Wife Swap to return for Brexit special

Channel 4 is bringing back Wife Swap for a special Brexit-themed series, with Leavers and Remainers exchanging partners for a two-week social experiment.

The show, in which two married couples from different walks of life swap partners for two weeks, went off the air in December 2009 after a six-year run which spawned dozens of international versions.

Since last June's referendum, however, the media has run dozens of reports about families at loggerheads over the Brexit vote, apparently inspiring TV bosses to revive the classic reality show but with a political twist.

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Emily Jones, Channel 4's commissioning editor, said the original series "always had political undertones", but the revived show will delve into the debate now at "the heart of every household".

A Brexit-themed Wife Swap was original intended as a one-off special, says the Daily Telegraph, but producers are now looking for multiple families to take part.

In a casting call posted to Twitter last week, production company RDF called for couples who felt strongly about June's EU referendum result, whether "a proud Leave voter sick of being called racist" or "a staunch Remainer convinced that the country has made a huge mistake".

Executive producer Daniel Fromm said: "With the Brexit debate dominated by politicians and journalists it will be fascinating to hear the voices of two ordinary families grappling with the issue."