How to Look Good Naked | |
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Created by | Maverick Television |
Presented by | Gok Wan |
Country of origin | United Kingdom |
Production | |
Executive producer(s) | Riaz Patel, Alex Fraser, Jo Rosenfelder, Jim Sayer, Chris Coelen, Greg Goldman, Carson Kressley |
Producer(s) | Paula Archer, Aja Becher, Jerry Carita, Andrea Chung, Elizabeth Davies, Diane DeStefano, David Garfield, Atousa Hojatpanah, Valana Hunn, Camilla Rahaman, Richard D. Tucci |
Release | |
Original network | Channel 4 |
First shown in | 2006 - present |
External links | |
Website |
How to Look Good Naked is a television program, first aired on British Channel 4 in 2006, in which fashion stylist Gok Wan encourages women and men who are insecure with their bodies to strip nude for the camera. The programme is unique among other similar makeover shows in that it never encourages participants to undergo cosmetic surgery or lose weight. The US format premiered on Lifetime Television in 2008 with Carson Kressley hosting, it was the #1 Unscripted Show on the network at the time.
The format of the show is based on activities designed to build the woman's self esteem. These include photographing the woman naked and then displaying a very large picture of the woman's body in a public place, such as projected onto the side of a building or on the side of a van, and asking passers-by what they think of them. Viewers typically respond very positively, which builds the woman's self-esteem. Wan burns the woman's current underwear and then replaces it with more flattering underwear, including "tummy tuck pants". At the end of each episode, Wan asks the woman to walk down the modeling catwalk showing her new nude look to family and friends.
In more recent episodes, Wan has used a variety of very personal tactics designed to encourage women to love their bodies and feel sexy. He has had women pose naked in London shop windows, stopped women on the street and asked if they have Lady Lines, published the image of a semi-naked woman on the front of a fake newspaper titled Naked News, and then handed the newspaper out on a busy London street.
Wan's favourite and most famous catchphrases include "bangers", which is his pet name for women's breasts, and "gorgeous", often calling the women participating in the show "girlfriend". Many of his other catchphrases are puns on his name, such as "Gok shock" and "fairy Gok mother". In his most recent series Wan has introduced a new feature aimed at giving style and beauty advice to men, which he calls "Wan for the boys".
American Series:
The U.S. version of How to Look Good Naked airs on Lifetime, and is hosted by Carson Kressley. The show was promoted on The Oprah Winfrey Show, in addition to receiving rave reviews from the New York Times and the L.A. Times. Its premiere was the biggest in the network's 24-year history. The US version has aired on Network Ten in Australia, E4 in the UK and RTL Lounge in the Netherlands.