[onthebalance]

Hiya guys

keep seeing trailers for this show which is starting on c4 on friday 5th jan at 9.30, with eps first being shown on e4 on wednesdays.

the trailers look a bit strange but will probably give the show a try, anyone else heard anything about it?

[Less Than Perfect]

Not a UKer, but it's good to see that UB is spreading to other countries now!

[lilmnx04]

I'm interested in it! But the trailers are wicked weird. :| Don't really give too much away do they?
I've heard about it but I'm not sure what its about.
It's got America Ferrera in it.
But thats about all I know... I'm gonna go see if I can find some stuff about it now actually.
Anything to keep me from coursework...

[onthebalance]

hi, i havent heard of America Ferrera, has she been in anything else?

[lilmnx04]

Sisterhood Of The Travelling Pants (as Carmen) and Real Women Have Curves. (Although I've never seen the latter so..)
I was looking around y'day and it seems to be about a group of people who work in an office for a magazine (I think anyway.) And Betty is the one who isn't as pretty or into fashion as all her colleagues.
Or something like that.
I get the feeling it's sort of a comedy?

[Sweet_Honeycomb]

I screamed when I saw the trailers for this show. I've been wanting to see it and now it's only a few weeks away. I've heard really great things about the show. I can't wait to see it.

[onthebalance]

hi, ok thanks for the info, i havent seen any of those films, but am definately going to give this show a try.

the trailers arent that great but the articles in the mags make it seem better.

[*Stacy*]

Definitely give the show a try. I think you'll like it.

[onthebalance]

hi, the new trailers that give a bit more info are much better, and seem to "sell" the show better.

looking forward to seeing it.

episode show time details;

Fridays - Ch4 January 5th 9.30pm
repeats - Ch4 Sunday afternoon

Wednesday - E4 new ep 9.00pm
repeated on E4 on 2nd chance sunday.

[*shakeelah*]

hi everybody...i cant wait for this new show ive read soo many good reviews about it. The adverts look really good im so happy the show got a full season in america

[Sweet_Honeycomb]

Thanks for letting us know when it'll be repeated.

[lilmnx04]

New trailers with actualy clips from the show are so much better!
Thats my Fridays all booked up!

[onthebalance]

hi, c4 are really advertising the programme, i have seen posters on bus stops, bill boards, loads of trailers.

not long now until the first episode, looking forward to seeing if it lives up to the hype.

[*Stacy*]

Almost time!!


Found this article from the BBC.

Ugly Betty's beautiful message By Peter Bowes BBC News, Los Angeles A new sitcom featuring a supposedly ugly office assistant at a fashion magazine has become a huge hit in the United States. Ugly Betty follows the life of Betty Suarez, who comes from a struggling Latino family and has no interest in the glamorous world of high fashion. Betty works as an executive assistant to a womanising boss at Mode fashion magazine. The character, played by the 22-year-old actress America Ferrera, is short with bushy eyebrows and braces on her teeth. She wears drab clothes and thick-rimmed glasses. She also has a heart of gold. Ferrera made her film debut in 2002 playing an overweight teenager in Real Women Have Curves. The role of Betty came along when the show's producer, Mexican-born actress Salma Hayek, approached the fledgling actress. "I read the script and fell in love with the character," says Ferrera. "Whether you like it or not when you're playing yourself, or something close to yourself, you want to make sure that it's the best of you that's out there. "But because I get to play Betty and put on this costume and dive into that character, it also gives me more freedom to go as far as I can in the acting and not be concerned with what I'm looking like." Bucking the trend Ugly Betty was inspired by the Colombian telenovela, Yo Soy Betty, La Fea, which translates as I Am Betty, the Ugly One. The series, which will be broadcast on Channel 4 and E4 from January, was adapted to an American setting by former Oscar nominee Hayek. "The original was groundbreaking," says Hayek. "I immediately jumped on it. "It's about the fish-out-of-water, the person who is not conventional in the way she looks, the way she talks," explains Hayek. "But they are incredibly smart and hard workers, and they get ahead in life using that." Actress Hayek takes a back seat as the show's executive producer British actress Ashley Jenson, who starred alongside Ricky Gervais in Extras, plays Betty's seamstress pal in the show, while 40-year-old producer Hayek makes several on-screen appearances. But Ferrera is the standout star and has become an overnight sensation in the role. Bucking the trend on US television, where sitcoms, soaps and primetime dramas invariably feature beautiful women, the actress has attracted glowing reviews from viewers and critics. "Betty is a new kind of TV star," says Luaine Lee, a columnist with the McClatchy-Tribune News Service. "She's not beautiful, she's not blonde, she's not dumb - so she's the antithesis of what we have usually laughed at in our sitcoms. "America Fererra is brilliant in the role, so natural and so unassuming." 'Timeless' format The show has proven to be a major ratings success for the ABC network in the US. The series has struck a chord with 16 million viewers every week - all rooting for Betty. For Ferrera, playing ugly, is a beautiful thing. The rest of the Ugly Betty cast are predictably attractive "I couldn't imagine having my job or my ratings based on making sure that I maintain a healthy physique or workout five hours a day, on top of doing the work," she says. "The stories and the messages have universal appeal and people love that it's not based at all on physical trends or definitions of what beautiful is. "There's always another pretty face down the line, but it's fun to be on a show that is quite timeless." The actress likens the role to that of Bridget in the film, Bridget Jones's Diary. "She was the underdog and you wanted to see her win and you wanted her to get the guy." "Most of us are not TV stars and we don't look like we belong on television. We're just normal people who also deserve to have good lives." "I think we all feel inadequate in one way or another," adds columnist Lee. "Americans also tend to champion the underdog. When someone like Betty comes along who's naive, down-to-earth, caring and sincere, we feel relieved that there is something real in this world of phoney and superficial values." Ugly Betty airs in the UK on Channel 4 from Friday 5 January.

[onthebalance]

hi, thanks for the article, it was an interesting read

looking forward to seeing the eps now, am out on friday but e4 are going to repeat the pilot on sunday at 8.00 and i think t4 repeat it on saturday - not sure on the time of that yet.