Is ITV's You're Back in the Room a Fake Hypnosis show?
Posted on
Is ITV's Hypnosis show You're Back in the Room a Fake...?
It's looking like a massive hit on your ITV Screens on Saturday evenings. It's hosted by Philip Schofield and mentalist and magician Keith Barry is taking the role of the stage hypnotist, helping to create mayhem with the contestants. I've already talked about it a little and there is a Youtube video that you can watch where I talk about stage hypnosis here...this is being described as marmite television..some people have even called it a fraud...is it just a throw away television show or will it raise awareness of the fact you can use hypnotherapy to help you to quit smoking, lose weight and end diets forever, stop panic attacks and deal with stress and anxiety and end your fears and phobias..?
But the big question on everyone's lips is this... Is You're Back in the Room a fake? Are the contestants faking hypnosis on this show or are they really hypnotised?
These questions are interesting because it depends how you look at it. Stage hypnotists don't seem to like the fact that what they do is labelled as entertainment. I've had a few comments on the video explaining that they really can hypnotise people. I think perhaps they have missed the point a little with what I am saying.
I'm not saying that stage hypnotists are unable to hypnotise people. Of course they would have that ability. It would be important to be able to do that in order to show how it works when they are on stage....but are they making people do things against their will? Hypnosis is just a relaxed state and perfectly natural. It's a bit like that point when you are dropping off to sleep or waking up. Have you ever been in a car and missed your motorway turn off? Well, that's because your mind drifted off for a bit.
You can't make anyone do anything they do not want to do and you do not control people's minds.
Its very interesting to listen to the phrases that are used in the official ITV Trailer for You're back in the Room...
This is what the voiceover tells us...
"A top hypnotist Has Hacked into their Brains" and "They wouldn't be acting like this if they could help it"
Really? Hacked into their brains? If that was possible then surely these stage hypnotists would have taken over the world? They would be robbing banks left right and centre and then hypnotising the police to think they didn't do it. You cannot hack into someone's brain through hypnosis. That's a very emotive statement and it is all about grabbing your attention. Hypnosis is really just a calm relaxed state of mind that means you can be more open to positive suggestion. No one can make you do things that you do not want to do. This means that to say they wouldn't be doing these things if they could help it is simply not true. Of course they want to do the things. They are playing along for the promise of a chance to win some money and a fleeting moment of TV fame that could lead to them even appearing in their local paper. It's great for people who want a little fame.
After the first show aired Philip Schofield responded to people who accused the contestants of being actors or the show using stooges by saying: Well there you go, that's a glimpse into my Twitter feed today. Love or hate thanks for the comments ... but no, they are NOT actors
Of course, they wouldn't be foolish enough to use actors, that doesn't mean the contestants are not chosen for the fact that they play up to the cameras though does it?Actually let me change that phrase slightly.
You see it turns out that one of the female contestants is a wannabe actress and in the second episode was a chap called just "Alex". I wonder why we didn't see his surname? A few clicks on google and it may well be because he is a performer and singer who is a comic character actor and singer where he plays up for people....exactly the same as in his over the top performance on the TV show. So, let's just agree that he was acting shall we!?
How do you find someone who will be good on stage for a stage hypnosis show?
There were extensive auditions and call backs across the country for contestants for this hypnosis show. This is the same for any show that is all about contestants. Good contestants make or break a TV show and they cost a lot of money to film, so you don't leave anything to chance.
What do you think they were looking for in their search for contestants in You're Back in the Room?
Was it...
A) People who could be easily hypnotised
or
B) People who will play along and be the most compliant providing the best entertainment. Those that will do anything to be on TV.
Clearly, you need to find people who will do whatever is asked of them. They want to be on TV and they want to be the stars of the show. There is a huge pressure for them to play along. No one who went through multiple auditions and then ends up on a prime time Saturday night TV show is going to turn around and say "Actually I'm not going to do these silly things now"
It just won't happen will it? It's interesting to note that a couple of the contestants have been on other TV shows like Deal or no Deal in the past and one is an actress looking for a career break. These people are not shrinking violets. Some of the chat on twitter has even said that it makes them seem like they could be stooges.
So, the point is that I would never claim that stage hypnotists are not able to help relax people into a calming state that they can call hypnosis. It's just that being relaxed and in a calm dreamy state isn't what you look for if you are trying to entertain people. You look for the people who want to be stars, the people who are being given permission to let go of their inhibitions and do silly things. Then they can experience how good it feels to have an audience who love watching them... and in this case win some cash too! Of course you can see some of the contestants themselves on twitter talking about how much they enjoyed the fame experience by searching the twitter hashtags #YBITR or #backintheoom In fact in one interview for the Radio Times one contestant even explains that they were invited to audition..."I went on the show because I had a random telephone call on a Friday afternoon from a producer who invited me to London to have some auditions." I wonder why they asked her?! Another has appeared on Deal or no Deal and Bargain Hunters....these are clearly not shrinking violets.
The show has been widely received by TV executives, it has a version in France with Stéphane Rotenberg and The BBC who own the format have taken it to the Mipcom Television festival in Cannes in order to sell it worldwide.
Read more at: http://www.televisionpost.com/news/bbc-worldwide-announces-format-sales-of-shows-ahead-of-mipcom/ | TelevisionPost.com
There are MORE blogs and VIDEOS talking about behind the scenes secrets of the ITV Hypnotist Show here:
It's all about entertainment and that is all that matters. It is throwaway Television. That's fine in itself, just dont make claims about controlling people's minds that can give the wrong impression.
I am a little surprised that Stage hypnotists seem so keen to try and justify the fact that they don't cheat. Of course you don't need to cheat because it isn't about that. It's about picking the right person. Keith Barry himself is a mentalist and magician and a very good one too. He is hugely charming and entertaining. He works behind the scenes on Hollywood films and his magic skills are much in demand. If I was to say that when you see a magician saw a woman in half, she isn't really sawn in half would that surprise you? I doubt it because of course it is a trick, and as long as you are entertained then why does it matter how it is done. So many stage hypnotists use mentalism magic tricks as part of their act. I wonder why that is? Is it because they want to entertain perhaps? There is nothing wrong with that at all. That is their job. If you think they really can read your mind then perhaps you are being a little naive.
You watch the show and you decide!
Watch the show for yourself and see what you think. At the end of the day what a Clinical Hypnotherapist such as myself does...
.......helping people with stress and anxiety, to end panic attacks, lose weight, quit smoking, and end fears and phobias and much more, bears no relation to showbiz. We are here to help people and not make them look foolish....not that anyone can make anyone do anything they do not want to do.
Clinical Hypnotherapy and Stage Hypnosis are two very different things and as long as you can see the difference then why not enjoy watching some prime time Saturday evening telly...it's basically just another twist on the Generation game and their silly games isn't it !? So, are they faking it on You're Back in the Room? Perhaps that is up to you to decide when you watch for yourself.
Remember when you see them push their faces into a cake....that's their choice!
You can listen to a FREE relaxation MP3 by clicking below
News from October 2015: The show is now taking off around the world the latest version is now showing in France. "Hypnose le Grand Jeu", with French performer Stéphane Rotenberg. Watch out for more shows in more countries as time goes on! Will the question on the lips of the French viewers be: "Est-il faux, Hypnose le Grand Jeu?"
There are MORE blogs talking about behind the scenes secrets of the ITV Hypnotist Show here:
The biggest question on everyone's lips now then must be.. Is there another new series of You're Back in the Room? When will series 2 of Back in the Room be on TV? Will they do another new series of the Phil Schofield Hypnosis Gameshow? Watch this space !
Series two of You're Back in the Room airs on ITV in the UK in March and April 2016
You're Back in the Room across the world.
The format of the show has been so successful that it has been sold across the world. Keith Barry was due to tour his live hypnosis show in the UK last autumn, however it was rescheduled due to the success of his TV appearances. The audience members were then informed in March 2016 that the whole tour was being cancelled due to the fact that the new American Version of the show is being filmed and Keith had decided to work on that rather than hnouring the commitment to the audience members who had bought tickets. This has led to a great deal of abuse towards Keith Barry on Facebook and Twitter from dissapointed fans of his show.
However, after working as a magical advisor on the sequel to the hollywood movie "Now you see it" it is hardly surprising that Keith is taking the chance to work on the US You're Back in the Room show. The Fox TV network have ordered the show hoping that the success it is having around the world will be mirrored with another hit for them too.
Who is presenting the US version of Back in the Room?
It's been announced that the new Fox TV version of the show for American audiences is to be presented by Taye Diggs best known for The Best Man Holiday, and Murder in the FIrst. In all there will be a longer run of the programme as Fox have ordered a series of eight shows, all to use the talents of Keith Barry as in the UK and Australia. Production has already begun on the show and this led to Keith Barry cancelling his UK tour, which had been rescheduled from late 2015.
The show was renamed to "Hypnotize Me" and filmed at the Los Angeles Studios in July 2016 ready for airing in the Fall of 2016.
The questions on everyone's lips will be about whether they are faking hypnosis on hypnotize me and those have already started on social media.
Here's a brand new video all about those questions and some of the backstage secrets of stage hypnotists that you may spot when you watch Hypnotize Me..
The show has also been filmed in Australia and airs on Channel Nine down under from Sunday 3rd April 2016. The Host of this version of the show is Daryl Somers, who is best known for his hit show "Hey, Hey, It's Saturday ". What will the audiences in Australia and The United States make of the show and will they still be asking the old question... "Is You're Back in the Room Fake??!" The first show took over seven hours to film, so it must be likely that there is a great deal of footage to choose from. One of the guests on this show is Richard Wilkins from the Today show. During an interview Daryl Somers did say that he felt that one of the contestants was acting with the intensity of Cate Blanchett, so perhaps you can infer his thoughts on how much they were playing along. He also explained that he had come backstage to see Keith Barry put the contestants in a trance and that it took over an hour to do. Most hypnotherapists wouldn't take that long to work with a client during a session, so I wonder why it would take an hour to prepare people to perform on a stage infront of a Television audience?
Mipcom Awards
It was announced on March 2nd 2016 that The Television format had owon an award at the international television festival in Cannes. The Mipcom festival takes place every year and buyers from around the world watch and purchase the shows that we will be seeing during the next twelve months. The award for Best Studio Gameshow Format in the Internationl Format Awards was presented to Producer Tuesday's Child and Distributer BBC Worldwide..
From the Mipcom Programme: "Five complete strangers take on a series of simple games, but all is not as it seems, as each of the contestants has been hypnotized. Airing on ITV in 2015, the show rated as the number one new entertainment launch that year. The format is already licensed in six countries: France, the Netherlands, Australia, Colombia, the US and Slovenia, with options in multiple territories including Belgium, Chile, Denmark, Germany, Italy, New Zealand, Norway, Peru, Portugal and Spain."
You're Back in the Room in New Zealand producer admits to using actors in their show
Are they using actors on Hypnotize Me? Well after the show made its debut in New Zealand they had to admit that two of the contestants were in fact actors and were happy to show themselves as such on social media. You may imagine that you would try and avoid that to stop any speculation, however that's not how it worked in the NZ version of the show hosted by Jason Gunn where the Hypnotist in charge is Peter Powers, a very well know hypnotist down under in Australia and New Zealand and originally from the UK.
When you bear in mind that there were only four contestants, the fact the half of them were actors is not a good thing really is it? They were not introduced as actors of course, which makes it even more interesting that people may wonder why not?! The two actors were called a homemaker and a student instead.
But on her website she describes herself as "a hardcore actress" and says acting "is my passion". She goes on to explain how great she is at showcasing her different range of emotions.
So, have a think about why on earth you would use actors when the first thing people would ask is.. are they using actors? Perhaps we canit believe all that we see.