I watched America's answer to Virgin Island and all my fears were confirmed
Virgins appear to be the hot new thing in the world of reality TV, with a flurry of shows springing up that are centred around getting people who have never had sex to do the deed.
Channel 4's Virgin Island left audiences squirming in their seats initially, but it swiftly broke records (and taboos) and is now casting for a second season.
The show sent 12 young adults from the UK who had never had sex to a tropical island where they practiced intimacy with trained professionals and even engaged in full-on sexual acts with designated 'sex surrogates'.
At a first glance you could easily have thoughts that it was simply titillating TV at the expense of its young and vulnerable stars, but that wasn't the case. The hands-on approach the show's therapists took drew criticism yes, but it never poked fun at or exploited its cast, instead it held them.
The young stars emerged from the series with a newfound confidence that showed the power of the admittedly unconventional teaching approach, and after the show aired, they rushed to its defence when critics took aim.
Given how invested I became in Virgin Island, I was really intrigued when I heard about another virgin reality dating show coming to UK streaming platform Discovery+ this week, simply titled Virgins.
The synopsis for the US-based show, which initially aired on TLC, reads: "Follow a group of inexperienced virgins on their quest to finally seal the deal. Experience their socially awkward moments and hilarious dating disasters as they attempt to find a relationship that will finally take them all the way."
Unlike Virgin Island, which honed in on virgins all under the age of 30, Virgins follows four 'late bloomers' who range in age from 34 to 42. While I was really pleased to see a bigger age range represented on the show, my joy didn't last for long.
In one scene, the camera lingers too long on one star's hairy back and belly, offering up his insecurities on a plate for audiences ready to devour. In another scene, we see 42-year-old Rhasha in a therapy session. When she reveals she is a virgin despite previously being married, her therapist looks visibly shocked rather than remaining judgement-free.
The digs at Virgins' stars are subtle but insidious, and rather than challenging the beliefs of viewers it encourages them.
To its credit, Virgins doesn't bill itself as a sensitive show. It's clear from the synopsis what you're going to get, and I suspect its stars knew and were prepared for what they were letting themselves in for.
However, those looking for a sensitively handled show on virginity should maybe swerve this one and stream Virgin Island instead.
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