Review: Boys and Girls Alone - Channel 4

I totally disagree with the comparison of this to Lord of the Flies being an over-reaction.......it is completely relevant to this kind of "social-experiment" and just as frightening! 

I watched Phillip & Fern previewing this programme on This Morning and I felt their frustration with the Channel 4 spokesperson at her avoiding answering certain questions and at the obvious coaching by the programme makers (and the parents) of the children as to what to say about the programme.
 
I decided to make up my own mind and watched the first episode and was so incensed by it.  Some bright spark in Channel 4's office has obviously read or watched Lord of the Flies for the first time and, rather than heeding the warning that was in the story, has decided hey wouldn't it be entertaining to make this for real with children from this generation.  In a word no, in fact I found it very disturbing that Channel 4 would think that this would be in anyway anything other than completely frightening.  The whole point of Lord of the Flies is that it was a fictitious story highlighting how a lawless society can reduce even the most intelligent to the most savage acts in order to ensure their survival and using children as the protagonists in the book made the message even more hard hitting and shocking. The author ensured that his message was heard without anyone actually being scarred, mentally or physically, something that was completely lost on the makers of this horrible programme.
 
It does not take a rocket scientist to realise that without rules, laws and responsibilities we would descend into a world of chaos so I fail to see what this so-called experiment was hoping to achieve.  Putting together a group of children who for one reason or another would have not had the skills of 95% of children such as manners and a basic sense of right & wrong was bound to cause explosive situations, filming such situations just became sinister and voyeuristic in a very uncomfortable way.
 
I am sure these children were chosen because they had personality traits and failings that would cause arguments, if there had been children in there who could cope and be someone the younger kids could learn from then it wouldn't have been so "entertaining".  But I cannot lay the blame for this horrendous show entirely at Channel 4's door, I mean what the hell were the parents thinking!?!? Certainly not about the children's welfare that's for sure!!!
 
I would be appalled and ashamed if my child (I have a one year old girl) was acting the way the older girls were, not parading her on TV and glorifying in her complete lack of manners and decency.  Those girls are exactly the type of child I am terrified my daughter will meet as she grows up but I am sure that if she does I would not just watch from the sidelines as she was bullied until she was sobbing in fear.  Where on earth did those girls get the idea to write such frightening things on the wall and why was no-one worried about this!?
 
At 8 years of age I would hope that my child would just be enjoying being a child and only know the carefree joys that that brings.  Even at 11 I would hope that she would be able to do simple things on her own but know that I was there to guide and protect her, not leave her to fend for herself.  Surely the job of a parent is just that?  Everyone is remarking on how children are growing up too fast but isn't that what this show is forcing its test subjects to do!?  Parents are there to ensure that a child grows up knowing right from wrong, that it is not okay to behave in certain ways and that there are skills that everyone needs in order to live a healthy long life. Removing a still learning child from that environment to be in an experiment has just created a group of children with a whole new set of problems they wouldn't ordinarily of had so that the adults can have their fifteen minutes of fame.
 
I have no objection to adult reality shows as they can make informed decisions on how taking part will affect them mentally and physically with enough life experience to draw on to cope with difficult situations when they arise.  How can the same be possibly said of an 8 or even 11 year old!?!  I have watched reality shows with children on the BBC  & channel 5, scheduled so that children can watch, where they are taken to Africa, Australia and America to learn about different cultures and pick up life skills by being cowboys, helping on nature reserves and farms and they have been very uplifting shows, however this was because they were always supervised and supported by chaperones.  The children learned as they were supposed to by experience but always with guidance.
 
I will not be watching this exploitative and damaging programme again and I urge other like minded people to do the same and make their feelings known in the only way the programme makers will understand....by watching something else instead.  Maybe if the ratings plummet they may suddenly develop some morals and think twice before commissioning anything else like this.
 
I now know why the spokesperson was so evasive about putting this on after the watershed....this appalling programme could never be shown to children as they would be terrified to let you out of their sight lest this should actually happen to them!!

I'm not sure whether or not I agree with this show. On the one hand, these kids are a bit young to be expecte to fend for themselves and it does feel quite wrong for them to be paraded on tv. However, it does raise some interesting questions. I don't feel it's got anything new to say about "what would happen in a society without law and order?", but provokes questions like "Why was sorting out the house, decorating and making dinner a main priority for the girls while the boys just played all day?", "Why did the girls have the confidence to make cakes and cook spag bog while one boy couldn't make a pot noodle and another ate a bowl of beans with dried spaghetti crushed into it?", "Why are the boys more physical in terms of intimidation, while the girls are more manipulative and psycological in their attacks?", "Why do the younger girls seem more mature than the older ones?". Another interesting thing I found in this programme is that one of the younger girls had said something along the lines of that she wouldn't want to be a housewife as she would have to cook and clean all day while the man just sat in front of the tele and watched....A rather sweeping statement perhaps, but very much echoed in the way the boys and girls handled cooking and housework, and also when the parents stepped in and the boy's mothers cleaned up the house for them while the fathers went to play outside with the kids...

Thank God my daughter aged 11 didn't get through the interview to be on experiment.

i love this show i am 14 and i just love the emotion and the whole  drama of the show i wouls love to bee in 1 an i wish i was gunna be in season two i wish i could it would be amazing and if you do give me a ring!!!!

For those of us with children and for those thinking of becoming parents... it is worth watching this programme because there is something in there for all of us to take on board. A lot of us think our children are so wonderful they could not harm a fly, yet behind closed doors some of the behaviours they portray may leave many of us parents shaking in our boots.

I am pretty sure those parents who agreed to their children taking part were confident that their child was well adjusted enough to conduct themselves in a manner which would make their parents proud... They had an opportunity to show off their child in what I am sure they thought would end with them boosting their egos, patting themselves on the shoulders thinking ' Look world... I have such a wonderful child' Instead they are no longer feeling smug, they are instead probably cringing in a corner with embarrassment, wishing they had never put themselves forward to participate in such an experiment.

Instead of criticizing the show we need to watch it with a view to learning how we need to go about teaching our children better values, teaching them manners, teaching them how to love...  To be able to teach our children basic sound values that will enable them to develop into sound citizens that we can be proud of.

It is never to soon to teach a child manners, to teach a child how to behave when they are around other people, to teach a child how to love and care for others, it is never too soon..

To say that the children in the house are behaving the way they are because of their age is totally incorrect... When is it then the correct age to teach a child to be kind to another child, when is it the correct age to tell a child not to bully others... With the exception of the handling of money and preparing of food, I would say that every child in there is capable of behaving in a civilised and proper manner...

As for the boys not organising themselves resulting in them not having anything to eat and getting all their clothes wet.. I say that some of us mothers are to blame. However we are slowly waking up and realising that there is no reason why we can't get the boys and girls as equally involved in all chores...

It is through watching a programme like this that we can observe the negative behaviours' in these children and in turn question how we as parents might be doing things wrong/right. None of us as parents are immune when it comes to having a child that is not perfect... and as such we should not sit in such high moral judgement of any other parent. I truly believe that the majority of us are always trying to do the best that we can.

Stop criticising, watch the show with an open mind and feel very sorry for the parents who have exposed themselves and their children to this experiment...

I think this programme is great! I'd forgotten just how horrible children can be towards each other - as adults we tend to just remove ourselves from the awkward situations or people that life throws at us. I think it's interesting that the younger children are far more sympathetic towards their peers and actively seek a way in which to include the 'outcasts' and find solutions to the problems encountered. Perhaps this is an innocence that evaporates as you age but what a shame I'm sure we could all learn alot from all of these children even taking into consideration the negative elements! There are several kids that really stand out to me, perhaps because I can relate to them in ways, but other children I would be mortified to be associated with and I certainly hope that, now that their Mums and Dads have seen their true colours, will transform into pleasant adult individuals, learning from the feedback from this programme.  I definitely think that these children are learning important life skills that will help them in later life, I certainly believe that alot of these children would never have had the chance to experience half of the experiences that they have encountered during their stay and think that, perhaps, this would be a great opportunity for all kids albeit not televised. For me, as a parent, I couldn't cope. Seeing my child upset and in tears would be heartbreaking as I am sure it is for every parent of every child taking part in this series so whilst I agree with Anonymous above I also think that it's good for the parents to see their kids in their true colours and hope that they, the parents, as well as the viewers can learn from these brave children as they are all brave in their own ways. Perhaps society would be a better place if we all had been through this as children? Scary thought...

i thought the show was great! I want to be on the next on if they have one!

hello this is bradley i really love this show and i would like to be on it . because i want to know what life will be like  when my parents leave me . i am a very carm person but some times i  can swear when i am annoyed , but i try not to .