Channel 4 viewers were left appalled by documentary Death of a Reality Star – which tells the story of the late Miriam Rivera, who took part in the 2000s reality series There’s Something About Miriam.
The 2004 Sky reality show followed a group of British men competing to win the affection of the Mexican model, then 21, and a £10,000 cash prize.
Miriam, who was a trans woman, was told to keep her gender identity secret throughout the series until the final stage – where the last man standing would learn of it.
Viewers were completely floored as clips from the show were revisited. The documentary continued to look at Miriam’s life up until her death in 2019.
During the show, Miriam spent time with all the contestants who were vying for her attention but in the end picked Tom, who she had been kissing throughout the show, as the winner. As the show reached its end Miriam revealed her ‘secret’, she said: “I tried to be honest with all of you, not just some of you.
“Yes, I am from Mexico, I am a model, and I’m 21. But Tom, I really love spending time with you and kissing you. You see, I love men, and I love being a woman. But… shh, quiet everybody, please, quiet. But you see, Tom… I am not a woman. I was born as a man.”
Tom accepted the prize money and a yacht trip with Miriam while he was on camera but he later refused it – and viewers took to social media to write about how much they were shocked by the show.
One viewer wrote: “Watching this now. How cruel and heartbreaking. How did anyone think this was entertaining? No one thought through the repercussions for Miriam or those young men . Incredibly sad viewing #MiriamDeathOfARealityStar”.
Another added: “The concept of the show was gross and when Miriam reveals she’s trans (or a Man as the show made her say) then having the other lads laughing at the ‘winner’ because he kissed a man was extremely distasteful”.
A third wrote: “Watching #MiriamDeathOfARealityStar and it’s hard to believe what we used to call entertainment once. I remember this being on sky and feeling uneasy because it felt wrong but I was 12 so (secondly, I don’t even know how I was allowed to watch this) such a sad story this”.
The series has been met with so much backlash, and a spokesperson for Sky said: “The show was removed from all Sky platforms many years ago. The series has not been reflective of Sky’s attitudes towards gender identity for a long time and we apologise for the hurt caused by it.”
As the documentary series showed, the airing of There’s Something about Miriam was delayed by a year after all six men who featured launched a joint lawsuit for conspiracy to commit sexual assault, defamation, breach of contract and personal injury for the psychological and emotional damage.
In 2019, Miriam was found dead in her apartment in Mexico – but her passing was not revealed publicly until six months later.
View news Source: https://www.ok.co.uk/tv/viewers-horrified-tvs-most-cruel-32711151
