FAKING It fans have branded the show’s reboot a ‘fix’ – as it returns after 19 years.
The premise sees a brave volunteer dropped into a completely alien world and given just four weeks – and help from a handful of mentors – to master a new skill and convince a panel of experts that they are the real deal.
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Channel 5‘s reboot kicked off with Surrey luxury estate agent Rex swap properties for northern street markets.
Working gruelling 10-hour shifts, viewers watched Rex struggle to keep up, blend in and sound like a proper northerner.
However, he managed to convince two out of three market inspectors that he was a proper northern market trader.
Only one of the trio said: “There was something a little not quite there for me with the butcher. He was almost convincing!”
The others, however, felt he was genuine when he went up against a real-life baker, florist and dog treat seller.
Taking to X, some viewers branded the series a “fix” as they questioned the plausibility of not sussing out Rex as the phony.
One wrote: “Im calling B******t that two out the three didnt know Rex was #FakingIt.”
Another penned: “I’m watching the judges pretending not to know which the fake guy was. #FakingIt.”
Wheeler dealer and TV personality Tom Skinner was on hand to help coach Rex through the experience.
Although he initially criticised the newcomer’s slow start, stall display and lack of sales pitches.
Tom said: “To me, it looks like a warehouse storeroom doesn’t it… your store should look like Harrods. You’ve got to make as much as the space you’ve got, yeah?”
After Rex forgot everything Tom told him about pitching, the former Apprentice star said: “Mate, I have no heard you once talk about your stock to anyone.
“You need to be a walking advert. When they walk past… bring them in.”
Rex’s confidence grew, however, following a crash course from a dialect coach, as well as the ultimate test of hosting a pub quiz using his new northern twang.
Top Channel 5 dramas
Channel 5 has become a hub for gripping drama, these are some of the best My5 has to offer.
- All Creatures Great and Small – Based on the best-selling novels by real-life vet Alf Wright, the show revolves around a trio of vets working in the Yorkshire Dales in the late 1930s. Eccentric Siegfried Farnon (Samuel West) hires James Herriot (Nicholas Ralph) for his veterinary practice at Skeldale House alongside himself and his younger brother Tristan (Callum Woodhouse). There James settles into his new life and even finds love with local farmer’s daughter Helen (Rachel Shenton).
- The Ex-Wife – New parents Tasha (Céline Buckens) and Jack (Tom Misson) seem to have the perfect life, but the constant presence of Jack’s overly friendly but suspicious ex-wife Jen (Janet Montgomery) puts pressure on the couple. But as the series progresses it becomes less clear who the bad guy really is and how far everyone will go to get the life they think they deserve.
- Heat – EastEnders alum Danny Dyer leads this four-part action thriller, set in Australia, which sees two families holidaying together during bushfire season. But instead of rest and relaxation, secrets and lies start to unravel — and not everyone will make it out alive…
- Lie With Me – Another soap legend jets off to Australia, this time its EastEnders alum Charlie Brooks who takes as a married woman trying to saving her marriage by moving halfway around the world after her husband had an affair. However it’s far from plain sailing, as a young and attractive live-in nanny comes to work with the Fallmont family, and tensions soon build and eventually, someone ends up dead.
- The Drowning – Jill Halfpenny plays Jodie, a woman whose life is shattered following the disappearance of her beloved four-year-old son, Daniel. However, ten years later, the grieving mother thinks she’s finally found her missing child, and embarks on a journey to discover the truth about him. But has she really just found the son she has been missing for so long?
In addition, the posh boy was treated to an amazing hair transformation and some fake tattoos.
Faking It originally aired on Channel 4 from 2000 to 2006 and was highly acclaimed in this run.
The show, which can still be streamed on Channel 4‘s online platform, won two BAFTA awards.
Production company Banijay revived the iconic programme on Channel 5.
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