User:A Thousand Doors/Chained

Chained was a British reality television and dating game show, produced by Endemol. Broadcast in March 2001 on E4, it was based on Chains of Love, a similar Endemol series from Holland. The premise for Chained involved a single person (the "Picker") being constantly chained to five individuals – one of the five was removed from the show each episode until just one person was chained to the Picker. The show was hosted by Melanie Hill, a contestant on the UK version of Big Brother, who had placed fourth in the 2000 series.[ref] Hill was paid a reported GB£30,000 for presenting the series. In promotion of the show, she remarked: "Chained is great fun, uniquely bizarre and definitely addictive." Filming for the series began in late 2000.

Although initially intended to begin airing in January 2001 when E4 was first launched, the broadcast of the first episode of Chained was pushed back to 19 March.

Of the 19 new shows commissioned for E4 in 2001, Chained was one of five or six that was recommissioned for a second series. It was recommissioned by [name] for a series of 16 episodes.

Ratings for Chained were disappointing. Early overnight figures suggested that the first episode had generated 59,000 viewers and a 1.6% audience share of the multi-channel market – the second episode gained an audience of just 16,000 and a share of 0.4%.


 * second episode on Wednesday 21 March had just 16,000 viewers, a 0.4% share; premise of show; The Sun claimed that the final remaining couple were filmed having sex; first episode on Monday 19 March 2001 drew 59,000 viewers, a 1.6% share; shown on E4 at 11:10pm;
 * Second series was greenlit by E4's Anjela Jain; the 16×30' series is exec produced by Endemol UK's Dominic English and will air in spring 2002; premise of show; winner chooses whether to split remaining money of the £5000; "Chains of Love"; of all the international versions (inc. Holland, Australia and the US), the UK one was the first to be renewed;
 * "Endemol UK Productions has been commissioned to produce a second series of Chained for E4. The 16 x 30-minute series, presented by former Big Brother contestant Melanie Hill, follows a group of six people who are all chained together. It was commissioned by E4 editor Anjela Jain and returns in the spring. It will be executive produced by Dominic English."
 * Melanie Hill presented; first reality TV show on E4; aired from March 2001; six contestants chained together day and night; one contestant "picker" will remove one other contestant each day until thy are left with their dream date
 * dating game show; Melanie Hill; picker is chained to five others, given a pounds 5,000 budget for five days and they have to accommodate the living expenses of the others
 * aired from March 2001; E4; like Big Brother, originally a Dutch show and also developed by Endemol; One group will feature one woman and five men, another will have one man and five women, a third will feature gay contestants and the final group will be made up of bisexuals; "commander" rather than "picker"; presented by former Big Brother contestant Melanie Hill;
 * Melanie Hill; E4; aired in March; six contestants chained together; one removed each day until final two go on a date together;
 * chained together 24 hours a day; "most extreme dating show ever"; when only two are left, picker chooses how to divide remaining £5000; they live together in a flat in a bed that sleeps six people; Melanie Hill introduced the show, unchained the losing contestant and interviewed them;
 * Hill opinion: "Chained is great fun, uniquely bizarre and definitely addictive but it's good being the presenter this time."; E4; six people chained together and followed by cameras;
 * Originally called "Chains of Love"; E4; [premise of show]; picker goes on a date with the final person; 16-part series; E4 Commissioner Andrew Newman said, "On E4 we are looking to make TV to talk about, extreme TV that takes ideas to the limits. With Chained we are hoping to take the constructive reality formats of a post-Big Breakfast world to a new and perhaps ludicrous level.";
 * E4 commissioned 19 new shows in its first year, of which five or six - including Banzai, As If, Five Go Dating and Chained - have been or will be recommissioned
 * Melanie Hill; [premise of show]; E4 say it went down well
 * Hill was paid £30,000; second series completed in May 2002;
 * second series completed in May 2002;
 * "Meanwhile, Channel 4's soon-to-launch digital entertainment channel E4 has commissioned Endemol production arm Initial to make 16 x 30-minutes of Chained, a UK version of Endemol's Chains of Love. The show, already on air or about to begin in Holland, Germany and the US, films six young people who are chained together. It starts when the channel launches in January. Each week one person is chained to five people of the opposite sex who must vie to impress him or her. Every day one person is chosen to be unchained until a winner is found. Nav Ramen will executive produce. The show will be stripped four nights a week on E4.