Channel 4′s much-hyped new reality show ‘The Circle’ left viewers decidedly divided as it kicked off on Tuesday night.
Presented by Alice Levine and Maya Jama, the show sees eight contestants living in the same apartment block, but they are only able to meet each other via an app and communicate over the internet.
The aim of the game is to be the most popular contestant, and not get “blocked”, with players even allowed to catfish one another in order to win the £50,000 prize.
With ‘Big Brother’ soon departing our screens, Channel 4 was likely hoping to be on to the next big reality show format, but judging by what was being said on Twitter, they’ve got a way to go to convince people of that.
Many struggled to get to grips with what the show was actually about...
But others thought it highlighted important issues the social media age presents...
However, many weren’t thrilled at the prospect of just watching people dictate messages for three weeks...
Some were concerned that the show promoted catfishing and worried about the implications that could have...
Many pointed out it bore more than a resemblance to Charlie Brooker’s ‘Black Mirror’...
But for some, it gave them a hit of nostalgia for the early years of ‘Big Brother’...
For some, the beautiful flats the contestants are living in proved to be too much of distraction...
While many were also not convinced by the authenticity of the Alexa-style app the contestants use to send their messages...
While the feedback on social media was mixed, the ratings painted a much bleaker picture.
It was revealed only 1 million people tuned in, despite heavy promotion from Channel 4, and the huge lead-in the show had from ‘The Great British Bake Off’ which aired to 5.5 million in the slot before.
‘The Circle’ continues tonight at 10pm on Channel 4.