Must Watch reviews The Unique Boutique

Thursday 27 July 2023, 14:32

Every week, the Must Watch podcasters review the biggest TV and streaming shows.

This week, Hayley Campbell and Scott Bryan review ‘The Unique Boutique’.

The Channel 4 show follows designers and fashionistas as they're dared to create what the high street doesn't; bespoke designs and outfits for customers in their custom boutique shop.

Hayley thinks "It’s not only nice, it's also progressive in how inclusive it is"

Not a Must Watch for me. But I think it’s a really nice idea. It has none of the evil that filled all those old makeover shows where the main bit was always making fun of a person before the makeover. So, it’s not only nice it’s, also progressive in how inclusive it is – both in the guests on the show and the hosts.And it explains to viewers how differently abled people might have problems with various high street clothes because of something as basic as maybe they use a wheelchair so their shirt cuffs always get ripped, or long skirts get caught in the wheels.

It encourages you to think about what life might be like for someone who inhabits a body different from your own. So, you’re learning something pretty basic and important about being human. It’s also worth mentioning that it’s narrated by Ruth Madeley, who is a wheelchair user herself, so even the bit we can’t see is filled by someone who is differently abled. It’s not a show I would ever watch by choice, because makeover shows of any kind make me feel like my brain is flatlining. But I love that all kinds of people are now invited to be on the kind of show I would never watch. That’s equality.

Scott says "The show is empowering, heartwarming and uplighting, but it does not pity or look down on any of the contributors either"

I thought it was a must-watch, for me. It covers a lot of topics that I just had not considered before. So for example, some outfits in fashion retailers might not be suitable for wheelchair users because they are designed in a way for people standing up, not standing down. And some clothes are not that well designed for those who need to move their wheelchair, because part of the outfit might get in the way of them moving it.

They also have somebody who is in this episode undergoing cancer treatment. If, for example, you have a colostomy bag, then clothes might not provide a helpful, natural fit.

The show is empowering, heartwarming and uplighting, but it does not pity or look down on any of the contributors either. This is the sort of show that Channel 4 should be doing, and it is miles away from those shows like 10 Years Younger and Extreme Makeover.