Brits to make migrant and refugee journey from high-risk locations to UK for new reality show
Channel 4 has commissioned a new programme which challenges six Brits to undertake the perilous journeys refugees and migrants have to endure to reach the UK.
Under the working title of Go Back To Where You Came From, the show promises to take six Brits 'with views across the immigration argument' and show them what people attempting to enter the UK have to go through.
It's based on an award-winning Australian show of the same name which ran for four seasons and prompted a series of remakes around the world.
For the UK version participants will be sent to Mogadishu in Somalia and Raqqa in Syria before following the paths migrants and refugees have taken to the UK, including trekking through deserts and climbing through mountain ranges to cross borders along the way.
Advert
Finally they will 'experience first-hand the terror of small boat crossings' with the idea being that people's views on migrants may be changed by experiencing or seeing what the journeys people take to get to the UK are really like.
It's certainly going to be a controversial topic to make a TV show on and people reacting to the announcement of Go Back To Where You Came From have had mixed responses.
One person said 'this should educate a lot of gammons' while another wondered whether the people involved would be placed in 'direct danger' for the sake of TV.
Channel 4's release on the show says that among the things the participants will experience is the 'threat of near-by missile strikes'.
Someone else feared the show would 'mock people in need' while a fourth said they thought it was a 'poor decision' from Channel 4 as they believed the show might be 'glamourising' the matter.
There were also a number of far less savoury comments on the topic of migration among the reactions.
Channel 4 has said Go Back To Where You Came From is intended to 'confront, educate, anger, shock and tug at the heartstrings of liberals, the right wing and everyone in-between'.
The broadcaster's Senior Commissioning Editors Anna Miralis and Madonna Benjamin said: “This is an extremely bold commission that continues to reinforce the Channel’s commitment to tackle difficult and highly relevant subject matter.
"It is hoped that this will offer up an opportunity for the British public to help understand some of the terrifying perils asylum seekers face when they attempt to travel to the UK.
"The adaptation of this multi-award-winning Australian format will be thoughtful and impactful and is likely to create an intense debate about an issue that Britain has grappled with for decades."
Executive producer Liam Humphreys added: "We are thrilled to be working with C4 on this audacious and ground-breaking idea which will provide a unique and compelling perspective on the plight and flight of asylum seekers.
"Go Back To Where You Came From is a perfect illustration of how a controversial and thought-provoking format can, through a very human focus, challenge preconceptions and ignite the national debate."
Topics: Channel 4, TV and Film, UK News, Politics
Joe Harker