Warning: This article contains discussion of discrimination against the LGBTQ+ community and suicide which some readers may find distressing
Viewers of a new Channel 4 documentary about the life, death and exploitation of Miriam Rivera have been expressing their shock that a cruel dating show she was featured in was allowed to air.
In 2004, a show called There's Something About Miriam was aired on Sky, with the premise being that six men were flown out to Ibiza to attempt to win the affections of Mexican model Miriam and a £10,000 prize.
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The final episode had Miriam choosing the winner and then telling the six men that she was transgender, with the show having kept this from them during production.
In a speech which her friend Daniela Real said was likely 'scripted', Miriam told winning contestant Tom Rooke: "I tried to be honest with all of you as much as I can. Yes, I'm from Mexico, I'm a model and I'm 21.
"But, Tom, I really love spending time with you. I love men and I love being a woman.
"But I'm not a woman, I was born as a man."
The reality show received backlash, with the British Medical Journal writing: "The premise was not a celebration of transgender people’s lives.
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"It was designed to elicit horror from the winning contestant, discovering that his dream date had a penis."
It also resulted in a joint lawsuit from the six men as they sought an injunction to try and stop the reality show from going on TV, which was later settled out of court.
That kicked up a media storm around the show, though Miriam was the prime target of the criticism and mockery rather than it being directed at the TV executives who'd come up with the idea.
Sky later apologised for the show and removed There's Something About Miriam, meaning that a new Channel 4 documentary is the first time many people have seen the reality show.
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Miriam: Death of a Reality Star has explored what went into the creation of There's Something About Miriam, and viewers have been disgusted by the decisions that went into creating the reality show.
"Watched the whole of the Channel 4 documentary about There's Something About Miriam and it's mad how wild TV producers were in the 90s and 00s," one viewer wrote of how Miriam: Death of a Reality Star explored the making of the reality show.
"Just making a mockery of real people's lives on the daily. Only 20 years ago but seems a world away."
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Someone else said they 'don’t believe any of the creators or the staff involved thought they were making this to promote transgender' rights, instead arguing that they 'wanted shock value' and were willing to use Miriam to achieve it.
The reality show was denounced by viewers as 'painful and upsetting' as people wondered 'how on Earth did that show ever get made' as they lamented how Miriam was treated and the lack of support made available to her.
Among those interviewed in Miriam: Death of a Reality Star, which also covers the years that followed for the reality star up to her suicide in 2019, was one of the producers who worked on it.
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There's Something About Miriam production executive Jo Juson told the Channel 4 documentary about her views on the reality show, and how she felt she hadn't done anything wrong.
She said: "I didn't feel anything. I'm in the business of making television shows.
"I didn't feel anything about the format that I felt was bad or wrong. I didn't feel that way, I really didn't. Do I think it went beyond any moral codes of conduct? No."
That was not a view shared by crew member Leo McCrea, who told the documentary the moment Miriam told everyone she was transgender was 'so incredibly uncomfortable'.
The psychiatrist hired by the show said there hadn't been any thought given to the impact the show would have on Miriam's mental health.
Miriam: Death Of A Reality Star continues tonight on Channel 4 at 10pm, and all episodes are available to stream on All4.
If you’ve been affected by any of these issues and want to speak to someone in confidence, contact the LGBT Foundation on 0345 3 30 30 30, 10am–6pm Monday to Friday, or email [email protected].
Please don’t suffer alone. Call Samaritans for free on their anonymous 24-hour phone line on 116 123.
Topics: TV, Documentaries, Channel 4, LGBTQ
Joe Harker