Madonna, currently being crucified in the press for stealing babies, has now agreed to “trim shots” of her mock crucifixion from the upcoming NBC special, and the press is on her back like a ton of mirrored bricks. Before you chip in your own two cents about whether she’s a sell-out or being oppressed by the church-going masses, that doesn’t really matter. Sure the girl has stuck to her guns in the past and defended her artistic integrity, in the face of religious condemnation and post-concert arrest, and sure she’s proved to be a massive sell-out recently, with some pretty horrible ad campaigns tucked under her purple sequinned belt. She’s a mass of contradictions, motivated by artistic expression and money – let’s leave it at that. What interests me more is how NBC is going to get around the prickly issue of not showing a thorn-crowned Madonna on a giant cross for the entirety of “Live to Tell.” The network has agreed to air the song, but will use “different camera angles.” Now I saw the show twice at close range, and there’s no getting around it – it’s a big motherfucker of a cross. The rest of the stage is black. Are they going to pan round to the audience? Train the camera on her boots? I don’t care how many camera angles they have (14, if you must know), it’s going to be a strange segment.

– Steven Corfe