‘Naked Attraction’ returned to our screens on Thursday (29 June), and won a surprising amount of praise for portraying transgender contestants for the first time.
Last year, despite being critically panned, viewers tuned in to the first series of the Channel 4 dating show in their droves.
The premise, for those who haven’t yet figured it out, sees one hopeful choosing from a line-up of prospective dates, dismissing them one by one as more of their totally naked body is revealed.
But while the first series was repeatedly dismissed as being sensationalist, the second series opener was actually championed by many viewers for tackling an important subject.
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Izzy chooses from her prospective dates
Channel 4
The series finale introduced Izzy, who identifies as pansexual, meaning she is attracted to people regardless of gender and sexual identity.
Among her perspective dates were a transgender man and woman, a decision which won over many fans of the show on social media, as did the representation of pansexuality on a mainstream dating show.
Presenter Anna Richardson also described the promotion of “conversation about naked trans people” as a “genuinely proud moment” on her Twitter account.
The move was also lauded by the trans organisation Mermaids, who posted a comment about ‘Naked Attraction’ on their Twitter account:
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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What Channel 4 hadn't banked on, though, was quite how dull this would be for viewers.
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"Cut the bullshit" "'K"
One of the finest exchanges in reality TV history.
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Sure thing.
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