on her ordeal. I’m certain that if she toned down her attempts to be seen as a glamourous, sexy style icon and concentrated on her journalism - her contributors would take her more seriously and she might get more of that jeopardy her programmes are crying out for. We get it, Dawn. You’re hot. And you think you’re hot. And you want people to think you’re hot. And oooh, that slightly-60’s-style thing you’ve got going on is very individual, isn’t it? But… this is a documentary!? What are you doing??
I’d like to see Dawn take something on without the ‘look at me’ factor and make a documentary which isn’t playing up to her Gracia-reading peers. I’m more interested in the characters she can prize out of the woodwork, because I think she’s got it in her to make great connections with people. Don’t think I’ve got a problem with Dawn’s personality for one second, I haven’t, she’s seems like the kind of girl I’d try and buy a drink for down my local (only to be spurned because she likes them 45, with a Porsche.)
But this bizarre fashion-show with the plasticky pieces to camera need to go and sometimes when I watch her I wonder if deep inside, she’d be happier presenting Dancing On Ice where she’d get to where a pretty frock and bat her eyelids all night. Go to her website right now; www.dawnporter.net . This isn’t the website of a serious documentary maker. This is ‘Dawn’s World’, with loads of ‘pwitty pickchas’ of Dawn in various states of undress, close-ups of white teeth and a link to her ‘STYLE BLOG’ discussing things such as fake tans, underwear, makeup and Gucci handbags - yet on her twitter page describes herself as a journalist.
Bottom line? I’m going to keep watching Dawn Porter, because I think her best is yet to come and despite the impression I may have given in this post - I think she’s pretty talented. I just hope she figures out whether she’s cute, clever, investigative or ditzy.. or maybe her plan was just to throw all of those into the mix from the start. In which case - I’ve just spunked away 1000 words for nothing!
The Mole