Reality TV is generally pretty exhausting to watch. Be the prize a job as a chef, a contract with a modelling agency, fame and glory as an entertainer or just a small pile of cash, everyone "wants it" more than anything they have ever known. It is their "last chance". They really "need a break". They are doing it for the "best mum in the world" who raised them alone.
Even if you've only watched the genre for a few minutes you'll know how emotional this stuff can get. I was almost in tears myself by the end of Masterchef last night. But all the weeping is usually dismissed by the audience as no more than a pathetic over-indulgence. It isn't anyone's last chance, we mutter. If they want to be a chef they can start off cooking sausages in a pub and work their way up. Want to be a model? Slog round the agencies with your look book like everyone else. Want a £150,000 job with an international company? Start as a graduate trainee and work hard.
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