Channel 4 has confirmed the full line-up of unlikely pairings for its all-star version of Handcuffed, with Kerry Katona, Katie Price and football legend Neil Ruddock among the celebrities taking part.
The broadcaster will air Celebrity Handcuffed following the success of the first series of the civilian version, Handcuffed: Last Pair Standing, which has also been recommissioned for a second series. Episode one alone attracted over 2 million views, and the social experiment was declared the “best thing since Pot Noodles” by Oasis frontman Liam Gallagher.
Confirmed celebrity pairings
Former glamour model Katie Price will be paired with Reform UK's Suella Braverman, while footie star Neil Ruddock is paired with drag queen Bimini. Atomic Kitten's Kerry Katona will be handcuffed to Made In Chelsea's Mark-Francis Vandelli.
Meanwhile, former It Girl Lady Victoria Hervey is paired with Love Islander Georgia Harrison, and DJ Fat Tony will be handcuffed to Princess Olga Romanov.
Format and host reaction
The show will follow pairs of celebrities with completely opposed opinions, beliefs, lifestyles and bad habits, handcuffed together 24/7 in the ultimate test of survival. While the original featured ordinary members of the public, TV star and former Celebrity Traitor Jonathan Ross hosted the civilian series.
Ross said: "I loved being part of the civilian series of Handcuffed, and I can't wait to see how the celebrity version pans out." He added: "I've done my fair share of celebrity shows, but nothing quite like this. It's chaotic, it's hilarious, and I'm so excited for viewers to see what happens when you handcuff a group of famous faces together and put them under pressure. It could of course be a disaster. But it could also be the best thing on TV next year!"
Commissioning editor's view
Tim Hancock, Channel 4 Commissioning Editor, said: "Celebrity Handcuffed takes a format audiences couldn't stop talking about and supercharges it with some truly unexpected pairings." He continued: "Just like the civilian series, the celebrity version will be laugh-out-loud funny, gloriously awkward and full of surprises, and will capture something bigger about modern Britain: even when we seem to disagree on almost everything, we might have more in common than we think."
When the second series of the civilian version was announced, Hancock said: "Part of Channel 4's job is to reflect every corner of Britain, and not just the loudest or most comfortable parts. Handcuffed does that better than almost anything else on our slate, and its return is a vote of confidence in formats built on genuine difference." No start date has yet been announced for either Celebrity Handcuffed or the second series of Handcuffed, but they are expected to be broadcast next year.
