Producers of a new Channel 4 dating show centred around virgins have reportedly secured enough participants to finally move forward with the project.
The show, titled The Intimacy Retreat, has faced significant challenges in casting, with the process dragging on for over a year.
The concept involves sexually inexperienced individuals being coached on intimacy and possibly losing their virginity on camera.
A source revealed to The Sun the unexpected difficulties in recruiting contestants, saying: ‘Nobody saw this coming. Who’d have thought it would be so hard to find up-for-it youngsters?
‘Rylan Clark has managed to get ten contestants to live entirely in the nude for his new show Dating Naked, there’s fully-blown orgies on Open House, and Naked Attraction has had Brits getting their bits out on air for years.
Producers of a new Channel 4 dating show centred around virgins have reportedly secured enough participants to finally move forward with the project
Bosses were able to finally entice enough applicants by broadening the criteria – saying participants only had to ‘identify’ as a virgin to take part (stock image)
‘But producers just couldn’t reel them in.’
To overcome the casting hurdles, the show’s producers broadened their criteria, allowing applicants who ‘identify’ as virgins to participate.
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Virgins 'set to pop their cherries in front of the camera' with the help of 'sex surrogates' on idyllic tropical island for new Channel 4 show
The application process included questions about sexual experiences, or lack of, and asked applicants if they considered themselves virgins.
Set in a Love Island-style villa in the Mediterranean, the six-part series will feature a cast of adults guided by sexologists as they navigate their fears and learn about intimacy.
The goal is to help participants gain confidence and possibly take the step of losing their virginity on the show.
The Intimacy Retreat is now slated to air next year.
The idea is that the contestants will naturally lose their virginity to one another, but if they are unsuccessful, sex surrogates are on hand to help.
An insider insisted: ‘It’s a bold social experiment, not anything raunchy.’
Producers describe the show as ‘a six-part series that follows adults who are virgins (or identify as virgins) as they learn skills in the art of intimacy’
It was previously reported that hopefuls who apply for the series will lose their virginity on television with the help of sex experts.
Intimacy Retreat will see participants jet off to a tropical island with one sole purpose.
They will be joined in the idyllic location by a camera crew and producers who hope the cast will pop each other’s cherries in front of the lens.
However, if they struggle and get stage fright, they will have specialists known as ‘sex surrogates’ on hand to guide them.
A TV insider told The Sun: ‘There’s never been a TV show that pushes the boundaries quite like this — and probably never will be again.
‘The aim is to hopefully have all the virgins find each other attractive, but if that fails then this is the plan B.
‘These people are professionals who are constantly on hand for anything that may be required.’
has contacted Channel 4 for comment.