Britain's Channel 4 is looking for virgins, or people who have "always had trouble with intimacy," to take part in a brand new TV show.
Titled The Intimacy Retreat, the broadcaster says it is looking for qualified candidates to take part in a new TV series where "you will be guided through a series of intimacy workshops on a Mediterranean island retreat".
Sharing information about the new programme, Channel 4 said: "The Intimacy Retreat is a six-part documentary series produced for Channel 4 that follows the journey of a group of adults who are virgins (or identify as virgins) ).Learn life-changing skills in the art of intimacy. Our leading sexologists will lead a unique retreat on the Mediterranean island that, using a radical and completely new approach, will help people overcome their fears and insecurities when it's about intimacy and sex."
The format comes as the broadcaster says the world is more connected than ever before, but young people feel less connected. According to University College London's Next Steps study of 16,000 young people, one of the largest in the world, the proportion of Britons who have never had sex is significantly higher than in previous generations.
One in eight 26-year-olds told UCL researchers they were virgins, compared with one in twenty in previous generations. Some experts attribute this in part to fear of intimacy and humiliation on social media.
However, a spokesperson added that The Intimacy Retreat "aims to help people find or restore their confidence around intimacy and sex". To take part in the show, Channel 4 has shared a list of criteria that individuals must meet such as being over 21 years old, not having been prosecuted for sex crimes, and not giving false information about their private life.