Shipwrecked returned to our screens on Monday night, but the reboot of the desert island-based series raised a few eyebrows with fans who remember the show from previous years.
Many viewers were quick to point out that whilst the setting (paradise, basically) and premise (Sharks vs Tigers) remained the same, it didn’t go unnoticed that the 2019 islanders appear to have things a little easier than their predecessors.
So just how much have producers tampered with the format? Let’s take a look...
What’s the name of the game?
Then: A social experiment, focusing on the day-to-day struggles the islanders endured in order to survive.
Now: An 18-30 holiday.
Where is it filmed?
Then: Tonga and Fiji.
Now: The Cook Islands in the South Pacific.
How long are the islanders stranded for?
Then: Five months.
Now: Seven weeks.
Who are the Islanders?
Then: Everyday folk.
Now: Models, social media influencers, flop pop stars and a trainee marine.
What do you get for winning?
Then: £70K-£100K, plus anecdotes you can dine out on for years, possible trauma, leathery skin in old age and the chance to present the daily competition on This Morning.
Now: A share of £50K. Plus a Z-list boyfriend/girlfriend and your own E4 show*.
(*probably)
Any home comforts?
Then: Zilch. Islanders on past series were expected to make their own shelter out of bamboo trees and leaves (which provided absolutely no shelter whatsoever from the all-too-frequent storms), and do their business in a long-drop, which at least provided some warmth “from the heaving mound of maggots below”, according to Shipwrecked alumnus Joe Stone.
Now: Electricity, pre-assembled sleeping quarters, a covered toilet and even a kitchen (of sorts).
Are the islanders allowed to bring any luxury items with them?
Then: Only very basic items.
Now: Mosquito nets, moisturiser, food, a vibrator (!) and a cricket set were among the luxury items stuffed into the islanders’ backpacks this year.
What’s for dinner?
Then: Lambs tongue, rice, raw sea snails. Oh and pork, if you fancied capturing and slaughtering the island’s resident pig.
Now: Rice, pasta, tinned tuna, rice pudding. A rep for the new series told Bustle: “They are surrounded by natural food supplies like coconuts and fish, which they can catch for themselves. Some of the islanders also brought food in as their luxury items.”
Chances of survival?
Then: Low. Hazards included skin infections, the worst being the dreaded “crotch rot” caused by wearing wet swimwear for weeks on end, hypothermia (which hospitalised some islanders from previous series), sleep deprivation, flash flooding and hunger (one islander lost 5 stone).
Now: High(ish) if they can brave Big T’s night time farts, mosquito bites on your “semi” (according to Kush at least) and Liv’s death stares.
Shipwrecked airs weeknights at 9pm on E4.