The Only Way Is Essex - ITV2

We realised here at The Ice, Spice and Vice Files the other day that, whilst we seem to post loads of 'ice' and 'spice,' we've been somewhat lacking in our 'vice' section of the site. This is insane, as there are loadssss of thing that we take a guilty pleasure from, and, so do you by the looks of things as our last 'vice' post, on 'Lorraine Kelly's Big Fat Challenge,' has proved ever so popular with you all.

So, continuing with the TV theme, it's time to unveil our latest cringe-crush, ITV2's 'The Only Way Is Essex.' Now, for those of you who live outside of the UK or who have been living in a hole for the last couple of weeks and have avoided its heavy promotion, 'The Only Way Is Essex' is a so called "real life documentary drama." This means that, like some other shows, camera crews follow a group of people around to film their every day lives, however, in the interest of entertainment, much has also been scripted or set up for the camera. Just think 'The Hills,' only in...Essex.

What sets this apart from other similar shows, however, is its cast. We know that parts of this are scripted, and some painfully obviously so, but you can hardly believe that the characters in this are real people. The girls are all ridiculously ditzy and plastic, which makes for some entertaining viewing, whilst the guys are typical pretty boys. 

We would like to draw your attention to three notable characters from the series. First up is Amy, who takes a lead role in the series, and is hilariously self-centred and "blonde," calling Rhinos "Rhinosauruses" on a trip to the zoo, whilst utilising her favourite words ("honey," "babe," and "funny") in almost every situation. Next up is the adorable Nanny Pat, who pops up frequently in episodes bringing gifts of food for her grandchildren for no apparent reason. Finally, Amy's gay cousin Harry, who is comedy gold. Whilst taking possibly the smallest role in the show, his camp one liners...or should that be worders...will become stuff of legend. Just listen out for him whenever he's on screen. He's likely to just say something like "beautiful," "funny," or "shut up."

The series has only just started airing so there's plenty of time to catch up...although you've already missed some dramatic love bust ups, a 'Vagazzle' treatment and Amy's 'interesting' trip to the zoo.

Of course there's plenty of drama, as is always associated with this kind of show, but being portrayed with their Essex accents, it's all quite hard to take seriously. If we're honest with you, it's pretty awful if you're looking for anything with any kind of depth, however, if you give this show a chance, we're sure you'll be begging for more.

VICE :D

PS - Here's the full first episode, plus one of our favourite clips featuring Amy (with the red hair) and her cousin Harry playing ping pong...

And here's the 1st part of Episode 1, with part 2 following underneath...ENJOY!!!