2022-05-17
44 分钟Pandora Sykes and Sirin Kale deep-dive into some of reality TV’s most controversial shows in the early 2000s, exploring how the explosion in the genre caused ethics to fly out of the window. Featuring interviews with There's Something About Miriam's show creator and winning contestant, and many more. Producer: Hannah Hufford Executive Producer: Pandora Sykes Executive Editor: James Cook Content Producer: Hannah Robins Technical Producer: Giles Aspen Archive credits: There’s Something About Miriam, Brighter Pictures The Farm, Endemol UK Shattered, Endemol UK Who’s Your Daddy, 10 by 10 Entertainment Harsh Reality: The Story of Miriam Rivera, Wondery Big Brother, Endemol UK Have I Got News For You, Hat Trick Productions
BBC Sounds, Music, Radio, podcasts.
The dumbest genre in entertainment or the one that tells us the most about ourselves.
Since its conception, reality TV has divided its viewers.
But we think it's possible to enjoy it whilst also questioning the ethical foundations upon which it was built.
I'm journalist and broadcaster Pandora Sykes.
And I'm investigative journalist Shirin Kahler.
And a large part of our friendship has been spent discussing Reality Team.
We've both been fans since we first watched Big Brother as preteens and we've spent a fair amount of time defending reality TV when people are snobby about it or dismiss its importance in our wider culture.
But we've also been troubled by the exploitation, the lack of aftercare, the impacts of sudden fame.
In this 10 part audio documentary for BBC Radio 4, we'll be bringing an analytical eye to a genre that influences almost every walk of life.
Celebrity, music, fashion, beauty, dating and even politics.
Over the last six months, we've rewatched hundreds of hours of reality TV and spoken to over 60 show creators, producers and iconic reality stars in order to chart reality TV's evolution and explore the ways in which the format needs to change.
This is Unreal.
A critical history of Reality tv.
Please note there will be strong language throughout the series.
On the sun drenched deck of a luxurious Ibizan villa, a reality TV show like no other is reaching its conclusion.
It's August 2003 and for the last two weeks, six men have competed for the chance to win the heart of miriam Rivera, a 21 year old Mexican model with a megawatt smile.
Only one contestant, a lifeguard named Tom Rook, remains.
He's squinting into the sun in a white vest that shows off his deep tan.
He's just won £10,000, a luxury cruise and the keys to Miriam's heart.