Sun, Sex and (overly) Suspicious Parents

On hearing that the second series was being released Jan 25th, I was forced, by the wise words of my peers, to take up viewing ‘Sun, Sex and Suspicious Parents’ aired on BBC3 (or available on iPlayer, for students without TV licences).

The principle behind Angela Norris’ documentary is to send away teens on their typical LADS holiday filled with sex, drink, ‘rock n roll’…and more sex. The girls follow the same principle but with more glamour (if you can stretch to describe it as that) and a lot less clothing. We watch as they experiment and do as they would on a summer holiday abroad to one of the highly rated 18-30 club destinations – Kos, Malia, Kavos, Aiya Napa, Ibiza, and Zante – one of which we are all guilty of being seen/lost in…or have at some point had the temptation to experience.

The series, however tacky, tattoo-filled, and sluggishly humiliating as it may be, is somewhat addictive. You find yourself gripping your seat as you see parents watching all of their child’s (rather than ‘teen’ for extra effect) antics in the foreign country that they have also been flown out into ‘in secret’ (as the narrator often cringely reminds you – ‘if the parents’ cover is blown, it’s all over’). You can’t help but get furiously involved in the plot, ‘OO-ing’ and ‘EEW-ing’ away at the idea of your parents seeing half of the things you’d get up to on a group holiday in Ibiza… or even freshers/raisin.

It feels as if the parents are kind of naïve in thinking that their daughter/son (who already looks suspect) won’t get up to anything illicit whilst on such a holiday – I’ve done ‘Maga’ and I’m pretty sure that my parents were very aware that their ‘little angel’ wouldn’t be sipping coffee on a Spanish veranda whilst admiring the neon lights of ‘Willy’s Bar’.

The most viewed, and a personal favourite of mine, is the Ibiza episode (5th in the series) with record viewings of 1.3 million. We follow Ollie from Portsmouth looking to celebrate his birthday by experimenting with absynth and many underdressed girls ‘as his mum loosely describes a bimbo as not his type – clearly’ and Shannon, who finds herself crawling back to her hotel, (literally) and throwing herself off dingy alleyway doors. Unknown to them, their parents are watching their every move. Although pleasantly surprised at times when they see their teens being remotely sensible and looking out for the dire needs of their intoxicated pals, their facial expressions at some points are utterly priceless.

What is somewhat confusing is why parents would want to see even half of what is happening on such holidays – may we call this, at the extreme, voyeurism?
Regardless, the reactions at the end of each episode when the parents are uncovered (after stalking in vans and peering from hotel windows) are so unbelievably worth it (especially Shannon’s dad’s whose reaction isn’t too brilliant for her, but wonderfully entertaining for us). The series is coming to an end and I’ve already pencilled in the finale ‘after the holiday’ on the 7th March to hear how the teens feel the series changed them – loss of all self-respect, job prospects and never trusting their parents again presumably.
Basically, this is brilliantly entertaining TV, full of cringey, shocking and laughable antics; highly recommended for a good laugh and intriguing ‘dinner table’ discussions.