I went under the knife on TV’s most controversial makeover show – bosses kept a HUGE secret from us and I completely regret one procedure which has scarred me for life
A woman who went under the knife on one of the most controversial American makeover shows has revealed how she was scarred for life from the series.
The Swan, which ran for two seasons from 2004 on US network Fox, saw a group of women participate in a pageant after undergoing a three-month transformation.
The everyday women, titled ‘ugly ducklings’ would go under the knife, have their diets overhauled and their wardrobes completely changed in order to become beauty queens.
The three-month experiment gave women access to a therapist, dentist, cosmetic surgeon and a personal trainer in order to become more conventionally attractive.
The winner of the beauty pageant at the end of the series would be dubbed ‘The Swan’ – there was no cash prize for them to take home.
While it drew in a huge 15million viewers on its launch, it received mostly negative reviews from critics, who hit out it was ‘misogynistic’ and ‘hurtful’, leading to its downfall just months after its initial release.
A woman who went under the knife on one of the most controversial American makeover shows has revealed how she was scarred for life from the series.
The three-month experiment gave women access to a therapist, dentist, cosmetic surgeon and a personal trainer in order to become more conventionally attractive
And since, a small handful of women who took part in the series have spoken out about the not-so-pageant-ready after effects, with one even citing surgery complications and mental health problems, of taking part in the show.
It led to Entertainment Weekly ranking the programme the worst reality show ever produced, and VICE featuring it in their documentary, Dark Side of Reality TV, calling it the most ‘bizarre and offensive reality TV show of all time’.
Now, one former contestant, Belinda Bessant, has opened up on her horror experience on the show, admitting it left her with scars on her face, and regrets over being pushed towards some surgeries.
Speaking to Mel Magazine, the former reality star admitted she signed up for the series after an advert appeared during an episode of The Price Is Right.
Advertising an opportunity to ‘change her life’, she admitted she ‘didn’t hesitate to see what it was all about’ having struggled with depression as a single mother.
Four months after being cast in the show, she was flown to Los Angeles to be given ‘medical and psychological tests’ to ensure she was fit for the show.
Two months later, Belinda recalled the cameras showing up at her house and being whisked away from her home to begin the process.
She told the publication: ‘This was back in the heyday of reality TV: Everybody dreamed of being on some type of TV show… a lawyer who who looked at the show’s contract tried to tell me I shouldn’t sign it, but I did anyway because the allure of being on reality TV was too exciting to turn down.’
Now, one former contestant, Belinda Bessant, has opened up on her horror experience on the show, admitting it left her with scars on her face, and regrets over being pushed towards some surgeries
Belinda took part in the show when it first aired in 2004
Belinda was forced to leave her house, job and children behind for four months as part of the process – sending them the $500 (£380) she was paid each week for being on the show.
She was encouraged to go under the knife, with the single mother opted for an eye surgery known as a Blepharoplasty, face and body liposuction, a breast reduction and veneers.
Belinda continued: ‘All of the surgeries were within the first two weeks; my first operation was 13 hours under anaesthesia, and my second was one week later.’
During the women’s recoveries, they were not allowed to access TV, mainstream media or buy magazines, with once-a-week calls home limited to ten minutes.
Instead, the women were ‘chaperoned’ everywhere and kept ‘trapped in their own world’ until the filming had finished and the pageant had aired on screens.
Right up until the moment the women walked out for the pageant, the true competitive nature of the show was kept ‘secret’ from the women.
While Belinda accepts that some of the surgeries she had have helped her in her life, she admitted to having regrets for those that left her with ‘scars’ and ‘hair loss’.
‘The before pictures were made to make us look as ugly as possible,’ she continued. ‘I had beautiful eyebrows and eyes, I wasn’t unhappy with my face structure… today you can see three vertical scars on my head, which are made worse by the hair loss.’
Belinda was encouraged to go under the knife, with the single mother opted for an eye surgery known as a Blepharoplasty, face and body liposuction, a breast reduction and veneers
Belinda stressed that she feels ’embarrassed more than anything’ to tell people she was on the show, after the ‘editing’ made her look ‘obsessed with looks’.
She concluded that ‘to this day she doesn’t talk about it’, because she doesn’t want ‘negativity’ from the series involved in her life.
Scenes on the show, which first aired in 2005, saw Belinda explain the reasons why she took to the series, admitting she ‘used to be pretty’.
In the episode, she told the cameras: ‘I’m 28 years old, I used to have the perfect body, and I used to be pretty and I used to be able to walk down the street and have guys chasing me.
‘Not having that now, it makes me feel horrible.
‘Unfortunately I ended up with the wrong guy, I wouldn’t want to talk to any of the men from my past because they are not good people. I ended up in several abusive relationships.
‘My dream for myself is to learn to know that I deserve someone who will treat me good, but when I look in the mirror, I see a big fat cow.’
On her emotional reveal, Belinda told the show’s hosts: ‘One thing I’ve learned here is that beauty comes from the inside and I’m happy with who I am right now.’
