Friday evenings in the UK are currently enlivened by 'Popstar to Operastar' on ITV, where unlikely participants are trained to sing repertoire from outside their comfort zone, competing for votes from the viewing public. It follows the usual formula of transformation from raw beginnings to a more polished rendition in glitzy, show-style glamour. There are clips of singing lessons with mentors Katherine Jenkins and Rolando Villazon, and, after each performance, comments  which aim to entertain as well as to edify from a panel of four. Presenters are Classic FM's Myleene Klass, and the affable Alan Titchmarsh, to whom the British public would more instinctively turn for advice on a recalcitrant clematis than for an opinion on a classical aria.

With snatches of the Dies Irae from Verdi's Requiem as the theme tune (we'll let that pass), I listened last week to just three of the so-called operatic excerpts, and will someone please remind me which opera 'O Sole Mio' comes from . Finesse may have been lacking, but presentation and sequins were on hand to compensate. Then came the advertisements: the first for a classical CD 'Forever Vienna'. soon followed by remedies for constipation and heartburn, and the tempting allure of a new sofa, a new bed, a new bank...you get the picture.

So, what message does a programme like this send out? Is it a dumbing down of a major art form, or an accessible way in for the uninitiated? Probably both, depending on your perspective. But the online back-up is interesting, with 1599 Facebook fans, 4490 Twitter followers, and a website, linked to CDs and aria downloads on Amazon.

Great - if it gets people listening, and even singing - why not. Alex James was voted off last week; I seem to remember he lasted longer as a conductor on 'Maestro'. And if last week's show did not appeal, BBC4 was offering Bizet's Carmen, instead. Roll on, Friday?