Dating in the buff? Reality shows are becoming too extreme

Whichever way you spin it, the genre is tired and requires extremity in order to sustain any level of intrigue. But at what cost?

Imagine you’re on a date. It’s going well: there has been eye contact, witty repartee, and the kind of frisson Richard Curtis could only dream of recreating on screen. Except he wouldn’t – because this is not like other dates. In fact, it’s not even like other forms of regular human interaction. Because both of you are completely naked. Oh, and the nation is about to see it.

Introducing Dating Naked, the new reality TV dating show that is as simple as it sounds. Hosted by Rylan Clark, the 10-part Paramount+ series is set to start filming in early 2024 and will follow a group of single people living together in South Africa in the pursuit of romance… all while they are entirely starkers. Essentially, it’s Love Island with wobbly bits. 

Of course, any reality TV show aficionado will know that this is not the first programme aimed at helping people find love in the nude. Channel 4’s iconic Naked Attraction – where single people choose dates based on people’s naked bodies – is now in its 11th series. But unlike that show, where nudity was the meaty main meal (so to speak), in Dating Naked nudity will be more of a sparkly side dish. In other words, it’s just an added layer of drama and intrigue to an otherwise conventional dating show.

But do we really need it? I can see why it has been commissioned. It’s been eight years since ITV launched Love Island, and we’ve grown tired of seeing the same show play out on our screens every summer. Likewise with its rival shows – think Too Hot To Handle, Love is Blind, and Married at First Sight. By this point, we’ve all been there, done that and got the T-shirt 1,000 times over – and it’s becoming increasingly nauseating seeing each of the shows turn into influencer farm factories.

With this in mind, then, it makes sense that telly people decided to up the ante. You can practically feel their excitement in the meeting room: “I know!” one suited and booted exec cries, fist-pumping the air. “It’s just like a normal show except… drumroll please… you can see their bums!” I can see why people would apply, too. Who wouldn’t want to escape the UK’s dreary weather for three weeks and possibly become a Z-list celebrity who gets paid to sell charcoal toothpaste and occasionally pretend to DJ at nightclubs?

In all seriousness, I worry about the direction reality TV dating shows are taking. Whichever way you spin it, the genre is tired and requires extremity in order to sustain any level of intrigue. But at what cost? Talk of psychological wellbeing among reality TV contestants has been percolating for a few years now – and for good reason. Being sequestered from the real world for several weeks to later emerge a bona fide TV star with hundreds and thousands (sometimes millions) of social media followers is no mean feat. But imagine doing that while also exposing your naked body to the world?

The contestants of Dating Naked won’t just be judged on their flirting prowess, or how they treat people they’re attracted to. They’ll have the most intimate parts of themselves scrutinised. And what happens once the show is over? Do they just return to their previous lives, knowing that every friend, co-worker and family member now knows their body as well as they do? 

Putting the contestants aside, though, what’s in it for the viewer? What is the added benefit of seeing people dating in the nude aside from the sheer shock factor of it all (which will inevitably wear off after an episode or two)? Won’t it just start to feel a little uncomfortable and awkward to watch?

I for one won’t be tuning in, mainly because I don’t want to encourage other commissioners to start applying this format to other reality TV shows. Bake Off in the nude? No thanks.