Down on the farm
What a celebrity-TV show says about French attitudes to rural life
RENOWNED abroad for their fine culture, at home the French busily consume trashy television. The latest hit is “La Ferme Célébrités”, a reality-TV show that maroons 14 C-list celebrities on a Provençal farm, with neither running water nor electricity. The contestants include a Caribbean-born transvestite who totters across the mud in stilettos and a germ-phobic choreographer who dons rubber gloves while trying to herd sheep. Last month's opening night beat French records for reality-TV, pulling in 8.5m viewers, or 46% of the audience. Why has it touched such a nerve?
This article appeared in the Europe section of the print edition under the headline “Down on the farm”
From the May 8th 2004 edition
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