REALITY TV has been around for a long time, so it’s hardly surprising television shows feel the need to push the envelope.
And that’s exactly what Rylan Clark’s new reality show, Dating Naked UK, is aiming to do – think The Bachelor in the buff.
The Paramount+ show will have ten episodes where eager (and brave) singletons seek love while letting it all hang out in Colombia.
Rylan recently revealed there was a safety concern during filming that had nothing to do with the nakedness of the contestants.
“I was out there for a month, and they are quite liberal, but the one thing I had to worry about was being a person of note from Europe — so a genuine concern was pirates.
“That sounds really crazy, but actual pirates were the biggest concern because we were on an island filming the show.
“Moving around at night when we were filming could have ended up with pirate boats coming to get me.
“Apparently they never hurt you, they just want a bit of dollar.”
Of course, Dating Naked UK is far from the first reality show to have people put everything on show.
And it’s not just the likes of Naked Attraction getting in on the act, with some really having to be seen to be believed.
Naked, Alone and Racing to Get Home
This short-lived survival series only lasted a season – but what a season it was.
In this bonkers reality TV show, contestants got starkers before being dumped in the middle of the English countryside with a partner – often a complete stranger.
From there it was a three-day mad dash to beat the other team to civilisation where a prize of £5000 – and their clothes – were waiting.
The show was popular but sadly got the axe after a single season as Channel 4 was forced to make cost-cutting decisions.
Naked and Afraid
US show Naked and Afraid places survivalists in the wilderness, removes their clothes and adds the challenge of staying alive and uninjured for 21 days.
Each contestant is allowed a cross-body satchel, containing a camera for when the camera crew isn’t there at night and a map.
They are each allowed one helpful item such as a knife or fire starter, and the camera crew is forbidden from intervening unless it’s a serious emergency.
As the contestants navigate their way through the wilderness, viewers are kept updated with running stats including the number of days that have passed and the current temperature.
The show is a smash hit and is still running today with the addition of Naked and Afraid XL, which launched in 2015 and has the same premise but for 40 days.
Send Nudes: Body SOS
It’s not a dating show, it’s not a survival show and it’s not really a makeover show either.
Hosted by Vogue Williams, Send Nudes: Body SOS wanted to fix the stigma around cosmetic surgery by getting people to send their nudes through, along with a description of what cosmetic procedure they wanted.
From there, an AI image of their enhanced body was created for them (and us) to gawp at. This image was then shown to 50 strangers who would comment on the changes.
It was a short-lived endeavour, with E4 cancelling the series after just one season saying it wasn’t due to budget.
A spokesperson said “Every year, Channel 4, like all broadcasters, makes decisions about which shows to rest, return or conclude to ensure we always innovate and offer viewers the best range of programming.
“The decision not to recommission Send Nudes: Body SOS was not financial.”
Adam Zkt. Eva (Adam seeks Eve)
In a bold combination of formats, Adam Zkt. Eve took the isolation of Naked andAfraid, and the sexual tension of Naked Attraction by putting single people on a deserted island in their birthday suits.
To spice it up, once the pair had got to know each other, a third contestant (also naked) was thrown in the mix to try and tempt the partners away from each other.
The contestant would choose between the two, and then decide back in the real world whether they wanted to continue their love affair with their clothes on this time.
The show sparked several reimaginings throughout Europe
Buying Naked
A real outlier in the nudity-based reality TV shows was Buying Naked, a Florida-based show where nudist estate agent Jackie Youngblood helped her nudist clients find properties in the nudist capital of North America – Pasco County.
It ran from 2013 to 2014 and involved lots of impressive object placement to hide the prospective buyer’s goods from the viewer.
“We didn’t want to have a show that was completely blurred the whole way through,” executive producer Mike Kane told Fox News.
“You will see bare rear ends. We don’t have to blur those but you will not see anything else other than that. We have either creatively blocked it [or blurred it]… but it never goes any further than just the rear ends.”
Naked Jungle
This one-off special was presented by a naked Keith Chegwin and featured ten competitors – all nudists – running a sort of assault course in celebration of the 50th anniversary of British naturism.
The hour-long show was released in 2000 and the Independent Television Commission said it only received one complaint, which was that they could “do without Keith Chegwin prancing around”.
A spokesperson for the ITC responded there was no guideline against Keith being on television, and that the nudity was on late at night and well signposted – so therefore was not in breach of any codes.
Keith, however, could have done without his own prancing, it would seem, as he later admitted hosting the show was “the worst career move” of his life.
Naked Office
Team-building got a radical revamp in this one-off show when a struggling marketing company was instructed to get their kit off by business psychologist David Taylor.
The theory from David’s point of view was that by stripping off their clothes, the employees of onebestway could also strip away their inhibitions and be open with one another.
After a week of various clothed team-building exercises, the staff were invited to participate in Naked Friday – which is exactly what it sounds like.
Surprisingly, all of the staff took part to some degree. One man chose to wear a strange pouch around his genitals, whilst another woman decided just being in her pants was enough for her.
Naked Attraction
This was the flash in the pan (or on the screen) that started it all.
The premise is simple.
A line of people stand behind screens that inch upwards, starting from their toes, to reveal all their lumps bumps and rumps – while one eligible singleton watches and comments on every new bit that is revealed.
Every time the screen slides up, someone gets eliminated by the contestant until two are left.
At the end, once they’ve seen all there is to see, the contestant strips off too and picks who they want to date.
It has gone on to be reproduced across Europe and a US series was released on HBO’s Max in September last year.
Naked Education
Hosted by Anna Robertson, who also presides over Naked Attraction, Naked Education was a controversial show where nudity was used as a visual teaching aid for younger people.
In an effort to normalise and educate about bodies and the differences between them, adults would disrobe in front of teenagers to show them not all bodies have to be perfect to be valued.
Despite the positive message behind the nakedness, some viewers were fuming that adults were standing in the nude in front of teenagers aged between 14 and 16 years old – Ofcom received 1,297 complaints about the show during its run.
Other people loved it, however, saying it was a wholesome, educational and important show that let teens see the beauty in difference.