Moment male contestants were told they were dating transgender woman on hugely controversial dating show
Warning: This article contains discussion of discrimination against the LGBTQ+ community and suicide which some readers may find distressing
Between the likes of Geordie Shore, Gogglebox and Come Dine With Me, the majority of Brits are brought up on reality TV shows.
Although it's entertaining to watch drunken bust-ups, squabbles over the remote and feuds over food, there is also a darker side to the industry - which thankfully, for the most part, is a thing of the past.
However, the real-life ramifications of some reality shows still live on, which is what a new Channel 4 documentary titled Miriam: Death Of A Reality Star explores.
Advert
It chronicles the extraordinary life of transgender woman Miriam Rivera.
Miriam appeared in the series, which aired on Sky1 in 2004, in the hopes of finding love with one of the six male contestants who had been flown out to Ibiza to try and win over the Mexican model.
Although viewers were aware from the get go that the brunette was a trans woman, the blokes who were attempting to woo her to win a £10,000 prize and a romantic yacht trip did not.
The final episode of There's Something About Miriam, which saw her reveal her gender identity, has since gone down in history as one of the most cruel and unethical 'gotcha' moments which has ever been on our TV screens.
Take a look at this:
The heartbreaking scene shows Miriam bravely addressing the group of men after she had picked contestant Tom Rooke, who was then 23, as her winner.
She tells the group: "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."
Much to the disgust of viewers, the men begin to laugh as Miriam opens up to them about her gender identity.
Pals of the model say her speech was 'scripted' by producers of the dating show, who they allege completely misjudged the situation and callously mocked Miriam for the sake of ratings.
In the new Channel 4 documentary delving into what went on while shooting There's Something About Miriam, crew members have alleged that things became 'incredibly uncomfortable' and that there were extremely volatile reactions.
Tom told the cameras that he was 'very shocked' that he had been 'deceived' by Miriam, before going on to use male pronouns when referring to her from thereon out, as he slammed her for 'lying to everybody'.
Crew member Leo McCrea told Miriam: Death Of A Reality Star: "It was so incredibly uncomfortable. It felt like all the air had been sucked out the room. And Tom, he was gasping, and looking around at all the deceit."
The rest of the male contestants also grew angry, as participant Toby Green recalled how runner-up Scott Gibson 'went berserk'.
Viewers of the Channel 4 doc have been left dumbfounded by how Miriam was treated, as well as the lack of care she was given both during the show and afterwards.
Another particularly disturbing revelation came from the psychiatrist hired by the dating show, who explained that there was no thought given at all to the toll it might take on her mental health.
He said: "I had been brought in ostensibly to look after the boys. No one had given a thought to how Miriam might feel.
"The reveal was her coming out to the world and as far as I was aware, Miriam hadn't been psych tested.
"How would she deal with rejection? Not just from who she picked, but everyone who thought trans people were freaks.
"They sold her a dream without anybody telling her what could go wrong. I thought, she's vulnerable, she's had a really really hard life, like a bird with a broken wing."
The way Miriam was exploited for entertainment in There's Something About Miriam also hit home for viewers because she had opened up about the first boy she fell for reacting angrily after finding out she was born male.
He outed her and told everybody in school, while the model also spoke about how she had been taking hormones since age 11, how she had lived as a woman since 16 and how her father refused to accept her identity.
After the reality show was wrapped up, Tom rejected the £10,000 prize money he had won and launched a legal battle alongside his fellow contestants.
They alleged conspiracy to commit sexual assault, defamation, breach of contract, and personal injury in the form of psychological and emotional damage and ultimately settled for an undisclosed amount.
The series aired the following year and Miriam withdrew from the spotlight.
In 2019, she was tragically found dead in her mother's apartment in an apparent suicide at just 38-years-old.
Production executive of There's Something About Miriam Jo Josun is also featured in Miriam: Death Of A Reality Star.
She stunned viewers when admitting: "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."
Miriam: Death Of A Reality Star continues tonight on Channel 4 at 9pm, and all episodes are available to stream on All4.
f 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].
If you’ve been affected by any of these issues and want to speak to someone in confidence, please don’t suffer alone. Call Samaritans for free on their anonymous 24-hour phone line on 116 123.
Topics: LGBTQ, TV, Channel 4, Documentaries
Olivia Burke