BBC News Online: Entertainment

Naked Chegwin show sparks debate

Channel 5 said it had received around 50 calls about Naked Jungle, which went out on Tuesday night.

But a spokesman insisted the feelings expressed ranged between love and hate.

"The calls we have had were evenly split between people who were appreciative and critical of the show," the spokesman said.

But he added that at least one female viewer had been surprisingly grateful for the show's risqué humour.

"We had a call from one woman who thanked us for snapping her out of her post-natal depression. She said it was the first thing that had made her laugh for months."

Ratings

Billed as the "gameshow for naturists", Naked Jungle was broadcast as part of Channel 5's celebration of naturism week.

The programme saw naked host Chegwin - of Big Breakfast and Cheggers Plays Pop fame - leading male and female contestants - in a similar state of undress - through a series of demanding puzzles in a jungle environment.

The games included tests such as the Pool of Death and Waterfall of Venus. Nothing was left to the imagination as contestants swung and abseiled their way through the set.

The Independent Television Commission said it had received only one complaint about Naked Jungle.

But it proved the highest rating entertainment programme on Channel 5 this year, drawing two million viewers and 20% of share of the total audience for that time of night.