Handcuffed is a new Channel 4 survival show hosted by Jonathan Ross, which sees contestants chained to complete strangers for 24 hours a day. The series takes 16 people with opposing opinions, beliefs, lifestyles and bad habits, pairs them up and sends them on a British road trip whilst handcuffed together.
The couple that lasts the distance will have the chance to go for a £100,000 prize fund, but can they find common ground or will their massive differences drive them apart?
“I believe this experiment will go a small way to healing a fractured Britain; after all, to know is to love,” says Jonathan Ross. "I'm rooting for our couples to go the distance and not let our differences overpower us.”
Here’s everything you need to know about the Channel 4 series Handcuffed…
Handcuffed release date
Handcuffed is a six-part series due to air on Channel 4 in late 2025 or 2026. When a date is announced, we’ll update this page.
Handcuffed — how it works
Handcuffed pairs 16 contestants into couples with opposing views, beliefs, lifestyles and habits. Drawn from across the UK, the couples will represent the wide range of opinions found in modern Britain. They will be handcuffed together around the clock, as they navigate everything from eating and sleeping to getting dressed. They will then be sent on a road trip across Britain, and the pair that lasts the longest shackled together will be in the running for a £100,000 jackpot. Jonathan Ross will pair up the couples and put them on their path to reconciliation.
Handcuffed contestants and how to be one!
No details of the Handcuffed contestants have yet been chosen but as soon as they are announced, we'll give you a rundown right here, including what their beefs are with each other.
As of May 2025, applications to take part in Handcuffed are still ongoing. If you think you could survive being handcuffed to a stranger, in return for a possible share of the £100,000 prize fund, applications are open now — please apply here.
Is there a trailer?
Not yet but if one drops, we’ll add it to this page.
Behind the scenes and more on Handcuffed
Handcuffed has been commissioned by Tim Hancock for Channel 4. The Executive Producers for 72 Films, a Fremantle Company, are David Glover, Tim Whitwell and Tom Clarke, series editor Ben Allen and Production Executive Alex Nicholson.
Tim Hancock, Commissioning Editor, says: “Funny, intense, and featuring a cast reflecting a truly diverse range of British characters, this is the kind of social experiment you’d only see on Channel 4. The series aims capture modern Britain by examining its divisions and hopefully helping mend some of them too.”
David Glover, Executive Producer, says: “The show is designed to both to be funny and to have a surprising amount of heart. The winners will have to be able to put their differences aside and get along.”
All about host Jonathan Ross
Jonathan Ross started his career presenting The Last Resort on the Channel in 1987. He is now a judge on The Masked Singer and hosts The Jonathan Ross Show. He presented Friday Night with Jonathan Ross and Tonight with Jonathan Ross. He was a panellist on They Think It’s All Over and hosted Film… and It’s Only TV But I Like It.
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