New reality TV highlights for 2019

It seems that TV bosses have been thinking long and hard about how to keep us glued to our screens. Not only do the 2019 television schedules include all the hit reality TV shows like The Great British Bake Off, Strictly Come Dancing and X Factor, but there are plenty more very promising series on their way.

From celeb-endorsed reality challenges in the sun, to some very weird singing TV shows, it looks like we are in for a great year of television. So here is a quick look at some of the new reality UK and US television highlights for 2019.

Lindsay Lohan’s Beach Club

If you’re looking for a celebrity who never fails to provide some serious entertainment, then Lindsay Lohan is hard to beat. The former Hollywood wild child has recently entered the reality TV fray with MTV’s Lindsay Lohan’s Beach Club. This sees the starlet setting up her own exclusive luxury beach club in Greece, and we get to watch Lohan cracking the whip as she hires and fires a bunch of VIP professionals who aim to show that they have got what it takes. With Lohan on typically outrageous form and taking great delight in blasting guests with a champagne gun whilst suffering all the emotional breakdowns you’d expect, it’s one of the best new must-see shows of 2019.

The Masked Singer

Ever since Pop Idol helped kick off the reality TV phenomenon way back in 2001, we have seen no shortage of singing talent shows. The Masked Singer is the latest one to hit our screens and the Fox TV show has already become one of 2019’s breakthrough hits. The show is similar to The Voice in that the singers’ identities are hidden, but where The Masked Singer differs is the fact that it is celebrities who are given some truly outrageous costumes to wear, and then a panel of celeb judges like Jenny McCarthy and Nicole Scherzinger have to guess who they are. So far, we have seen actresses like Tori Spelling aiming to fool the judging panel with their performances, and it’s going to be fascinating to see who next makes an appearance.

America’s Got Talent: The Champions

The America’s Got Talent franchise has unveiled no shortage of incredible performers, but the series is getting serious in 2019. This is because America’s Got Talent: The Champions has just kicked off and it features all the winners and finalists of the previous seasons who will be aiming to prove that they are the best in the land. Once again there will be a familiar panel of judges featuring the likes of Simon Cowell, Heidi Klum and Mel B, and it could be the series’ most high-octane outing yet. So far, we have seen reality TV legends like Susan Boyle taking on the opera singer, Jackie Evancho, and with plenty of raw emotion and extra celebrity appearances, it’s nothing less than seriously compulsive viewing.

The World’s Best

Simon Cowell isn’t the only one who is showcasing the world’s top entertainment talent, as James Corden takes the helm of the recently launched CBS reality show, The World’s Best. This talent show has just kicked off and it features a massive range of performers from all over the world who have to try and impress a judging panel featuring the likes of Drew Barrymore, Faith Hill and RuPaul. Whilst the tournament format sounds remarkably similar to many other talent shows, The World’s Best promises to be ‘the Olympics of talent shows. There’s certainly no shortage of hype around this new series, and the fact that it had its premiere directly after the Super Bowl illustrates just how much faith CBS have in their new reality TV offering.

Made in Staten Island

Of course, reality television isn’t all about glamour and vocal acrobatics. Made in Staten Island is MTV latest attempt to explore the gritty underbelly of real life in the USA. The series focuses on a group of youngsters living in one of New York’s toughest boroughs as they try to escape the daily temptations and misperceptions of a life lived under the cloud of the Mafia. Made in Staten Island has already been courted with plenty of controversy with New York City’s mayor, Bill de Blasio, saying that the show reinforced negative stereotypes about the borough and was little more than an ill-advised publicity grab. Despite these reservations, there is little doubt that Made in Staten Island is gripping viewing and shows how reality TV is capable of handling serious real-life issues.

Shipwrecked

OK so Shipwrecked isn’t exactly new, but the fact that the show is coming back to our screens after a seven-year break shows that UK viewers still have plenty of appetite for watching the body beautiful get stressed out on a tropical island. The E4 reality show will look to take Love Island head-on as nine contestants aim to survive on Shark Island and Tiger Island and hopefully pick up the £50,000 cash prize. Obviously, the main focus of the attention will be on which contestants will form an ill-advised romantic liaison, but with everyone from part-time models to wig-makers making up the line-up, it should be essential viewing for 2019.

Five Guys A Week

Channel 4 have shown that they can deliver the goods when it comes to reality TV, and Five Guys A Week is their latest offering. This gives one lucky woman the chance to live with five different men during one week, and then she gets to see which one offers her the best chance of true love. It’s easy to be skeptical about shows like this but seeing as Five Guys A Week is being produced by the same team who gave us hits like First Dates and First Dates Hotel, then we think that Channel 4 have given us yet another treat for 2019.