I don’t watch much TV, so when I do I absolutely relish the chance. My favourites are dramas where characters develop and you can really lose yourself in the plot line.

Homeland is one of my new favourites, but it’s having to jostle for space withHolbyCity (and Andrew’s CSI/science docs) on our Sky+ box (which is another indulgence – although we originally bought it because the TV reception where we live is so bad).

So it was with bated breath that I sat down to watch Scott and Bailey on ITV1 the other night. I loved the first series and Suranne Jones is fast becoming one of my favourite actresses, her co star Lesley Sharp is also an acting great whom I’ve admired for years.

But the Scott and Bailey programme I watched on Monday night was a total disappointment.

Not least because the female lead characters looked liked they’d been given a Hollywood makeover (UKstyle).

Why is it when a programme with lead female characters becomes successful i.e. more than a handful of stay at home mums watch it, TV execs decide to tinker with it.

What’s wrong with having hair that doesn’t look as if it hasn’t been combed for all of three minutes, or trousers that have born worn again since they were ironed.

The characters were originally great because – although they were a little less real than most women – they were at least a teeny tiny bit relatable.

Shame on the actresses for not using their viewer-pulling power to refuse the extra layer of slap and hair extensions.

And thanks ITV1 for spoiling my viewing pleasure (and no doubt other women’s) by proving that if you are an older women in the media you can’t just simply be yourself.