Shattered (British TV series)

Did You Know?

• 34 complaints were made to Ofcom about the effects of sleep deprivation on the contestants.
• Ofcom said none of its programme guidelines were breached.
• 1.8 million viewers watched both the first and second episodes.

Premise and challenges

The show was set in a fake lab built inside a disused shopping centre in Wapping. Ten people, aged 19 to 33, took part. Each night, one was voted off, leading to a final sleep-off. Before the live first episode, contestants stayed awake for 36 hours, then got a two-hour nap. They could not use medicines, alcohol, drugs, electronics, phones, or musical instruments. They faced physical and mental tests, including memory challenges. The person whose performance dropped the most each day was put up for elimination. Every day, the group picked someone for a "You Snooze You Lose" challenge, which lasted an hour and involved things like hugging teddy bears, hearing a bedtime story in a hot room, or watching paint dry from a comfy chair. On the last day, everyone went to bed. The last one awake won. Jonathan Wood and Chris Wandel fell asleep in under 15 minutes. Clare Southern stayed awake almost two hours before producers stopped the contest. She had gone 178 hours without sleep and won £97,000.

Health effects

Contestants received intermittent naps, daily sessions with a psychiatrist and doctor, and had a doctor on call 24 hours a day, with an ethics board advising on issues. Adverse effects of sleep deprivation were evident: Chris reported major hallucinations and believed himself to be the Prime Minister of Australia, and Lucy left the show after consulting with psychologists. No significant long-term health consequences were reported, with only weight gain and jet lag lasting a few days mentioned.