Chris, Man vs. Wild is Totally Fake
This post is basically for Chris, with whom I recently had a friendly debate over reality show Man vs. Wild’s authenticity. My argument was just that the show wasn’t very suspenseful when it’s very obvious he has a camera crew following him around (if the camera crew is surviving just as well, where’s the element of danger?), but I had no idea the guy was THIS big of a fake!
SURVIVAL SHOW FACES FAKE CLAIM
Channel 4 is to investigate a claim that it misled viewers in a survival series, in the latest allegation of reality being manipulated on a TV show.Born Survivor featured British adventurer Bear Grylls dealing with “perilous situations” in the wild.
But a crew member told the Sunday Times some nights were spent in hotels.
Channel 4 insisted Grylls was never billed as working entirely unaided, but promised to raise the matter with the production company that made the show.
American survival consultant Mark Weinert, who was recruited by Diverse Productions, told the paper Grylls claimed to be stranded on a desert island on one occasion.
However, he was actually in Hawaii and spent some of his time there in a motel, Mr Weinert alleged.
Another time, he added, Grylls was filmed building a raft by himself, whereas the crew had actually put it together and dismantled it beforehand, to ensure that it worked.
And in a further episode, supposedly “wild” horses rounded up by Grylls had come from a local trekking facility, he claimed.
FURTHER INVESTIGATION
Channel 4 said in a statement that Born Survivor was “not an observational documentary series, but a ‘how-to’ guide to basic survival techniques in extreme environments”.
“The programme explicitly does not claim that presenter Bear Grylls’ experience is one of unaided solo survival.
“For example, he often directly addresses the production team, including the cameraman, making it clear he is receiving an element of back-up.”
The broadcaster said Grylls carried out his own stunts and did place himself in perilous situations, “though he does so within clearly-observed health and safety guidelines required on productions of this kind”.
“However, we take any allegations of misleading our audiences seriously and will be looking into this further with Diverse over the next few days.”
The series was originally made for the Discovery Channel in the US and was acquired for UK transmission by Channel 4.
Diverse Productions declined to elaborate on Channel 4’s statement, while Grylls’s agent was unavailable for comment.
Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/6911748.stmPublished: 2007/07/23 15:26:24 GMT
© BBC MMVII
Chris: Nyah nyah nyah nyah nyahh nyahh ha ha ha ha haa haa
The guy doesn’t battle the wild, he just has a penchant for eating bugs between hotel stays.
Channel 4 said in a statement that Born Survivor was “not an observational documentary series, but a ‘how-to’ guide to basic survival techniques in extreme environments”.
How to survive in extreme environments:
Step 1: Eat maggots for protein, wash down meal with stagnant water from puddle.
Step 2: When it starts to get cold, use cell phone to call local ranch for domesticated horses, pack up camera crew and ride to nearest hotel — it gets chilly at night!
Step 3: Don’t forget to floss!
Survivorman could beat up Man any day!
July 24th, 2007 at 11:28 am
I never watched Man Vs. Wild, but I read this this morning as well. It makes me glad that I never watched it. Survivorman all the way. Watching all the work that Les Shroud does in shooting everything on top of surviving for a week is pretty fucking bonkers.
Plus Les Shroud is a hell of a harmonica player.
July 24th, 2007 at 11:29 am
Correction, Les STROUD. He’s a total gonger too.
July 24th, 2007 at 12:32 pm
suck on that jesse and ryan long live survivorman
July 24th, 2007 at 12:52 pm
It looks like our whole clan is divided between survivor shows. What has become of us? Look at what we’ve done to ourselves.
I would raise suspicion of any brit named “Bear” to begin with. Seriously, that should be a name held only for outlaw bikers or feral children from the jungle. That way you know who you’re dealing with.
You may say, “But he was in the British Special Forces! That makes him tough as nails!” I say “Big deal, even I was in the British Special Forces, it’s mostly learning faster ways to prepare tea, and how to eat crackers without making a mess.”
I found this funny as well in reading up on Man Vs. Wild “…he’s ripped raw chunks of meat off a dead zebra with his teeth.” That may be totally fucking rad to watch, but also just stretching the bounds of what you have to do to get ratings. I’m sure there was NO WAY one of his crew or himself had a better way to remove the meat from a zebra in order to “survive.” At least until they got back to the hotel in time for Twinkie wiener sandwiches.
July 24th, 2007 at 1:57 pm
Yeah, he eats live fish and squirrel brains or whatever, but with the camera crew hanging out just behind the scenes with their trail mix and Hot Pockets, I don’t feel the “survival” element. That puts him more in the league of Fear Factor or Jackass — “Whoaaa he ate spiders and jumped off a waterfall!!1!”
Survivorman has to schlep his own camera equipment around, and is often forced to leave portions of it behind SO HE DOESN’T DIE. That’s so core.
I laughed out loud at that stupid cracker comment. I know the British army is pretty hardcore, but do they live on maggots?
July 24th, 2007 at 3:19 pm
It would explain their teeth situation.
July 24th, 2007 at 4:45 pm
Bear will kill and eat all three of you, while me, Ryan , and Chris watch
July 24th, 2007 at 5:42 pm
I believe it! The little guy gets preeeetty cranky when he gets his wake up call from the front desk!
July 24th, 2007 at 9:40 pm
The liberal media and activist judges set out to make Bear look like a fraud. Fortunately, Bear killed and ate all of the liberal media and all the activist judges, washed them down with his own urine, and got it on with a hibernating polar bear just to show how much more core he is than survivorman.
July 24th, 2007 at 9:45 pm
I like how your mission on Earth is to ruin everything good and pure in my life. Like, what do you do for an encore, tell me Darkest Hour is forming a Christian hardcore band jointly with members of Propagandhi and all proceeds go to Albertons? Dammit, Bill… I thought we were friends.
July 24th, 2007 at 10:20 pm
I hope your ass explodes again
July 25th, 2007 at 1:00 am
Chris we ARE friends. But the only reason I surround myself with friends is so that I can ruin things for them to make me feel better about myself. Duh.
And Jesse, really…can’t we just all admit that I was right again and move on?
July 25th, 2007 at 2:04 pm
survivorman only wishes he had a film crew. pussy.
July 25th, 2007 at 9:17 pm
Ryan wins.
July 26th, 2007 at 6:06 pm
YIIIPPPPEEEE!!!!!!!