Shown on Britain’s Channel Five as part of Naturism Week, The Naked Jungle was an adventure-style game show, in which a naked Cheggers – once a darling of children’s television – led ten nude men and women through a series of challenges to win a prize.
The contestants (of all shapes and sizes) ranged from 18 years old to 45, and – with the usual lumps and bumps – none of them were a particular credit to the naked body as they ran and swung through a studio set wearing helmets and safety harnesses that often looked like they were riding up into areas the contestants would prefer they didn’t.
The show was made over two days in September 1999 at a location near Doncaster in South Yorkshire.
The first day was devoted to a walk-through of the sets and games for the contestants and host Keith Chegwin, as well as an opportunity for the film crew to test their camera angles and technical aspects of the production.
The studio temperature was set at more than 30°C for the actual filming, and Cheggers was told he could participate without stripping. He opted to join in the fun, though – much to the chagrin of the viewing public.
The players competed in groups until the final game (the prize round, named ‘The Temple of the Body’), and in each game – ‘The Swamp’, ‘The Lost Camp’, ‘The Chasm’, ‘The Tomb’, and ‘The Rapids’ – the object was to gather fig leaves and other objects, or to complete a task against the clock.
Aiming more for comedy than for titillation, the show received only one complaint and ended up being Five’s most-watched entertainment show of the year, with more than two million tuning in – a 20% share.
A pith-helmet-wearing Cheggers said, “I enjoyed doing it. It was a bit of a giggle.”
Not everyone was as happy about the aftermath of the programme, though. Aspiring Liberal Democrat councillor and self-confessed naturist Helen Swain appeared on the show.
Subsequently, leaflets showing her naked and standing beside Chegwin were used as part of a dirty-tricks campaign to stop her from winning a seat in Mirfield, West Yorkshire.
The photos were posted through letterboxes, and she ended up in third place. Swain told the Daily Mail, “Just because I was photographed naked doesn’t mean I’d be a bad councillor. ”
The contestants (of all shapes and sizes) ranged from 18 years old to 45, and – with the usual lumps and bumps – none of them were a particular credit to the naked body as they ran and swung through a studio set wearing helmets and safety harnesses that often looked like they were riding up into areas the contestants would prefer they didn’t.
The players competed in groups until the final game (the prize round, named ‘The Temple of the Body’), and in each game – ‘The Swamp’, ‘The Lost Camp’, ‘The Chasm’, ‘The Tomb’, and ‘The Rapids’ – the object was to gather fig leaves and other objects, or to complete a task against the clock.
Not everyone was as happy about the aftermath of the programme, though. Aspiring Liberal Democrat councillor and self-confessed naturist Helen Swain appeared on the show.
