First, I am so happy that tomorrow is Friday! This has been a very long week and now that the furniture is built in my flat I now need things to fill my weekends. I am looking for new shows as I have watched a great number and many of them have been reality programs. Taking a look at the programs I have watched in 2020 I have rounded up my top 10 and ranked from must-watch to good-to-have-on-in-the-background type shows. Here we go, my reality shows worth binging:
1 | Cheer – While not usually a fan of documentaries this docuseries is spot on. I got so invested in the journey of Navarro College’s cheer squad and their quest to win the title at Daytona. After six episodes I learned a ton about competitive cheerleading and realized I need Jerry in my life and Monica as a mentor. You can watch it here.
2 | Queer Eye – We’re In Japan – Similar to Cheer, I was sad there are not more episodes of this one, only four of the fab five in Tokyo. That said, watching Makoto come out of his shell and the scenes with his wife made it all better. Fab five, when are you coming to London? (You can watch it here.)
3 | Stay Here – A twist on a home design and reno show the combination of a designer, Genevieve, and real estate expert, Peter, help home owners makeover their short term rentals. I am so sad there was only one season and I would LOVE to stay at the Austin Pool Pad. My only criticism is that all eight episodes featured really unique homes – house boats, fire houses, or a vineyard – I am curious what they would do with a normal home (You can watch it here.)
4 | Selling Sunset – This came out in 2019 but I only finished it this year. Netflix did a great job mixing the business, multi-million dollar real estate, with the lives of the agents and their personal drama. I follow the cast on social media and there are talking about the possibility of a second season – fingers crossed! (You can watch it here.)
5 | Restaurants on the Edge – I have always been a fan of reality shows that are about saving restaurants and this one throws in an element of travel. I have not finished it het but makeovers in Malta, Hong Kong, and Costa Rica have given me a serious case of hunger and wanderlust. (You can watch it here.)
6 | Love is Blind – Getting engaged to someone before you ever see them sounds like a crazy idea but that is the idea of the show. The show was a combination of cringe and I can not stop watching. And you may just have to watch it to understand the Internet’s craze over the 10 year age difference and the viral meme “goodnight to everyone except Jessica from Love is Blind”. (You can watch it here.)
7 | Million Pound Menu – This is a cross between Shark Tank and MasterChef – can you tell I have a thing for food shows? I have learned a lot more about the city of Manchester and British food plus I love the concept of new chefs getting the opportunity to open their own place and the host Fred from first dates is great ! (You can watch it here).
8 | Tiny House Nation – My new apartment has nearly 1,000 square feet and I could not imagine moving to a fraction of that but I love watching how people are downsizing and making the most of their space in tiny homes – whether portable or not! (You can watch it here.)
9 | Next in Fashion – Tan from Queer Eye (see number two) is one of the hosts of this fashion competition where global designers compete for a quarter of a million dollars and “the chance to become the next big thing in Fashion”. It’s a good show though I don’t love the partner concept and it made me miss Tim Gunn in Project Runway. That said, it is still worth a shot if you are looking to put something on in the background. (You can watch it here.)
10 | 100% Hotter – This show has been around for five years and was on Chanel 5 here in the UK and is a make-under show taking Brits who are just over the top and toning them down. It is a good mix of ages and genders and even some celebs. I would like a bit more background around each of the “works in progress” and seeing them in more than one look but still, good reality TV! (You can watch it here.)
What would make it on your list of reality shows worth binging?

Elizabeth says
Next in Fashion was pretty good. I still thought that Heidi and Mr. “Make it Work” Tim did a groundbreaking fantastic job with Project Runway and this a a bit of a weaker copycat show but still not bad.
Just finished “The Hunters” which was pretty good, slow start but got better as it went along. Probably a 7 and great twister at the end.
Aimee says
A couple of people have told me about the “Cheer” Documentary but I couldn’t really get my arms around it.
Will have to give it a try after your recommendation.
Margo says
I forgot about Queer Eye…watched a few of the older fashion ones and really liked them so thanks for the reminder now that I have a bit more time on my hands.
Will check out some of the others too.
Thanks.