Derren Brown, the well-known ‘psychological illusionist’ and TV personality, will be back on Channel 4 with a brand-new show, and it’s unlike anything he’s done before. With the working title Derren Brown: Incognito, the show will take more of a reality television-style route in what’s been described as a “social experiment”.
The broadcaster has revealed that 10 contestants, all previously unknown to each other, will be moved into a “mysterious institution” for a week. They will each have “wildly different backgrounds” but one thing in common – an “identity which leads people to make instant judgements about them”. Channel 4 has posed that they could be a soldier or a spy, for example.
The 10 strangers believe that they are there to work out the identity of the other players, while trying to keep their own hidden. But little do they know, there’s something else going on.
“Derren has other ideas,” the synopsis continues. “This isn’t really a gripping game of Guess Who, it’s a mischievous psychological experiment designed to explore how our identities shape who we are, how we act, and how our prejudices can sometimes blind us from the obvious.”
The players’ preconceptions will be challenged by a series of games, with insightful conversations and periodic eliminations all set to shake things up and make them re-evaluate the bonds they’ve forged and their approach to the game. This sounds like perfect viewing for fans of early Big Brother, and anyone that loves the psychological or sociological elements of reality TV in its purest form.
Rachel Louise Brown//Channel 4
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Channel 4 adds: “As the twists keep coming, players (and viewers) will begin to question their own long-held prejudices, and, perhaps, begin to feel empathy towards people they would normally dismiss in real-life.”
“This has been a fascinating new venture,” Derren Brown said. “With my previous shows I’ve normally had a clear idea of how things will conclude, this was very different. It’s a show about how we form opinions, live by our labels, judge others by them. And what happens when all that’s removed. It was a beautiful and extraordinary thing to make.”
Meanwhile Channel 4’s Head of Live Events, Tom Beck, said: “Any Derren Brown show is an event, but Incognito is unlike anything he has done before.
“A social experiment disguised as a reality show, it’s ambitious, mischievous, challenging and, with its central question about how our personal prejudices affect the way we judge others, it couldn’t be more timely. The end results are fascinating, moving and wildly entertaining and I can’t wait for people to see it.”
We can’t wait either.
Derren Brown: Incognito is coming to Channel 4.
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TV Editor, Digital Spy Laura has been watching television for over 30 years and professionally writing about entertainment for almost 10 of those. Â Previously at LOOK and now heading up the TV desk at the UK’s biggest TV and movies site Digital Spy, Laura has helped steer conversations around some of the most popular shows on the box. Laura has appeared on Channel 5 News and radio to talk viewing habits and TV recommendations. Â As well as putting her nerd-level Buffy knowledge to good use during an IRL meet with Sarah Michelle Gellar, Laura also once had afternoon tea with One Direction, has sat around the fire pit of the Love Island villa, spoken to Sir David Attenborough about the world’s oceans and even interviewed Rylan from inside the Big Brother house (housemate status, forever pending).Â