Saturday afternoon is a prized TV slot, prime time. It does not compete (at least not legally) with football, and preserved by the 3pm blackout it offers a rare chance in a jam-packed schedule to highlight other sports.
If you had turned on your televisions to BBC Two on Saturday afternoon in the aftermath of England Women’s Six Nations win over Wales, instead of analysis or match highlights you would have been confronted by the latest bid to cultivate a “viral moment” by production company Whisper.
One player from each side, still in match kit, was joined by the BBC pundits to take part in a “Chicken, Banana” dance for social media platform TikTok. It was not a spur-of-the-moment decision to have a bit of fun and as Sarah Bern arrived with phone in hand, it was clear this had been pre-planned.
Many of the best viral moments are those which are not thought up in production rooms, like Bern’s dance with fans the previous week appeared. But an increasing desire to raise profiles of sports or occasions outside of the big beast that is football for ever-shortening attention spans has led to a more cultivated form of social media. No longer is a small child biting the finger of another enough; instead it has to be bigger and better, and of course happen in front of a larger audience.
The audience in question were the remnants of the more than 21,000 who set a record at the Principality Stadium as England beat Wales 67-12, and those watching on the BBC.
The outcome of the game was expected. When England had a four-try bonus point secured after just 27 minutes, and finished with a scoreline eerily similar to the one managed by Steve Borthwick’s side just a fortnight beforehand, few in the stadium would have been surprised at the result, even if disappointed by the margin.
But instead of looking at the gulf between the sides, or what it means for either Welsh or English women’s rugby, social media was given the prime-time slot. There will not be an England men’s Six Nations match on the BBC for five years under the new deal handing over rights for the national side to ITV, yet in its absence is … apparently … dancing?
The clip, viewed almost two million times on X as of Sunday afternoon, had also gained more than 100,000 views on Bern’s own TikTok account, and nearly 60,000 on the official BBC Sport account.
Many of those who commented on social media criticised the involvement of Jasmine Joyce-Butchers in the aftermath of her side’s heavy defeat. Some even drew parallels to the ill-judged decision by Finn Russell to exchange his shirt with Bath club-mate Ollie Lawrence after the narrow defeat by England in last month’s Calcutta Cup.
Bern and Joyce-Butchers are club team-mates of Ilona Maher, the most-followed rugby player on social media, who has tried to encourage others in the game to cultivate their social media platforms. The blame for the awkward dancing should not be directed at those who are trying to raise their profiles and market themselves on social media in a bid to boost their own incomes, which pale in comparison to other sports.
Dancing is not new. Few could avoid the storm in lockdown when celebrities across the board were taking part in TikTok and Instagram challenges, but even then it was not commonplace on live TV.
It has already started to emerge on television though. Aryna Sabalenka was asked to dance on court moments after winning a match at the Australian Open, after showcasing her and her team’s creative efforts on social media.
The overall effect was to create a “moment”. One which features highly on the BBC’s rugby union page, and has clearly resonated on social media.
But for those who did not tune in to the BBC, they are far more likely to come across the “chicken-banana” than they are actual match highlights or insight, which feels like a missed opportunity. But such is the power of the algorithm, and apparently the future of media.
