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Featured TV and Film

RuPaul Fronted Gameshow Coming to ITV

The category is… Gameshow!

Yes, you heard right. ITV has managed to snap up Drag sensation RuPaul for a brand spanking new gameshow called Celebrity Lingo. The show will feature a star-studded celebrity lineup, all competing to take home money for charity. Celebrity Lingo will be a head-to-head vocabulary battle, filling in the blanks and guessing the words – a simple but popular game at the moment, thanks to a strategy game revival from iPhone and Android app sensation, Wordle.

RuPaul
RuPaul (Reality Tit Bit)

The 7-episode series is a spin-off of, Lingo, a British game show that first aired back in 1988. In 2021, ITV revived the hit show and recruited Good Morning Britain host, Adil Ray. However, RuPaul will have a shorter and more condensed version of the show, which will include celebrities, as opposed to members of the public. 

“Now, more than ever before, people want to have fun, and Celebrity Lingo is here to serve it up generously,” said Ru, in a statement to the press. Adil, Ru’s new colleague, was delighted with the news: “I’m so grateful to everyone watching at home, the entire crew, and our fab contestants for giving me another chance to host one of the best shows on TV! Even to those who shout four letter Lingos at me in the street! Welcome to the team RuPaul!”

RuPaul is at the top of their game at the moment. Over the past couple of years, Ru has become one of the most famous faces on the planet, due to the enormous Drag Race franchise, which now has over a dozen spin-offs, that are spread across the planet. It was a surprise to many, then, that ITV managed to snatch one of the most talked about stars for a low-budget gameshow.

 

Lingo game show
Adli’s revival of the show (Indie Mac User)

Rumors are circulating on social media that the show has already been filmed in Salford after Ru was spotted by passersby whilst out and about. Insiders have announced that the show is due to air on Sundays evenings, with the launch being broadcast at 18:30. “This week I spent a day in the company of @RuPaul at the taping of ‘Celebrity Lingo’ – Media City in Manchester…..which will air on ITV1 later this year,” says one lucky fan, who managed to bag themselves a free ticket to watch the taping. “It was fabsy and super surreal to see RuPaul in the flesh!” Another viewer also gave a thumbs up: “Rupaul was exactly how he is on tv it was weird seeing him ngl.”

Word-based games are on trend at the moment and throw an A-list host into the mix, and you’re on to a winner. ITV is expected to make an announcement on which celebrities will be competing soon.

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Featured TV and Film

Black Mirror Season 6: Is it finally confirmed?

There are so many unanswered questions

Since Netflix purchased the rights to this disturbingly brilliant anthology series, Black Mirror has been taken to a new level. The recent peaked success of the show has left fans craving more. Although, Netflix has been relatively silent. But, finally, are reaching closer to another jaw-dropping season?

Black Mirror
Black Mirror from Highsnobiety

It has been three long years since the last season of Black Mirror. During this time, forums have been packed with fan theories and predictions about whether we will get a new series. However, Variety magazine recently reported a new season is “shaping up” and casting is now underway!

A source close to the production leaked the information to Variety, “the latest season is even more cinematic in scope, with each instalment being treated as an individual film. This is, of course, in line with recent seasons of ‘Black Mirror’, for which episodes usually exceeded 60 minutes and had incredibly high production values.” So, not only will there be more episodes, but they will also be of good quality and created on a big budget.

The news follows a succession of doubtful interviews given by the show’s creator, Charlie Brooker, who hinted at pursuing other ventures and a lack of appetite for Black Mirror, “At the moment, I don’t know what stomach there would be for stories about societies falling apart, so I’m not working away on one of those. I’m sort of keen to revisit my comic skill set, so I’ve been writing scripts aimed at making myself laugh” – he said, referencing the real world, which is falling apart in an ironically similar way to the show.

Talking about the pandemic, Brooker mentions, “If you’ve spent years anticipating the worst, oddly, when the worst happens, you can stop worrying about that possibly happening because it has,” he said. “So I’m dealing with this on a personal level far better than I would have anticipated.”

Black Mirror Stills
Black Mirror from the Independent

For those who have been living under a rock, Black Mirror is a collection of individual episodes that span a variety of different genres, of which most are set in near-future dystopias, utilising science-fiction technology and speculative fiction. The episodes map out scenarios for our doomed future, in an attempt to comment on contemporary social issues. The UK’s Channel 4 was the home to Black Mirror, but as the show gained a quick following, streaming giant Netflix quickly snapped up the rights.

The thrill of Black Mirror is that it transports the viewer to a creepy scenario that could be a reality at some point in the near or distant future. However, the unexpected global pandemic turned out to be an uncanny potential Black Mirror episode plot. Can the producers continue to creep out viewers when their own lives are mapped with uncertainty and melancholy?

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Community Featured

New Wim Hof Show on Gets Icy Reception

Why Don’t British Viewers Rate the New Show?

Since lockdown, interest in cold water swimming has risen exponentially. After being caged in rooms and buildings for months on end, people are now craving nature and new adventures. Given this, you’d think that BBC’s new ‘Freeze the Fear with Wim Hof’ program would be a guaranteed success? Well, think again.

Wim Hof, known as the Ice Man to many, is an extreme athlete, and well-being guru. Born in the Netherlands, 62-year-old Wim Hof turned to ice and the cold as a way of dealing with the trauma of his wife’s suicide: a heart-breaking time for Wim and for his children. Unable to get through the thick fog of grief, Wim decided to develop his beliefs and passion for cold water with the aim of helping others who are facing personal challenges. Since then, Wim has amassed a huge international following, achieving bestselling apps, books and spiritual retreats.

Wim Hof BBC

Many of Wim’s followers are inspired by his incredible achievements, which often disproves science and, in turn, give Wim a sort of messiah complex. He has set 26 Guinness World Records, has run half-marathons barefoot in the Arctic snow, submerged himself in ice for 1 hour 52 minutes and has even climbed Mount Kilimanjaro in only shorts and sandals. Although Wim has his sceptics, no one can deny these incredible accomplishments, which were observed and officiated by professionals.

Wim’s antics have been going on for decades, but only recently has he become a household name. Since lockdown, more and more people are using the cold water as a means of decluttering their minds in a world gone wrong. Studies have shown that a cold shower a day can, in fact, keep the doctor away. Exposing yourself to cold water can help to reduce blood pressure, ease inflammation, and increase happiness and libido.  There’s no surprise, then, that many cold-water swimmers are able to maintain their hobbies.

Wim Hof BBC Show
Holly Willoughby on Freeze the fear © BBC

There is a unique character at the heart of each and every trend and, for cold water swimming, Wim is it. Unsurprisingly, BBC producers jumped at the chance to snap up Wim’s enthusiasm and wild energy for a high budget series. In an interview with the Guardian, Wim explained how this venture came about, “It came out of the growing popularity of wild swimming, cold therapy and deep breathing, especially during Covid. I developed the format with [UK production company] Hungry Bear Media and was thrilled when the BBC came on board. There’s suddenly so much interest because people are looking for ways to gain more control over their mind and body.”

After the first episode aired, there was a mixed reception. The most obvious criticism was the timing of the show’s broadcast, airing at a time when the cost of living has increased, with some households unable to heat their homes. “It is disgusting,” says one user on Twitter, “It’s like they are rubbing it in our faces.”

However, many viewers look beyond these criticisms and are appreciating the premise of the show, which is helping people overcome their fears and troubles with the simplest of techniques. “Fear is deep within us, only we cannot get a hold of it,” says Wim. “But go into freezing cold and suddenly you’re in the same area where fear comes from. We normally don’t access it because we live in our comfort zone but by going into the cold, you tap into this prehistoric deep brain stem.”

If you can look past the overloading of Z list celebrities and another Holly Willoughby fronted TV show, ‘Freeze the Fear’ offers viewers a fresh format, with a wholesome message.