The big question on everyone’s mind going into Celebrity Bear Hunt is: will Bear Grylls fulfil his memetic destiny by making celebrities drink their own wee? Pee-drinking as a survival tactic is generously teased in the trailer, but this Netflix survival show has a surprising amount of high camp comedy to keep you hooked, too.
Jungle survival is a mainstay of celebrity reality television, and Bear Grylls is a veteran of the genre. He’s on top form here, mugging for the camera as he parachutes and rappels from helicopters, stalking stars through the bush with whispered commentary like a bloodthirsty David Attenborough. Holly Willoughby, while reduced to wearing camo Barbie outfits to Grylls’ grittier Action Man get-up (his Jack Wolfskin brand partnership clearly on display), gamely undercuts her co-host’s braggadocio with a winking asides to camera.
The premise is simple enough. Celebrities are plucked from their lives of comfort and forced to live without phones and air-conditioning while they attempt to learn survival skills (lesson number one? be like an alert and frightened deer, apparently). Failure to work together and complete a challenge means an hour in the Bear Pit being hunted by Grylls. There will be cliffhangers, literally and metaphorically. It’s The Most Dangerous Game meets Jungle Run.
Netflix has signed on an impressive array of stars to subject themselves to the trials. Mel B is on top form with her leopard print French tip mani and Spice Girls reunion tidbits. Boris Becker broodingly refusing to talk about doing time in prison but bringing it up regularly. Shirley Ballas, far from the Strictly ballroom but emanating charm. Laurence Llewelyn-Bowen chewing the scenery in sunglasses and flowing shirts.
There’s also Una Healy of The Saturdays, actors Joe Thomas (who really does sound like his Inbetweeners character) and Kola Bokinni, BBC broadcaster Steph McGovern, and tough-as-nails model Leomie Anderson (she’s survived model apartments, so competition and creepy crawlies don’t faze her)/
The lower tier famous-for-being-famous celebs keep their end up. Lottie Moss (“I’m best known for being Kate Moss’s sister”), Big Zuu (a rapper and television personality adept at hogging the limelight), and Danny Cipriani (looking to escape his tabloid fodder reputation). Importantly, they all have great chemistry with each other and the camera, with boring sob stories kept to a minimum.
There are traps, snakes, crocodiles, and the risk of overhearing in-depth conversations about bowel movements. While Grylls seems omnipotently on hand to prevent anyone getting into any serious trouble, it does appear the peril was real. He saves Llewelyn-Bowen from a near-drowning within the opening credits. His capture method of gently commanding his prey to stand down then carefully tying their hands will have anyone with a competence kink swooning, if that’s your thing.
The show also benefits from high camp production values. Drone shots pan over lush greenery with ominous music, snakes hiss in the B-roll, and every moment of celebrity fear captured with multiple camera angles. Challenges are visualised digitally with Hunger Games-esque graphics. The booby-trapped Bear Pit is accessed via spooky gates that looked like they were retrieved from the set of Pirates of the Caribbean.
It’s a huge amount of fun – to watch from the comfort of your own sofa, that is. The only part where you may want to cover your eyes in fear is during the camp dinners. Do no celebrities know how to properly hold a fork?
