Where have all the women gone?

So, the TV ads for Channel 4's alternative election night didnt feature Lauren Laverne and the preview write ups didnt mention her either. Then the publicity shots appearing in guides a few days before the election suddenly featured a photoshopped-in Laverne. Hmmmmm last minute C4 exec meeting: ''Shit. We have three white men fronting the coverage of the big election race between.... three white men. Better get a woman in quick. A Black or Asian one if possible.... June Sarpong's not availble? Damnit... Well find me a woman quick!''

Poor Lauren didnt get to make any jokes or political comment til right at the end but was left doing the links to the adverts. The woman's five months pregant as well... bet she wonders why she bothered standing around for 3 hours in a hot studio when she could have been watching curled up on the sofa like the rest of us.

A flick through the other channels revealed more shows fronted by lots and lots of white men.

It's such a shame presenters like Laverne - witty, sharp, funny and outspoken - arent better utilised on our screens. Instead we have 17 shows presented by either Fearne Cotton or Holly Willoughby. Or Fearne Cotton. In fact now we even have 'Kate off The Apprentice' fronting a national TV show. Dire.

Anyone watching the recent episode of Have I got News For You with Victoria Coren surely couldn't help but notice the look of utter fear on her usually confident face at the start of the show and I am embarassed to admit even I thought 'poor girl, she is going to get ripped apart' but she warmed up and ended up stealing the show, even managing to throw a few savage put downs Paul Merton's way. Nicely done Coren.

So come on. More funny, clever women on tele please. Then maybe we can work our way up to more women in Parliament too? I always knew women were poorly represented in the House of Commons but I didnt realise until recently that we actually have less female MPs than Rwanda or Afghanistan.

Oh well, at least we have Fearne Cotton. And Holly Willoughby.