Virgin Island line-up revealed and why the sex and intimacy show is so controversial

Yahoo

13-05-2025

Virgin Island has invited adult virgins to a Mediterranean retreat to learn about intimacy in Channel 4's new experimental reality series.
University College London found one in eight 26-year-olds are still virgins, compared to one in 20 in previous generations.
Now a groundbreaking six-part series sees 12 brave individuals to embark on the intimacy course with the help of sexologists. Channel 4 describe the show as "warm, authentic and thought-provoking".
Sexologists Dr Danielle Harel and Celeste Hirschman lead their team of specialists in the field to help the virgins at the retreat overcome their fears and issues surrounding intimacy.
Their approaches range from a surrogate partner therapy, including where naked sex coaches encourage the participants to pleasure them, to group sessions.
Those taking part are staying at the resort for two weeks with the goal that they have had sex by the end of the show.
Contestant Emma praised the show for tackling the "controversial" issue that some young people are avoiding sex which isn't often talked about.
Watch the Virgin Island trailer
She said: "I admired the fact Channel 4 was bringing something to TV which shines light on a topic some people may typically tiptoe around or find controversial.
"The fact that this concept was being brought to TV made me realise being over 21 and never having sex was not as rare as I thought it was. I think important attention is being brought to the fact that statistics show a significant decline in sexual activity since the 2000s."
From an accountant who wants to get rid of the boring label to a civil servant who has struggled with dating apps, here are the people taking part in the series.
Aged 30, Ben feels like it's time to catch up on sex. The civil servant has kept avoiding sex, despite going on lots of dating apps. Previously he has had a lack of dating experience at school and university.
He says: "The first time I saw the casting call for Virgin Island, it was actually from a friend sending it to me via social media. I'm not sure if he knew I was a virgin, but he knew I'd struggled in this area. Funnily enough, my immediate response to his message was 'not a chance'".
Emma has felt left out in her friendship group because she hasn't had sex. The young woman hailed the broadcaster for tackling a taboo topic.
She says: "I was the only virgin amongst my friendship group. At the age of 15/16 this may not be significant. However, at 23, I felt outnumbered. I believed I was the only human experiencing adult life without intimacy."
Accountants often are labelled as 'boring' but Dave is ready to shake up his life, even though he is "terrified".
He says: "An initial joke by some friends for some cheap laughs slowly became the opportunity of a lifetime. I have always struggled to open up to people in any manner as I'm naturally very cautious. This led me to feel invisible.
"A feeling I couldn't take anymore. I felt like it couldn't continue and I wanted to do something drastic to get my life back on track. It's also surprisingly quicker to get therapy from a Channel 4 TV show than from the NHS."
Jason's family think Virgin Island will help boost his confidence as he feels awkward chatting to women but at the same time is lonely.
He says: "My intimacy life was non-existent and I decided to do something about it. Virgin Island was something out of my comfort zone but a necessity – it has made me a million times better!
"I always felt like a failure in terms of intimacy and socialness. I know the island was primarily for intimacy, but it had the amazing bonus of helping me improve my social skills – and for that, I will be forever grateful."
Louise wants to date but she worries about getting pregnant and didn't have a positive male role model growing up.
She says: "To be honest, I never really imagined applying for a show like 'Virgin Island.' My friend actually sent me the application as a joke, and I thought, 'Why not?' I was at the point where I was willing to try anything and had just accepted that there must've just been something wrong with me — I think the fact that my friends would see the word 'virgin' and think of me says enough to be honest.
"At the time, I was the only virgin in my large friend group, and it felt like a bit of a joke in itself. But as I got deeper into the process, I realised it could be an opportunity to step out of my comfort zone and experience something new."
At 29 years old, Charlotte is worried about being a virgin when she turns 30. After losing six stone (40kg) in weight, she's taking action by starring on Virgin Island.
She says: "I wanted to rid myself of my shame that I had surrounding my body, and my desire, and my ability to give myself pleasure, I wanted to be honest with myself so that I would not be hindered when having relationships in the future."
Dog groomer Holly worries when a kiss could go further because she has been afraid to show someone else her body. It all stems back to being bullied at school for her weight.
She says: "I felt like I was at a point in my life where I was ready to experience being with someone, but I had a lot of anxiety and questions about myself that I felt I had to work through before taking that step."
After a romance came to an end at 19 years old, Pia hasn't dated anyone really other than going on the odd date from a dating app but nothing has come to fruition.
She says: "I applied for Virgin Island because of my struggles with vaginismus. I wanted to overcome the pain and anxiety I felt when exploring penetrative sex. Plus, I found intimacy incredibly overwhelming. Processing all of the intense emotions I felt was hard for me — whether they were positive or negative."
Receptionist Taylor worries she will spend the rest of her life alone after watching her sisters and friends start families. Turning 29 at the retreat, she's finally ready to address the issues she has around intimacy after never having a positive sexual experience in the past.
She says: "In my early twenties being a virgin was almost fetishised, people made me feel uncomfortable with how excited they were to be the first, only to then get annoyed that I wasn't willing to give them my first time immediately. I felt like I was holding onto something useless and awkward but everyone wanted to take it and smash it and I wasn't comfortable with that happening.
"I had fully given up and was just getting on with my life when I saw a TikTok of one of my favourite comedians, Taylor Tomlinson, making a joke about Channel 4 making a show about virgins. I thought that sounded like an interesting concept then, when I read their application specifications I realised, this was me."
Tom missed out on meeting girls and having sex at university because of the Covid lockdowns. While his friends are getting lucky on nights out, the drama graduate has often been asked if he is gay.
He says: "For the longest time, my virginity contributed to my self-identity. I always found myself to be a freak because I struggled to lose it whilst others around me continued to pop their cherries. It severely affected my mental health, filling me with self-loathing which in turn made me a worse person.
"By the time I applied, I was at an incredibly low point in my life. The decision came shortly after New Year's 2023/24 which I had spent alone after a year in which I lost most of my friends as well as my self-confidence and I struggled to hold down a job.
"My love life was non-existent and playing into my self-hatred so when one of my remaining friends sent the application to me, with all of this in my mind, I leapt at the opportunity."
As a Hindu, Viraj's family believe in arranged marriages but he would like to find someone more "naturally". However, the gamer doesn't get the chance to speak to women much and would like to improve his chat.
He says: "I applied to Virgin Island because I know I had a massive struggle to express myself in front of women. For me it wasn't about the intimacy stage but more with the confidence side of talking to women and making small talk. This whole idea was encouraged by my friends for me to get out of my comfort zone and go through with this."
Delivery driver Zac feels his virginity impacts him daily and erodes away at his confidence.
He says: "I first heard about the casting on social media there was a man reporting that Channel 4 was looking for adult virgins to take part in an experimental TV show. This was of course describing me, ha ha.
"At first I was like — no way, I'm not gonna do that, but I started to think about it more and more, and I realised that I wasn't really getting anywhere by myself, time was just passing me by with no real positive change."
Virgin Island starts on Channel at 9pm, Monday