Press-Ganged (lost unaired episodes of ITV reality series; 2004-2006)

The show promoted on ITV Nightscreen (1/3).

Status: Lost

Press-Ganged was an unaired ITV reality documentary series. It involved two teams who sought to gain glory by enduring the treacherous conditions on board the Kaskelot, as the ship travelled from Bristol to La Gomera in the Canary Islands. Five episodes were produced by Granada Bristol, with the show filmed between early May to June 2004. But despite appearing in ITV Nightscreen promotions and even being scheduled multiple times between September 2004 and January 2006, the show mysteriously never aired on British television.

Background

Press-Ganged was first announced on ITV's website in February 2004. It sought contestants aged between 18-35 to come along on an "epic sea journey" and compete for a cash prize. By June 2004, the show was officially promoted as part of ITV's Autumn 2004 schedule. Its creation was reportedly inspired by the success of rival broadcasters' own reality shows, including Channel 4's Wife Swap. Press-Ganged was originally intended for a primetime slot; according to then-ITV Director of Programmes Nigel Pickard, the show planned to combine a "mixture of living history, entertainment and drama", hailing it as enhancing the diversity of ITV's programmes. Granada Bristol produced the show, having specialised in factual programming prior to its closure in 2006. Some sources compared the show's format with Survivor.

The Show

In total, 21 individuals passed the programme's auditions stage; they would later experience the shock of their lives when they became literally press-ganged onto the show. According to a Digital Spy Forum user, the contestants were grabbed, bundled into a van and sent to Bristol. Press ganging was supposedly a common practice utilised by the Royal Navy, most prevalently in the 17th and 18th centuries. But rather interestingly, J. Ross Dancy in his book The Myth of the Press Gang notably claimed that most sailors of the era were not forcibly recruited but joined of their own volition. Upon being deposited at Bristol, the contestants were trained to sail a tall ship, with the best fourteen split into two teams. There, they would be commandeered by the Captain and his Bosuns, Roger McGowan (for the Red team) and Paul Kersey (Blue), on the ship the Kaskelot. The Kaskelot, now known as Le Français since being acquired by French investors, is a tall wooden ship established in 1948 and among the largest of her kind still in operation. Aside from being the main setting for Press-Ganged, the Kaskelot has fulfilled multiple film and television obligations, ranging from The Three Musketeers to BBC productions like David Copperfield.

UKGameshows was able to acquire a show synopsis provided in an ITV Sales catalogue. Promoted as "Hell on the High Seas", the contestants were tasked to endure discipline and living conditions that sailors faced in the 19th century. The tempered climate, poor food provisions and brutal tasks prompted two individuals to leave once the Kaskelot reached Spain. The first episode lasted 90 minutes; for the remaining four 60-minute episodes, the goal was to avoid earning Black Marks, which the Bosuns allocated for unacceptable behaviour and inadequate performances. Whichever team member acquired the most Black Marks upon docking at the next destination was forced to walk the plank. Another crewmate was kicked off in Episode 3 for allegedly inciting mutiny. Aside from sailing, cleaning and cooking duties, a set of challenges were conducted during the journey, including swimming (Keel Haul), arm-wrestling, tug-of-war and the "Rowing Barrel Challenge". It was of both teams' incentives to do well in these competitions, as they would earn food treats, time off and other vital provisions.

The Kaskelot travelled to Spain, Portugal, Gibraltar and Madeira, before finally docking at La Gomera. By the show's fifth episode, only ten contestants remained. Each team voted off one final shipmate before they engaged in locating and re-assembling cannon parts situated within La Gomera. Whichever team subsequently found the buried treasure jointly shared the cash prize.

Availability

According to a Campaign article, Press-Ganged was originally set for a primetime slot in Autumn 2004. Based on information from TV Forum user Jenny, the show was first scheduled for September 2004 before mysteriously being pulled at the last minute. Planned reschedules in January, April and July 2005 also did not come to fruition, generating discussions on Digital Spy Forum and TV Forum concerning Press-Ganged's future. The show's unclear status prompted UKGameshows to not reveal which team proved victorious in the final episode. By January 2006, the programme was still reportedly being showcased on ITV Nightscreen. On 9th April 2015, The Greg Scott Channel of Random Loveliness uploaded a January 2006 ITV Nightscreen broadcast which confirmed Press-Ganged was still "Coming Soon".

Yet despite the constant advertisements and reschedules, Press-Ganged ended up becoming among several ITV programmes that were produced but never aired a single episode. The reasons behind ITV's decision to indefinitely shelve the programme have not been disclosed. Outside of a few photographs provided by the 2006 ITV Nightscreen broadcast, UKGameshows also acquired a publicity shot featuring most of the contestants. No footage from the show has been made publicly available.

Gallery

Images

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  The show promoted on ITV Nightscreen (2/3).

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  The show promoted on ITV Nightscreen (3/3).

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  A publicity shot acquired by UKGameshows.

See Also

• Man Versus Beast (lost unaired ITV adaptation of Fox reality show; 2003)