Series such as Naked Attraction and Married at First Sight would have been shocking once upon a time. But these days it takes a lot more to leave viewers aghast
Once upon a time, Big Brother administering electric jolts to the bums of unsuspecting housemates was the most shocking thing (literally) I’d seen on reality TV. But I’ve callused over the years, having now seen it all – the conveyor belt of fist fights, the cheating scandals ripped from the same script, the endless wine glasses emptied over yet another love rat.
In fact, with reality series now among television’s most popular genres, I wonder if any of us are truly shocked by what the genre offers any more. Channel 4’s Naked Attraction would have belonged on a pay per view adult channel a decade ago – now, my mum doesn’t even clutch her pearls when it’s on. The same can be said of Sex Box, which saw real life couples have sex in a Perspex box and talk about it afterwards (the box wasn’t transparent, but with the right framing, it’s hard to say if any of us would muster a gasp). In the US, Love after Lockup chronicles couples as they finally meet their jailed fiances upon release from
prison (I haven’t felt compelled to tune in).