Former BBC producer, Danny Wallace has headed off to an island, somewhere off New Zealand, in order to present this years Castawy on BBC1.
The presenter believes that one of the greatest challenges facing the group will be how to cope with the psychological pressure of being thrust into a community of total strangers from whom there is no escape.
“I think the secret will be to find someone to bond with quite quickly and to try not to be divisive. You probably need to lose any sense of bitchiness and avoid gossip, which, when you’ve got nothing else to do, would be incredibly hard, especially in a high-pressure environment where every little event is magnified,” he says.
“I don’t know if I’d be able to cope with it. On some shows I’ve seen, people start off one way and, as time goes by, elements of their personality start to emerge that maybe they’ve suppressed because they don’t like them. I think everyone has light and shade to them. I’d be really worried that, after a few weeks, I’d start to get grumpy or I’d say things I didn’t mean because of the pressure.”
Danny, however, will see just how the castaways are coping for himself when he joins them once a week to spring a surprise upon the group during the live BBC One programme.
“Each week, I will reveal something to them – and it could be anything,” he explains. “It won’t be regimented but it will keep them on their toes, so they might grow to become quite cautious of me.”
When pressed, he reveals that the “something” could be a challenge or a change that will see the group evolve – and could even involve viewers at home.
“There will be chances for viewers to get involved in various different ways – it’s going to be a very interactive series. There will also be the chance for one viewer to actually come out and join the castaways part way through,” he says, guardedly. “But there’ll be more details on all that when the series starts.”
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