Karaoke

What can you say about Eva’s karaoke performance of Hey Big Spender at the creepiest dinner party imaginable? Nothing, except va-va-voom!

Richie Rich O’Driscoll and his wife are slimy, pretentious snobs. They are the upscale twins of Pat Phelan and his now ex-wife. Eva got dragged to their house by Aidan for what she thought was a party and turned out to be dinner. Her dress said ‘Party!’ The other women’s dresses, while quite glam, did not.

Eva and Aidan arrived late. Richie and Mrs. Rich did not let that go overlooked. Plenty of gibes from them, and snooty looks from the other guests. Poor Eva looked like she wanted the floor to swallow her up.

Phones in the bowl

It got worse as the episode progressed. Richie put a big bowl on the table and told everyone to put their car keys in it. No, haha, it was for phones. So rude when guests can’t stay off their mobiles. Even with the explanation, it still seemed like the prelude to a mate-swapping orgy from another era.

That feeling continued when Mrs. Rich invited everyone to adjourn to the lounge for the evening’s entertainment. She brushed past Aidan and Eva and purred “we need a bit of fresh meat,” and pinched Aidan’s behind. Oh, run as fast as you can! These people think they live in MadMen!

In the retro glitter lounge, there were overstuffed chairs and sofas on which to lounge. And a karaoke machine. Time for the newcomers to show their stuff, Richie Rich said. Aidan demurred, not his thing.* Richie upped the bullying. Too bad, he said, all the possible O’Driscoll orders flying out the window. He and his smarmy smile said “our guests sing for their supper.”

Hey Big Spender

So Eva bit the bullet, and then some! She picked the song that matched her dress as well as the company around her. She zeroed in on Richie Rich. Hey big spender. I thought he was going to faint, or something. But he also had a calculating glint in his eyes as he sized her up. Mrs. Rich looked like she was enjoying the show just as much as he was. That did not make her seem like a nicer human being at all.

*This demurral by Aiden was fun because, with actor Shayne Ward’s claim to talent show fame, it seemed like they were maybe setting up a showcase for his singing. But not so obvious, our Corrie! You can see Metro News, though, for more on Eva’s portrayer Catherine Tyldesley’s singing career.