9 international versions of hit reality TV shows that are just as addictive as the originals

It’s been over a month since Love Island left us for another year and the post-summer blues are still going strong. Although Ex on the Beach temporarily fills the void and Celebrity Big Brother momentarially scratches that itch, what about those long, arduous hours inbetween? The struggle is real.

If you’re looking for reality TV ammo and you’re tired of watching reruns you’ve seen a million times before, we recommend turning your attention to these overseas editions of your favourite unscripted shows.

Because, let’s face it, throwing a group of good-looking, fame-hungry competitors into one place and pitting them against each other is always going to make for solid entertainment. The love for shameless binge-watching material is one that knows no borders – it’s a beautiful thing.

So take up a few of these global gems based on the top dogs of trash TV and you’ll never be at a loss of what to watch again.

1. Take Me Out – If You Are The One (China)

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So Take Me Out is based on the 2008 Australian dating show Taken Out, and a brand new edition from Down Under is set to premiere on September 3. But if you’re in the mood for some barefaced brutality, look no further than China’s adaptation of the dating show: If You Are the One (Fei Cheng Wu Rao).

It follows the same format as the UK variant, in that the objective is for a single man to obtain a date with one of 24 single women. No likey, no lighty – you know the score. But there’s one major difference that makes the Chinese edition a cut above the rest, that being the contestants’ brutal honesty.

With such quips as “I’m happiest when I get paid”, “My ideal girl is a female who is interested in men” and “My dad says my lips are good”, you know you’re in for some reality TV gold. In other words, If You Are the One is a definite likey.

2. Love Island – Adam Seeks Eve – Promise in Paradise (Germany)

If you thought Love Island was risqué, wait until you catch a load of Germany’s take on the dating show. Titled Adam Seeks Eve – Promise in Paradise, the series is similar in that a group of contestants are sent away to live together in the aim of finding their perfect match.

The key difference? They’re totally butt naked. So if you find the bedroom behaviours of the Brit edition a little NSFW, just be warned that the under-the-cover antics in Adam Seeks Eve are not so undercover.

3. Britain’s Got Talent – Asia’s Got Talent

You’ve seen Britain’s Got Talent. You’ve seen America’s Got Talent. But what about Asia’s Got Talent?

Spanning an entire continent, this Asian spinoff of the international televised talent hunt franchise is just as addictive as its western counterparts. And if you’re wondering whether the judges have even half the bite of the big S-Cowell, the short answer is yes.

Along with composer David Foster and singer/songwriter Anggun, rapper Jay Park joined the judging panel last year, declaring: “I’m not the type to say whatever just to be nice. You have to be real with these people in order to really help them. Sugarcoating things is not going to help them.” And that’s just the kind of ruthless attitude we’ve grown to expect from our Got Talent judges.

4. Survivor – Koh-Lanta (France)

Koh-Lanta is the French version of the Survivor franchise, in which 16 contestants are marooned on an island with little more than the shirts on their back, where they must fend for themselves to survive. At the end of each episode a member is eliminated until one remains as the eponymous survivor and the winner of a €100,000 prize.

Although the premise was created in 1992 by Brit TV producer Charlie Parsons for Planet 24, in 2001 French company Adventure Line Productions had a whack at it with Koh-Lanta and subsequently totally hit the nail on the head.

Back in May it was announced season 19 was put on the shelf following a sexual assault claim, but the fact that the series continued to rate highly in the country well into its 18th round demonstrates the longevity of its entertainment value.

The most recent controversy adds to Koh-Lanta‘s turbulent history, with one of its contestants even dying after a strenuous round of tug-of-war back in 2013.

5. Ex on the Beach – Ex on the Beach Brazil (Brazil)

MTV’s Ex on the Beach format of a “more dramatic Love Island” has proved so addictive, it’s gone on to spawn a whopping 13 international versions, from French, to Russian, all the way through to Mexican – but it’s the Brazilian edition we’re living for.

De Férias com o Ex a.k.a. Ex on the Beach Brazil launched into our small-screen peripheral like a slo-mo mirage emerging from the shore. Each episode is so amped-up with dramatics, with just as much, if not more binge-ability than its English-language counterpart.

6. The Great British Bake Off – The Great Kiwi Bake Off (New Zealand)

Reality shows need drama to survive – except when it comes to The Great British Bake Off, the TV outlier that somehow satisfies the twisted palate of audiences today with nothing more than wholesome hosts, lovely contestants, and challenges in which the most OMG dramas involve a Victoria Sponge collapsing. It’s comforting escapism at its finest.

Although Bake Off is quintessentially English in so many ways, there are a number of international spin-offs that are just as delightfully sweet, a top pick being New Zealand’s The Great Kiwi Bake Off.

You’ll find this version contains just as many baking japes, dodgy innuendos and creatively kind hosts – it’s the perfect solution to satisfy that sweet tooth while you wait for the next season of GBBO.

7. First Dates – First Dates Ireland (Ireland)

In the post-Tinder world where true love and romance started to seem like a dying entity, First Dates came just at the right time. Serving up a palatable balance of adorable and cringe, viewers still can’t get enough of playing gooseberry to the first dates of people from all walks of life (and finding out if the pairing continued their romance after the cameras stopped rolling).

Turns out first dates are just as awkward, cringe-worthy, steamy, or all of the above over in the Emerald Isle. Hosted at The Gibson Hotel in Dublin City, the Irish edition of First Dates is an entertaining watch and even has its very own Fred Sirieix in the shape of the charismatic maitre d’is Mateo Saina.

With three seasons and counting, there’s plenty of love to go around when it comes to Ireland’s first daters.

8. Next Top Model – Caribbean’s Next Top Model

Britain’s Next Top Model was great, America’s Next Top Model was better, but wait until you get your chops round Caribbean’s Next Top Model.

Following the format of Tyra Banks’ hit comp show, it somehow retains everything that’s great about the franchise’s premise – the drama, the assignments, the ludicrous makeovers – but avoids everything irritating about the former issues, like the judge’s overbearing antics and the over-reliance on sob stories to push for drama.

Plus the iconic sites and culture of the Caribbean’s most stunning locations are showcased in each season, with the four previous series shot in Trinidad, Barbados, Grenada and Jamaica respectively.

9. I’m a Celebrity…Get Me Out of Here! – I’m a Celebrity…Get Me Out of Here! (Australia)

If you dig watching pseudo-celebrities chewing on a kangaroo’s butthole in the name of fame (who doesn’t?), you’ll love the Australian adaptation of I’m a Celebrity…Get Me Out of Here! It features all the same treats as you’d expect from the franchise, namely celeb contestants having their asses handed to them in the Bushtucker Trials as they vie for the glory of being of king or queen of the jungle. And to have $100,000 donated to their charity of choice, obvs.

There’s no Ant and Dec, but co-hosts Chris Brown and Julia Morris maintain a solid on-screen chemistry that’ll make you smile amid the bug-eating and back-stabbing – some of Morris’s antics even went viral recently when she was discovered by I’m a Celeb fans outside of Oz.

And of course there’s fighting, fainting and retching aplenty. What’s not to love?

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