Until now, we’d been feeling fairly excited about the series two of The Circle kicking off tonight.
It had already been revealed that Channel 4 was planning to amp things up for the show’s second run, bringing in a new host in Emma Willis and adding a weekly live episode to the proceedings to shake things up.
Then we met the contestants and became even more intrigued, thanks to the bigger mix of characters we’d be introduced to when the second series got underway.
But the show’s first twist of the new series has now been confirmed, and our excitement levels are officially at 100. And it’s all thanks to two words: Richard Madeley.
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⭐ CELEBRITY CATFISH ALERT! Richard Madeley is joining the game and YOU can decide who he'll play during tonight's live launch.
Instead, viewers will vote for one of several personas that Richard will have to maintain during his time on the show, while communicating with his fellow players via the show’s purpose-built social media platform.
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We are so ready
Channel 4
“I think what I’m going to have to try and avoid doing is not attempt to be cool or clever, or as we used to say, a very old-fashioned phrase, a wise guy,” he said.
“I think I’ve just got to take it as it comes, basically be quite kind while I’m talking to people and stay away from difficult topics that can easily be misinterpreted.”
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The Circle sees contestants living in isolation while communicating with fellow players either as themselves or as a persona they’ve created in a bid to become the most popular and win £100,000.
Emma Willis will host the new series of The Circle
Also taking part in the new series are a 31-year-old lesbian who wants to see how differently she’s treated if she tells her fellow contestants she’s younger and straight, a young man pretending to be a single mother and a mum playing as her 25-year-old son.
The Circle launches on Tuesday 24 September on Channel 4.
Back in 2003, 'There's Something About Miriam' hit the airwaves. A dating show with a difference, the titular Miriam dated six different men over a period of time before revealing to them all that she was transgender.
After filming ended, the six men who took part in the show filed a lawsuit against producers, accusing them of conspiracy to commit sexual assault, defamation, breach of contract and psychological and emotional damage.
It was also blasted by critics, with some accusing the Sky One show of reinforcing stereotypes about trans people, and exploiting an important issue.
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OTT and mildly offensive, 'Playing It Straight' saw one woman having to whittle down a group of 12 single men, with the unfortunate obstacle that six of them are hiding the fact that they're gay.
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What Channel 4 hadn't banked on, though, was quite how dull this would be for viewers.
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'Lindsay'
"Cut the bullshit" "'K"
One of the finest exchanges in reality TV history.
What was so unbelievable about 'Lindsay' wasn't that the former wild child got her own reality show (forgive us, docuseries), but just how uneventful it was.
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Sure thing.
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'Temptation Island'
What better way to test your relationship than to head to two separate private islands with a load of people you fancy, get plied with alcohol and just let the cameras see what happened?
Surprisingly, 'Temptation Island' was a smash the world over, with editions airing in the UK, America, Australia, Italy, Spain, Russia, Romania THE LIST TRULY DOES GO ON.
