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George Lamb Placed In Solitary Confinement For TV Experiment

George Lamb Placed In Solitary Confinement For TV Experiment

Spoiler: he didn't cope too well

Michael Minay

Michael Minay

A new Channel 5 programme is set to test people to their psychological limits by placing them in solitary confinement for five days.

Granted, after a brutal shift at work many of us would be happy to be shut off from the world. But the effects of being on our own (with no internet, social media, or human beings around us) can be damaging.

Channel 5's In Solitary: The Anti-Social Experiment, saw George Lamb and four other members of the public locked into small rooms with only a bed, toilet and three non-electric personal items. See how George fared in the clip below:

Credit: Channel 5

They were given enough food to simply survive.

How long do you think you'd last?

via GIPHY

After 23 hours, George had had enough.

He struggled with not knowing if it was day or night and said: "The prospect of sitting here for five days, it will send me around the bend."

Credit: Channel 5

But at least he fared better than Charmayne, a nurse who wanted to prove she wasn't high maintenance - she lasted just four hours.

Charmayne bottled it, pressing the panic button and claiming: "I feel so panicky. I just can't do it. I just want to go home."

She even opened a letter from her husband, intended to be saved for when she was halfway through the whole experiment.

Single mum Sarah, who replaced Charmayne, was almost pulled out after experiencing severe anxiety symptoms, even vomiting at one point, but she remained and completed the challenge.

Lloyd, a 'social media junkie', also lasted the full five days, as did Lucie, a recent divorcee, who did the challenge as a test of her own strength.

Credit: Channel 5

The damaging effects of solitary confinement were shown in a study, published in 2014 by the American Journal of Public Health, entitled: 'Solitary Confinement and Risk of Self-Harm Among Jail Inmates'.

According to the study's results: "Inmates ever assigned to solitary confinement were 3.2 times as likely to commit an act of self-harm per 1,000 days at some time during their incarceration as those never assigned to solitary."

Meanwhile, the programme's description states: "This gruelling, psychological 'anti-social' experiment challenges three members of the public to spend five days in solitary confinement, asking one of the most relevant questions of our time: in a world where we have never been more connected, when was the last time you were completely alone?"

All the contestants agreed that it was a challenging experiences, but agreed it had changed them for the better.

Can't see myself signing up any time soon, mind.

Featured Image Credit: PA

Topics: Channel 5