Now here\u2019s a reality TV show that managed to transcend the genre\u2019s somewhat trashy origins. The Mole<\/em>\u2019s premise was simple: contestants compete to win a cash prize, but one of them is a mole who\u2019s trying to actively undermine the efforts of the others. Each week, the player who knew the least about who the mole was would be eliminated. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

7. That\u2019ll Teach \u2018Em <\/em>(2003-2006)<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

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Channel 4 is well-known as the primary purveyor of reality TV in the UK, and That\u2019ll Teach \u2018Em <\/em>aired during the network\u2019s heyday when it came to reality television. It took teenagers back to a boarding school environment right out of the 1950s in order to see if stricter discipline would produce better academic results. This isn\u2019t a particularly ethical idea, and it\u2019s hard to imagine this show being made today!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

8. Fame Academy <\/em>(2002-2003)<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

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Most pop talent shows don\u2019t actually follow the contestants outside their performances, but Fame Academy <\/em>was different. Its contestants not only had to prove themselves as artists, but also to live together with one another, with the least popular contestant being voted out each week. This made Fame Academy <\/em>a more interesting longitudinal study-style look at the artists involved.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

9. Back To Reality <\/em>(2004)<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

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These days, Celebrity Big Brother <\/em>is mainly known for bringing returning Big Brother <\/em>contestants back to the show. Back to Reality <\/em>was one of the first attempts to do this, reuniting reality alums like Uri Geller and Jade Goody and filming them living together in a house for a few weeks. The premise isn\u2019t particularly original, but this was entertaining TV nonetheless.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

10. Joe Millionaire <\/em>(2003)<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

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And we\u2019re right back to trash with this one. Joe Millionaire <\/em>presented its contestants with a supposed millionaire who was, in fact, just a normal person with no great wealth. Once this fact was revealed to the winning contestant, if she chose to stay with the titular Joe Millionaire, then the couple would be granted a million dollars. It was cheap and tawdry, but hey – that\u2019s reality TV, right?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

11. Whodunnit? <\/em>(2013)<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

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Have you ever thought about turning a detective story into a reality show? That\u2019s exactly what the premise of Whodunnit? <\/em>was. Contestants would be \u201ckilled\u201d each week, and whoever managed to solve the mystery of their \u201cmurder\u201d would be given a higher score. Low-scoring players would be eliminated each week. This one actually had some promise.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

12. The Phone <\/em>(2009)<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

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Rather unusually, this show has a celebrity origin: it was brought to life by Justin Timberlake, who probably envisioned it while on the set of one of his Hollywood projects. The premise is weird and labyrinthine: contestants would receive calls on the titular Phone, then take part in Hollywood-style setpieces for\u2026some kind of reward, presumably. It\u2019s easy to see why this one didn\u2019t take off.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

13. Who\u2019s Your Daddy? <\/em>(2005)<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

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There are some reality TV shows that have interesting, complex premises, and then there\u2019s Who\u2019s Your Daddy?<\/em>. This show saw a young woman who didn\u2019t know her biological father attempting to guess who he was from a lineup. If she got it right, her dad would get a cheque, and if not, the man she incorrectly identified would get the cheque (but she\u2019d be reunited with her real dad anyway).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

14. The Swan <\/em>(2004-2005)<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

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Again, this one has an insultingly offensive premise, so it\u2019s easy to see why it isn\u2019t on the air anymore. Several women would compete to get plastic surgery, with the woman who \u201clooked the best\u201d at the end of the surgery receiving the prize. It was grossly exploitative, crass, and image-obsessed in a way that modern society would thankfully be disgusted by.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

15. My Super Sweet 16 <\/em>(2005-2017)<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

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My Super Sweet 16 <\/em>is, in many ways, the reality TV show that kicked off the phenomenon. It\u2019s nowhere near the first of its kind, but it did help to embed the genre in the minds of the public (and also to disavow any notion that reality TV shows were some kind of social experiment). You know the premise: bratty teens get astronomically expensive birthday parties, complain anyway.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

16. The Osbournes <\/em>(2002-2005)<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

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That\u2019s right – not only is The Osbournes <\/em>not still on TV, but it was only ever around for three years. It\u2019s easy to forget that given the absolutely massive impact it had on popular culture, but it\u2019s true. The dysfunctional tale of Jack, Sharon, Ozzy, and Kelly was as absorbing as it was sad; here was the great vocalist of the legendary metal band Black Sabbath, brought low by reality TV.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

17. Temptation Island <\/em>(2001-2003)<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

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We\u2019re not talking about the rebooted version that started airing in 2019 here, but the original 2001 show. It featured couples who were forced to live apart from their partners and in the vicinity of attractive members of the opposite sex, then tested to see if they would stray from their relationships. Trashy, yes, but eminently watchable.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

18. Run\u2019s House <\/em>(2005-2009)<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

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In many ways, Run\u2019s House <\/em>is reality TV at its purest. This show followed the family of Rev Run from Run D.M.C. and his family as they simply lived their lives. It didn\u2019t have any kind of exaggerated, high-concept premise; instead, it simply followed the family through their high and low points, arguably encapsulating the best parts of reality TV.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

19. Vanilla Ice Goes Amish <\/em>(2013-2014)<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

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Yup. Everything you need to know about this show, you can glean from its name. Vanilla Ice Goes Amish <\/em>sees Vanilla Ice – yes, he of \u201cIce Ice Baby\u201d fame – attempt to live a life among the Amish community, one of peaceful, technology-free tranquillity. The premise was inherently absurd, but that didn\u2019t stop the show being compelling.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

20. Wife Swap <\/em>(2004-2020)<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

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Technically, Wife Swap <\/em>ran in fits and starts. It originally aired between 2004 and 2010, but was rebooted a couple of times, eventually coming to a permanent end in 2020. The show had couples swapping partners, then followed those couples to see how they adjusted to their new circumstances. It was breezy, throwaway fun.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

21. Growing Up Gotti <\/em>(2004-2005)<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

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The mid-2000s really were the peak of reality TV, weren\u2019t they? Growing Up Gotti <\/em>followed Victoria Gotti, the daughter of legendary mob boss John Gotti (memorably played by John Travolta in the terrible 2018 movie Gotti<\/em>). Naturally, Gotti\u2019s lineage was what made this story memorable.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

22. The Hills <\/em>(2006-2010)<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

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It\u2019s easy to forget this given how hugely popular The Hills <\/em>was, but it actually began life as a spinoff for Laguna Beach: The Real Orange County<\/em>. The Hills <\/em>followed Laguna Beach<\/em>\u2019s Lauren Conrad at first, but the focus shifted to Kristin Cavallari in the fifth season after Conrad left to chase a career in fashion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

23. Kimora: Life in the Fab Lane <\/em>(2007-2011)<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

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While Kimora: Life in the Fab Lane <\/em>certainly didn\u2019t invent the #girlboss movement, you can see its origins here. The show followed Kimora Lee Simmons, a model running her own fashion line, as she adjusted to life post-modeling. Her family was an entertaining one to watch, making this show compelling each time it aired.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

24. The Ashlee Simpson Show <\/em>(2004-2005)<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

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Since Ashlee\u2019s sister Jessica had her own show, it only seemed fair for Ashlee to get one as well, right? The Ashlee Simpson Show <\/em>followed the slightly moodier, edgier Simpson sibling as she pursued a music career, tried to make a name for herself in the industry, and navigated her myriad relationship troubles.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

25. Britney and Kevin: Chaotic <\/em>(2005)<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

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We\u2019re including this show mostly to mark Britney\u2019s freedom from her conservatorship and remind ourselves how exploitative the media was at the height of her stardom. Britney and Kevin: Chaotic <\/em>followed Britney Spears\u2019 relationship with backup dancer Kevin Federline. It was every bit as messy as you\u2019d imagine that premise would be.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Although many people think reality TV has its origins in the 1990s, it was actually invented far earlier than that. The very first reality TV show was created in the 1970s, although people probably didn\u2019t think of it as a reality show; nevertheless, it\u2019s one of the many old reality TV shows that the public … Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":8404,"comment_status":"close","ping_status":"close","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[222,174,172],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-8376","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-featured","category-nostalgia","category-tv"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/nerdleaks.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8376"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/nerdleaks.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/nerdleaks.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nerdleaks.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nerdleaks.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=8376"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/nerdleaks.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8376\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":8429,"href":"https:\/\/nerdleaks.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8376\/revisions\/8429"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nerdleaks.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/8404"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/nerdleaks.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8376"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nerdleaks.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=8376"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nerdleaks.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=8376"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}