As Don’t Look Down begins, the words “10 terrified celebrities” flash up on the screen, so large that it looks as if this is the real title of the show. It is not, of course, but there’s no reason why it shouldn’t be. Over the years, television has invested a lot of time and money in the business of terrifying and even potentially injuring celebrities, whether on I’m a Celebrity, The Jump or Dancing on Ice. You could drop Ten Terrified Celebrities into the weekly listings and nobody would bat an eyelid.
There are a few I’m a Celebrity graduates on Don’t Look Down but, thankfully, there’s no suggestion of them eating testicles again. This is a charity event, put on in aid of Stand Up to Cancer. Ten Terrified Celebrities – who are afraid of heights specifically, rather than just generally afraid at all times – have agreed to head off to the Austrian Alps for a couple of weeks, where they will train for a high-wire challenge. The challenge itself, revealed early in the first episode, will be very high indeed, as the contestants who make it through to the end of the programme will attempt to relay across a high wire, 650ft long, 100ft above the London Stadium, formerly the Olympic Stadium. Even if they weren’t afraid of heights, it would be a spectacular thing to pull off.
