Channel 4's new reality show The Circle has already sparked a backlash amongst viewers, after one contestant pretended to be a cancer doctor - a move she knows is "immoral" but made because she "wants to win" the £50,000 prize.
If you haven't already heard about it, the show, presented by Alice Levine and Maya Jama, follows a group of contestants all living separately in a block of flats, with their only means of communication with each other via a social media app, The Circle. This means they can lie about who they are, catfish fellow contestants into believing things about them that aren't true, and essentially do whatever they believe it takes to reach the final.
During the premiere last night [18 September] advertising executive Jennifer, 40, tricked her competitors into believing she is a 34-year-old oncologist - a doctor who specialises in cancer - explaining her decision to camera:
"I am fiercely competitive I will do anything. In The Circle I'm going to be a doctor who specialises in oncology - a cancer doctor. People might think that's morally questionable but I picked it because it's a universally trusted profession. I hate this - this is going to get me lambasted. At the end of the day, this is a popularity contest - it's not real, so what's the problem? It's a game."
Lots of viewers quickly took to Twitter to slam the move, with some noting the Stand Up To Cancer advert shown during the show's break.
"I am all for ANY sort of reality tv but when you’ve got people pretending to be a CANCER doctor and completely lying about who they are to be popular I am 1000% out.Stupid concept and potentially very very damaging. #TheCircle", one person wrote, while another added, "There's a few things in life you never lie about, and anything involving cancer is one of them #TheCircle".
The premise of the show involves the contestants 'liking' and 'blocking' each other, with those with the least likes and most blocks facing the chop.
The Circle is on Channel 4, tonight at 10pm
