WITH its full-frontal nudity and candid discussions of sexual preferences, Naked Attraction is one of TV’s most controversial shows.
But host Anna Richardson says that mums and dads are now viewing the programme with their teens to combat the rise of porn – and she thinks it should be screened in schools.
The presenter told Fabulous: “Parents have said to me they put it on and watch with their 16-year-old sons because they want them to see what real women look like.
“We know that we’ve got a big problem with pornography. It’s time that we kicked back against that and against violence towards women, and started showing this is what ordinary people look like and what ordinary bodies look like.
“That is the beauty of the show – there’s an educational element. I’d be on board with getting it shown in schools.
“There is nothing titillating about Naked Attraction. There is nothing pornographic or sexual exciting - if anything, it’s like opening up a biology manual.
“It’s also asking: what do we find attractive? We are given those aesthetic norms from pornography but in the show, we disprove that and show that people like a bit of a ‘dad bod’ or don’t mind women with hairy legs.”
The Channel 4 dating show is now on its 12th series, despite scores of complaints to Ofcom since it was launched in July 2016.
Anna believes its ongoing success is because it is “family viewing”, just like Strictly.
“Weirdly, it’s quite multigenerational, like Strictly Come Dancing,” she says.
“You can watch with your parents, even if you are looking between your fingers, or you can watch it with your kids. People tell me they do this and have a good laugh.
“But it also has a game at the heart of it and you are trying to guess who people are going to date.
“There’s also the human desire to compare yourself to others. I think it makes you feel better about yourself.
“You’ve got that end of the pier, Benny Hill titillation that is very British too. We cry with laughter watching it because of the innuendo and because people are prepared to play up to it.”
The 53-year-old presenter has quite literally seen it all in the last eight years but continues to be surprised by the people who appear as contestants.
“There is always someone who comes in and you think: 'Wow. You’re a lawyer and you are coming on here?’,” she says.
“Judith the church goer is the classic example - a middle aged woman with life experiences who is looking to love again and is wild underneath.
“Who can forget her? She broke the internet and became an absolute sensation like her Casio keyboard and her homemade cake.”
Anna’s other favourite contestants include long-haired amateur wrestler Jet Fashion, who had “no sense of irony”.
“He told us that he’d smashed into a woman’s vagina so hard, she ended up in A&E and he sent her a Moonpig card as a way of apology,” she says.
“He was one of the funniest people I’ve ever met but didn’t realise why he was so funny.
“From the first series, we had a Matty with a prosthetic leg and the biggest penis you’ve ever seen - who had a tattoo of elephant ears coming out of either side of his testicles.
“That was an eye-opener for everybody.”
While Matty was chosen over five other butt-naked blokes for a date, Anna says being well-endowed is often a hindrance for men who come on Naked Attraction hoping to be selected.
“We’ve had a few chaps with enormous penises who shamefacedly get picked off in the first round because we have women going: ‘I can’t deal with that’,” she says.
“They wander off saying it happens all the time. We do break those myths about being well endowed being desired.”
But Anna, who also presents the recent Changing Rooms reboot, doesn’t worry about contestants being rejected for their physical appearance.
“The person picking always couches in in a positive and we have a really strict duty of care team and regime, so we ensure no body leaves feeling worse about themselves,” she says.
“In my experience, everyone who takes part has been buzzing afterwards.
“I think it’s probably like throwing yourself out of a plane – they love being naked and feel really good about themselves.”
But there is one thing contestant do get anxious about during filming – the setting of the thermostat.
“Boys want it to be warm so their willies look bigger and forever playing with their willies and their nuts,” Anna reveals.
“And the girls want the air con on so their boobs look perky. It’s a constant fight.
“The crew are either sweating or having to put fleeces on. That’s the only downside of the job – the temperature in the studio.”
“I draw the line at going under the knife but I enjoy trying to look as fresh as I can possibly look... I’m totally up for botox."
Naked Attraction host Anna Richardson
Documentary veteran Anna says being allowed to see other human bodies in all their glory, at such close proximity, has been a great honour for her.
“I’ve been privileged to be exposed to people’s bodies - those who are transitioning, those with stomas or who are amputees,” she says.
“That is a privilege, to stand there in front of somebody who been prepared to take their kit off. That makes you far more accepting and, I think, a little kinder.”
But while she is happy to strip off her own clothes on a nudist beach abroad, Anna says baring all on British TV is a different matter.
“Am I OK with my body on holiday? Yes. Would I ever go on TV and take your clothes off – only if there was an actual purpose to it,” she says.
“I’m starting to say ‘never say never’. I’d certainly do it in a Full Monty kind of a way for a show that is raising awareness.”
The TV star admits that her relationship with her body is complicated as it ages – and she wouldn’t rule out a bit of artificial help.
“As you get older, your body really does change – I can see that myself,” says Anna, who grew up as a vicar's daughter in Shropshire.
“The menopause, even though it’s natural, it does change things – you have to learn to be accepting. What becomes more of a driver is making sure you are healthy as you age.
“I draw the line at going under the knife but I enjoy trying to look as fresh as I can possibly look, as a woman going through the menopause whose oestrogen has just slammed into the floor.
“I’m totally up for botox and will mess about with a bit of filler, I’ve tried threads.
“At the moment I’m very curious about aesthetic gynaecology. I was at an event recently and they were talking about how everything down there – your vulva, your uterus, your clitoris – ages.
“And rather than having to accept things like vaginal atrophy and potentially suffer with incontinence, there is something you can do about that.
“We focus so much on how we look and our face, we will talk about every gadget and cream going in terms of anti-ageing, but we totally ignore our vulva and everything else. I’m totally guilty of that.
“We’re focusing on having the botox and not doing anything for our mini.”
Naked Attraction is on Channel 4 on Wednesdays at 10pm.
