The Real World: London
Encyclopedia
The Real World: London is the fourth season of MTV
's reality television
series The Real World
, which focuses on a group of diverse strangers living together for several months in a different city each season, as cameras follow and document their lives and interpersonal relationships. This particular season first aired in 1995 and featured the cast living in the Notting Hill Gate
area of London
. This was the first of four seasons of The Real World to be filmed entirely outside of the United States
. The Real World: Paris
followed in 2003, The Real World: Sydney
in 2007, and The Real World: Cancun
in 2009.
The cast moved into the London flat in January 1995, and lived there for five months, moving out in mid-June. The season premiered on June 28 of that year, and was viewed by 2.7 million people. Regarding following the emotional high points of provided by the struggles of Pedro Zamora
and David "Puck" Rainey
the previous season
, series co-creator Jon Murray stated, "In terms of big dramatic issues, there's no way we could match that. So this year plays on more of a Moonlighting
, romantic-comedy kind of feel."
The most notable event of the season occurs when cast member and singer Neil Forrester kisses a male heckler during a performance, who then bites the tip of Forrester's tongue off. This event earned Forrester a place among other reality television personalities who have been injured during filming on MTV's 2008 "E.R. All-Stars". The season also features a guest appearance by Blues Traveler
, whose lead singer, John Popper
, dedicates a song to cast member Jay Frank, an aspiring playwright and fan of the band.
. The cast is made up of three Americans, two Britons, a German and an Australian.
The cast lived in a 6,000-square-foot, three-story, four bedroom, renovated Gothic townhouse at 19 Powis Terrace in the trendy Notting Hill
neighbourhood of London. The ground floor of the building is leased to ScreenFace, a professional make-up supply company.
s Bruce Fretts says that this ignorance precluded them from aping the behavior of past seasons' casts.
Jay Frank graduated from City College of New York
with a degree in Broadcast Journalism
. He subsequently become a morning live reporter and then a morning anchor in the Tri-Cities, Washington
area before becoming the main anchor for KOHD
-TV in Bend, Oregon
. He wrote another play, Ten Cent Treasure, which plays locally in the Tri-Cities area. He lives in Kennewick
.
Lars Schlichting lives in the United States, and runs his own company that deals with DJ equipment. He is also a nationwide consultant and trainer for Pioneer
ProDJ.
Jacinda Barrett
went on to become a feature film actress, appearing in such films as The Namesake
, The Human Stain
, and The Last Kiss
. In 2004 she married actor Gabriel Macht
. On August 20, 2007 she gave birth to a daughter, Geraldine Macht, in Los Angeles.
Sharon Gitau works as a singer, song writer, composer and producer.
The contestant was a finalist on the Challenge, but lost in the Final Race.
MTV
MTV, formerly an initialism of Music Television, is an American network based in New York City that launched on August 1, 1981. The original purpose of the channel was to play music videos guided by on-air hosts known as VJs....
's reality television
Reality television
Reality television is a genre of television programming that presents purportedly unscripted dramatic or humorous situations, documents actual events, and usually features ordinary people instead of professional actors, sometimes in a contest or other situation where a prize is awarded...
series The Real World
The Real World
The Real World is a reality television program on MTV originally produced by Mary-Ellis Bunim and Jonathan Murray. First broadcast in 1992, the show, which was inspired by the 1973 PBS documentary series An American Family, is the longest-running program in MTV history and one of the...
, which focuses on a group of diverse strangers living together for several months in a different city each season, as cameras follow and document their lives and interpersonal relationships. This particular season first aired in 1995 and featured the cast living in the Notting Hill Gate
Notting Hill Gate
Notting Hill Gate is one of the main thoroughfares of Notting Hill, in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. Historically the street was a location for toll gates, from which it derives its modern name.- Location :...
area of London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
. This was the first of four seasons of The Real World to be filmed entirely outside of the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. The Real World: Paris
The Real World: Paris
The Real World: Paris is the thirteenth season of MTV's reality television series The Real World, which focuses on a group of diverse strangers living together for several months in a different city each season, as cameras follow their lives and interpersonal relationships...
followed in 2003, The Real World: Sydney
The Real World: Sydney
The Real World: Sydney is the nineteenth season of MTV's reality television series The Real World, which focuses on a group of diverse strangers living together for several months in a different city each season, as cameras document their lives and interpersonal relationships...
in 2007, and The Real World: Cancun
The Real World: Cancun
The Real World: Cancun is the twenty-second season of MTV's reality television series The Real World, which focuses on a group of diverse strangers living together for several months in a different city each season, as cameras document their lives and interpersonal relationships. Cancun, Mexico was...
in 2009.
The cast moved into the London flat in January 1995, and lived there for five months, moving out in mid-June. The season premiered on June 28 of that year, and was viewed by 2.7 million people. Regarding following the emotional high points of provided by the struggles of Pedro Zamora
Pedro Zamora
Pedro Pablo Zamora was a Cuban-American AIDS educator and television personality...
and David "Puck" Rainey
David Rainey
David "Puck" Rainey is a reality television personality who first gained fame as a cast member on The Real World: San Francisco in 1994. A bicycle messenger during the show's shooting, he became notorious as the second Real World cast member ever to be evicted from the house, due to his...
the previous season
The Real World: San Francisco
The Real World: San Francisco is the third season of MTV's reality television series The Real World, which focuses on a group of diverse strangers living together for several months in a different city each season, as cameras follow their lives and interpersonal relationships...
, series co-creator Jon Murray stated, "In terms of big dramatic issues, there's no way we could match that. So this year plays on more of a Moonlighting
Moonlighting (TV series)
Moonlighting is an American television series that aired on ABC from March 3, 1985, to May 14, 1989. The network aired a total of 66 episodes...
, romantic-comedy kind of feel."
The most notable event of the season occurs when cast member and singer Neil Forrester kisses a male heckler during a performance, who then bites the tip of Forrester's tongue off. This event earned Forrester a place among other reality television personalities who have been injured during filming on MTV's 2008 "E.R. All-Stars". The season also features a guest appearance by Blues Traveler
Blues Traveler
Blues Traveler is a rock band, formed in Princeton, New Jersey in 1987. The band has been influenced by a variety of genres, including blues-rock, psychedelic rock, folk rock, soul, and Southern rock...
, whose lead singer, John Popper
John Popper
John Popper is an American musician and songwriter.He is most famous for his role as frontman of rock band Blues Traveler performing harmonica, guitar and vocals...
, dedicates a song to cast member Jay Frank, an aspiring playwright and fan of the band.
Season changes
This was the first season of The Real World to be set outside the United StatesUnited States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. The cast is made up of three Americans, two Britons, a German and an Australian.
The residence
Notting Hill
Notting Hill is an area in London, England, close to the north-western corner of Kensington Gardens, in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea...
neighbourhood of London. The ground floor of the building is leased to ScreenFace, a professional make-up supply company.
Cast
Producers considered 25,000 applicants for casting. The seven selected were not well-acquainted with the series. The two American men chosen to help appease the home audience, Jay Frank and Mike Johnson, were not impressed with what little they had seen of it, with Johnson relating that he channel-surfed past it, saying, "This is stupid. I want videos." Entertainment WeeklyEntertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly is an American magazine, published by the Time division of Time Warner, that covers film, television, music, broadway theatre, books and popular culture...
s Bruce Fretts says that this ignorance precluded them from aping the behavior of past seasons' casts.
| Cast Member | Age1 | Hometown | Biography |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kat Ogden | 19 | Yelm, Washington Yelm, Washington Yelm is a city in Thurston County, Washington, United States. The population was 6,848 at the 2010 census. Yelm ranked 10th of 279 eligible incorporated communities in the state of Washington for population growth between 2000 and 2010.-History:... |
Kat, who is one of four children, was born on Kodiak Island Kodiak Island Kodiak Island is a large island on the south coast of the U.S. state of Alaska, separated from the Alaska mainland by the Shelikof Strait. The largest island in the Kodiak Archipelago, Kodiak Island is the second largest island in the United States and the 80th largest island in the world, with an... , Alaska, where her father, Fred, works as a commercial fisherman. Her mother, Margaret, is a freelance writer. Her family settled in Yelm, Washington when she was eight, and she credits her parents with stressing education, saying, "For years we didn't have a couch. But there was always enough money for books." At age 11 she took up fencing Fencing Fencing, which is also known as modern fencing to distinguish it from historical fencing, is a family of combat sports using bladed weapons.Fencing is one of four sports which have been featured at every one of the modern Olympic Games... , following in the footsteps of her grandfather, a 1930s feature film stunt fighter, and ability that earned her an academic scholarship to New York University New York University New York University is a private, nonsectarian research university based in New York City. NYU's main campus is situated in the Greenwich Village section of Manhattan... , where she is currently a sophomore majoring in anthropology Anthropology Anthropology is the study of humanity. It has origins in the humanities, the natural sciences, and the social sciences. The term "anthropology" is from the Greek anthrōpos , "man", understood to mean mankind or humanity, and -logia , "discourse" or "study", and was first used in 1501 by German... , and fencing on the varsity team. During her stay in London she attends Richmond College Richmond College Richmond College is a primary and secondary school in Galle, Sri Lanka. The school was established in 1814 by Christian missionaries. Richmond College is now a well established institution with a reputation as one of the finest schools in Sri Lanka... on a semester abroad program, and participates in the Junior Olympics Junior olympics Junior Olympics and Jr. Olympics can refer to any one of many different sporting events and organizations around the world dedicated to youth sporting activities.*Junior Olympic Gold, American national youth singles bowling tournament... in the San Jose, California San Jose, California San Jose is the third-largest city in California, the tenth-largest in the U.S., and the county seat of Santa Clara County which is located at the southern end of San Francisco Bay... . She has read accounts that describe her as "applecheeked and bubbly", but insists that she has "a hard, cynical streak". She is excited about the cultural differences that await her in London. Although Mike perceived romantic feelings between her and Neil (who was in a long-term relationship at the time), Kat denied any physical relationship with Neil, and was offended about Mike speaking about her and Neil outside of her presence, claiming that their mutual attraction was blown out of proportion. However, in an interview conducted subsequent to the season's completion, Jay accused the pair of "[trying] to hide it from the cameras" and commented that "the directors got all pissed off about it. It brought an uncomfortable element to the house", with Mike adding his opinion that "[they both] lied to all of us". Kat expresses an occasional loneliness, and finds it difficult to meet new people because she fears that she makes poor first impressions, and doesn't like herself when she's in a relationship. |
| Neil Forrester Neil Forrester Neil A. Forrester is a British research assistant in the field of developmental disorders and language acquisition at the University of London. He is best known to the general public as one of the cast members of the fourth season of the MTV reality television series The Real World: London, which... |
24 | Oxford, England | Neil is a graduate of Oxford University's Wadham College, and is taking time off from his Ph.D. studies in experimental psychology Experimental psychology Experimental psychology is a methodological approach, rather than a subject, and encompasses varied fields within psychology. Experimental psychologists have traditionally conducted research, published articles, and taught classes on neuroscience, developmental psychology, sensation, perception,... to play with his band, a "techno Techno Techno is a form of electronic dance music that emerged in Detroit, Michigan in the United States during the mid to late 1980s. The first recorded use of the word techno, in reference to a genre of music, was in 1988... -noise" band called Unilever, of which he is the lead singer. He is also "keeps his options open" by being involved with a couple of other bands, and wishes to show that one can take an "intellectual" approach to music. Described as "super-cynical", he concedes to being both misanthropic Misanthropy Misanthropy is generalized dislike, distrust, disgust, contempt or hatred of the human species or human nature. A misanthrope, or misanthropist is someone who holds such views or feelings... and xenophobic Xenophobia Xenophobia is defined as "an unreasonable fear of foreigners or strangers or of that which is foreign or strange". It comes from the Greek words ξένος , meaning "stranger," "foreigner" and φόβος , meaning "fear."... , and that this makes it difficult for him to meet new people. He also says he dislikes America, remarking that he finds that Americans' upfront friendliness "smacks of insincerity", and that Americans "demolish all semblance of culture. It's interesting in the same way car crashes are interesting." These feelings are underlined by his relationship with Mike, whom Neil perceives to have a "brash temperament" typical of the aspects of the United States that he dislikes. He nonetheless comes to like Mike. He becomes closest to Lars, moreso than Mike and Jay. An advocate of body piercing, the hardest part of filming is the separation from his girlfriend, Chrys, and the prospect of sharing a room. Sharon relates Neil likes to play mind games with people, and provoke them in order to see their reaction. In Episode 7, Neil responds to a drunken male heckler during a Unilever performance by leaning over and French kissing French Kissing "French Kissing" is a song by German singer-songwriter Sarah Connor from her debut album, Green Eyed Soul . Written and produced by Rob Tyger and Kay Denar, the track incorporates a sample of Blackstreet's 1996 hit song "No Diggity" featuring Dr... him. In response, the heckler bites the tip of Neil's tongue off, requiring 15 stitches to sew it back on, earning Neil a place among other reality television personalities who have been injured during filming on MTV's 2008 "E.R. All-Stars" Neil subsequently spends a portion of the season communicating during his "confessionals" using a computer voice synthesizer Speech synthesis Speech synthesis is the artificial production of human speech. A computer system used for this purpose is called a speech synthesizer, and can be implemented in software or hardware... and through Chrys' recollections. |
| Jay Frank | 19 | Portland, Oregon Portland, Oregon Portland is a city located in the Pacific Northwest, near the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers in the U.S. state of Oregon. As of the 2010 Census, it had a population of 583,776, making it the 29th most populous city in the United States... |
Jay, whom is described as "the quietest, least active one" in the cast, is an aspiring playwright and actor. His parents, Linda and Greg Streight, divorced before he was two. He was adopted by his stepfather, Scott Frank, a management consultant, when Jay was in the seventh grade, but Jay's biological father opposed Jay taking his stepfather's surname, and took Jay to court and cross-examined him himself, which Jay relates as a "strange" experience. He remains somewhat estranged from his biological father, and receives a surprise letter from him from Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia , commonly known in British English as Saudi Arabia and in Arabic as as-Sa‘ūdiyyah , is the largest state in Western Asia by land area, constituting the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and the second-largest in the Arab World... in Episode 13. Described by Real World producer-director George Verschoor as "a sensitive Jimmy Stewart type", Jay wrote a one-man show, Bedroom, about an insomniac teenager with an extremely active imagination, when he was a senior at Grant High School, for which he was named a Presidential Scholars Program Presidential Scholars Program The United States Presidential Scholars Program is the highest possible honor for graduating high school seniors in the United States of America.... by Bill Clinton Bill Clinton William Jefferson "Bill" Clinton is an American politician who served as the 42nd President of the United States from 1993 to 2001. Inaugurated at age 46, he was the third-youngest president. He took office at the end of the Cold War, and was the first president of the baby boomer generation... at a White House ceremony. He decided to move to London to visit the theater scene, and hopes to write his next play and continue his education in drama school. He is very close to his family and has a 16-year-old girlfriend named Alicia. Some of his housemates come to believe that Jay makes little use of his opportunities while in London, which earns him the label "slacker Slacker The term "slacker" is used to refer to a person who habitually avoids work. Slackers may be regarded as belonging to an antimaterialistic counterculture, though in some cases their behavior may be due to other causes .... ". He explains says that his tourist visa Visa (document) A visa is a document showing that a person is authorized to enter the territory for which it was issued, subject to permission of an immigration official at the time of actual entry. The authorization may be a document, but more commonly it is a stamp endorsed in the applicant's passport... prevents him from either working or doing volunteer work. As a result, he puts on a presentation of Bedroom in the flat for friends in Episode 13. Though this earns him accolades from his friends, they continue to feel he does not make productive use of his time in London afterwards. By Episode 16, the change he feels he has undergone makes him ambivalent about his visit home to Portland and his relationship with Alicia. |
| Mike Johnson | 21 | St. Louis, Missouri St. Louis, Missouri St. Louis is an independent city on the eastern border of Missouri, United States. With a population of 319,294, it was the 58th-largest U.S. city at the 2010 U.S. Census. The Greater St... |
Mike is a business-marketing major at Westminster College and a race car driver from a wealthy family who races Formula 2000 cars at Gateway International Raceway Gateway International Raceway Gateway Motorsports Park is a race track in Madison, Illinois, USA, just east of St. Louis, Missouri. After being shuttered by former owner Dover Motorsports Inc., on Nov. 3, 2010, it was announced Sept. 8, 2011, that the facility would re-open and host an NHRA Full Throttle Series event Oct. 5-7,... . Mike was introduced to the sport by his father, Duke, who runs a company that manufactures food-service equipment, but who races on the side. Mike's mother, Terry, who divorced Duke when Mike was two, does sales for a paint company. Despite the offer from his father, to race with his team of seven years, Mike prefers to find his own sponsors in London, where he tries racing Formula Renault Formula Renault Formula Renault is a class of formula racing founded in 1971. It is popular in Europe and other countries. Regarded as an entry-level series to motor racing, it is a respected series where drivers can learn advanced racecraft before moving on to Formula Three, World Series by Renault, GP2 or... . Although he has been to Europe once before, he has never been to England. Though he is looking forward to the trip, he chafes against his father's opposition to the trip (though his father denies being unsupportive of him) and his words of caution, perceiving it as part of his father's typical negativity. He is also ambivalent about exploiting his father's connections. His family includes a younger brother and sister, his stepmother, Kathy and his half-brother, Duke, Jr., the latter two of which visit London with Mike's father in Episode 9. He is unbothered by Neil and Jacinda's observations that he is conspicuously American, refusing to adopt a Europhilic Europhile A europhile is a person who is fond of, admires, or even loves European culture, society, history, food, etc. In politics, it may be used to imply Pro-Europeanism, or support for the European Union, often disapprovingly... attitude while in London, and is surprised by the realization that Britons are not as universally enamored of Americans as he perceived them to be via the American media, but finds himself experiencing reverse culture shock when he returns home to visit his mother, stepdad and younger sister in Episode 20, having acclimated to England. Mike gravitates to Kat in the beginning of the season, but subsequently feels excluded by the romantic tension between her and Neil. Responding to the accusation that this was motivated by jealousy, he stated in an interview, "I'm not attracted to [Kat] in the slightest", with Kat also referring to the suggestion that Mike had a crush on her as being "rubbish." Mike also becomes close to Jay, the only other male American in the house, and because their activities in London are limited, the two are known to sleep in the day and spend nights engaging in antics that sometimes anger others such as Jacinda. |
| Lars Schlichting | 24 | Berlin, Germany | Lars works for an event and marketing agency while attending the University of Berlin, where he studies communications and North American studies. He spends his nights deejay Deejay A deejay is a reggae or dancehall musician who sings and toasts to an instrumental riddim .Deejays are not to be confused with disc jockeys from other music genres like hip-hop, where they select and play music. Dancehall/reggae DJs who select riddims to play are called selectors... ing at techno clubs and enjoying the nightlife. He also does promotional work for 98.8 KISS FM Berlin 98.8 KISS FM Berlin 98.8 KISS FM is a privately owned radio station broadcasting to Berlin and parts of Brandenburg on 98.8 FM MHz specialising in R&B, dance, hip hop and pop. It also broadcasts via analogue cable in Berlin and Brandenburg on 97.90 MHz and nationwide via DAB. Its studios are part of the medienzentrum... . He hopes to work for a club, record label or public relations firm while staying in London. Remarking on his line of work, he says, "There's not a lot of good German house DJs. I'm the first German who's ever spun on a Saturday at [London's] Ministry of Sound." Though Neil becomes the closest to him, Neil questions Lars's direct approach to expressing himself, as when Lars reacts to the cast's apathy over the theft of his mountain bike, which the two discuss during the trip to Africa. |
| Jacinda Barrett Jacinda Barrett Jacinda Barrett is an Australian American model turned actress. She first became known to audiences as a cast member on The Real World: London before appearing in films such as Ladder 49, The Namesake, The Human Stain, and Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason.-Early life and career:Born in Brisbane,... |
22 | Brisbane, Australia | Jacinda has been a professional model since the age of 14, and left her native Australia at 17 to pursue that career internationally. She lives in Paris, is represented by the Storm modeling agency (which also represents Elle MacPherson Elle Macpherson Elle Macpherson is an Australian model, actress, and businesswoman nicknamed "The Body". She is perhaps best known for her record five cover appearances for the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue beginning in the 1980s... and Kate Moss Kate Moss Kate Moss is an English model. Moss is known for her waifish figure and popularising the heroin chic look in the 1990s. She is also known for her controversial private life, high profile relationships, party lifestyle, and drug use. Moss changed the look of modelling and started a global debate on... ), continues her career while in London, having been featured in many top fashion magazines in Europe. She is also pursuing her pilot's license and a certification in parachuting Parachuting Parachuting, also known as skydiving, is the action of exiting an aircraft and returning to earth with the aid of a parachute. It may or may not involve a certain amount of free-fall, a time during which the parachute has not been deployed and the body gradually accelerates to terminal... , and says that she has "a million" career goals she would like to accomplish, commenting, "Modeling is great money and great travel, but I just find it really empty, so I can't continue doing it full-time. I would do my head in." Sharon nicknames Jacinda "Ms. Mischief" for her spontaneous, "cheeky" way of horsing around with people and provoking them. Among the antics with which Jacinda amuses herself are pinching strange men's rear ends on the London Underground London Underground The London Underground is a rapid transit system serving a large part of Greater London and some parts of Buckinghamshire, Hertfordshire and Essex in England... in order to get a reaction out of them, prank call Prank call A prank call is a form of practical joke committed over the telephone. Prank phone calls began to gain an America-wide following over a period of many years, as they gradually became a staple of the obscure and amusing cassette tapes traded amongst musicians, sound engineers, and media traders... ing total strangers and streaking Streaking Streaking is the act of running nude through a public place.-History:On 5 July 1799, a Friday evening at 7 o'clock, a naked man was arrested at the Mansion House, London, and sent to the Poultry Compter... outside the flat with Kat. She has a boyfriend named Paul who is also a model, though she observes they've been together for less time than she'll be in London. In Episode 8, she adopts a Shih Tzu Shih Tzu The Shih Tzu is a breed of dog weighing with long silky hair. The breed originated in China and is among the earliest breeds. Shih Tzu were officially recognized by the American Kennel Club in 1969... dog she names Legend. She is described by Mike as "free-spirited", in contrast to Paul, two years her junior, who Mike feels is less outgoing and the submissive one in their relationship. Lars, who is opposed to her adoption of Legend, finds it frivolous, comparing her desire for a dog to a little girl's desire for a Barbie Barbie Barbie is a fashion doll manufactured by the American toy-company Mattel, Inc. and launched in March 1959. American businesswoman Ruth Handler is credited with the creation of the doll using a German doll called Bild Lilli as her inspiration.... doll. Sharon, who addresses Jacinda as "Jacy", becomes irritated at Jacinda when the unhousebroken Legend's soils her room, and does the cast in general with her lack of consideration for other people, which comes out in Episode 10 and during the group's Outward Bound Outward Bound Outward Bound is an international, non-profit, independent, outdoor educationorganization with approximately 40 schools around the world and 200,000 participants per year... camping weekend in Episode 11. Neil and Mike say that although she is fundamentally a nice person, and that they like her very much when she is alone with one of them, that she undergoes a dramatic change when more than one person is around, exhibiting behavior they find abhorrent, which Neil speculates may stem from the fact that she has not had a normal life since age 14. |
| Sharon Gitau | 20 | Essex, England | Sharon is a singer/songwriter who performs with a jazz funk band. She is a fan of performers such as Hue & Cry, U2 U2 U2 are an Irish rock band from Dublin. Formed in 1976, the group consists of Bono , The Edge , Adam Clayton , and Larry Mullen, Jr. . U2's early sound was rooted in post-punk but eventually grew to incorporate influences from many genres of popular music... , Tori Amos Tori Amos Tori Amos is an American pianist, singer-songwriter and composer. She was at the forefront of a number of female singer-songwriters in the early 1990s and was noteworthy early in her career as one of the few alternative rock performers to use a piano as her primary instrument... , Leslie Garrett and Enya Enya Enya is an Irish singer, instrumentalist and songwriter. Enya is an approximate transliteration of how Eithne is pronounced in the Donegal dialect of the Irish language, her native tongue.She began her musical career in 1980, when she briefly joined her family band Clannad before leaving to... . She is very close to her mother (who appears in Episodes 4 and 15), who raised her as an only child. She is also an experienced traveler, having found the U.S. particularly enjoyable. MTV describes her as "an affable young woman who was looking for something new in her life before she went on the show." The others perceive her to be very talkative, which proves to be a problem in Episode 4, when she is required to remain silent following surgery that removes a swollen growth on her tonsil Tonsil Palatine tonsils, occasionally called the faucial tonsils, are the tonsils that can be seen on the left and right sides at the back of the throat.... s that threatens her singing. She becomes to be a target for teasing from the rest of the cast. When the cast goes on a group vacation to Kenya Kenya Kenya , officially known as the Republic of Kenya, is a country in East Africa that lies on the equator, with the Indian Ocean to its south-east... , Sharon, a vegetarian, expresses discomfort at the Maasai slaughtering a goat for dinner. During that trip, the cast asks her about her tendency to hold back much about her singing and her relationships, and she attributes this to a number of formative influences, including being raised an only child by her mother, attending an all-girls school, and lacking any father figure, as the closest male family members were an uncle and grandfather whom she only saw once a year, due to their living in the United States. As a result, she was not used to being around men, and due to this and some negative experiences in her youth, it took her a long time to feel comfortable with her sexuality and herself. |
Episodes
| Ep # | Total | Title | Airdate |
|---|
After filming
Mike Johnson and his wife Cheryl run a real estate business. Mike is also the team manager for the Stevenson Motorsports Grand-Am road racing team.Jay Frank graduated from City College of New York
City College of New York
The City College of the City University of New York is a senior college of the City University of New York , in New York City. It is also the oldest of the City University's twenty-three institutions of higher learning...
with a degree in Broadcast Journalism
Broadcast journalism
Broadcast journalism is the field of news and journals which are "broadcast", that is, published by electrical methods, instead of the older methods, such as printed newspapers and posters. Broadcast methods include radio , television , and, especially recently, the Internet generally...
. He subsequently become a morning live reporter and then a morning anchor in the Tri-Cities, Washington
Tri-Cities, Washington
The Tri-Cities is a mid-sized metropolitan area in the southeastern part of the U.S. state of Washington, consisting of three neighboring cities: Kennewick, Pasco, and Richland. The cities are located at the confluence of the Yakima, Snake, and Columbia rivers in the semi-arid region of...
area before becoming the main anchor for KOHD
KOHD
KOHD is the ABC affiliated television station for Central Oregon that is licensed to Bend. It broadcasts a high definition digital signal on UHF channel 51 from a transmitter in the city on Awbrey Butte west of U.S. 97. Owned by the Chambers Communications Corporation, the station has studios on...
-TV in Bend, Oregon
Bend, Oregon
Bend is a city in and the county seat of Deschutes County, Oregon, United States, and the principal city of the Bend, Oregon Metropolitan Statistical Area. Bend is Central Oregon's largest city, and, despite its modest size, is the de facto metropolis of the region, owing to the low population...
. He wrote another play, Ten Cent Treasure, which plays locally in the Tri-Cities area. He lives in Kennewick
Kennewick, Washington
Kennewick is a city in Benton County in the southeastern part of the U.S. state of Washington, near the Hanford nuclear site. It is the most populous of the three cities collectively referred to as the Tri-Cities...
.
Lars Schlichting lives in the United States, and runs his own company that deals with DJ equipment. He is also a nationwide consultant and trainer for Pioneer
Pioneer Corporation
is a multinational corporation that specializes in digital entertainment products, based in Kawasaki, Kanagawa, Japan. The company was founded in 1938 in Tokyo as a radio and speaker repair shop...
ProDJ.
Jacinda Barrett
Jacinda Barrett
Jacinda Barrett is an Australian American model turned actress. She first became known to audiences as a cast member on The Real World: London before appearing in films such as Ladder 49, The Namesake, The Human Stain, and Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason.-Early life and career:Born in Brisbane,...
went on to become a feature film actress, appearing in such films as The Namesake
The Namesake (film)
The Namesake is a 2006 film which was released in the United States on March 9, 2007, following screenings at film festivals in Toronto and New York City. It was directed by Mira Nair and is based upon the novel of the same name by Jhumpa Lahiri, who appeared in the movie. Sooni Taraporevala...
, The Human Stain
The Human Stain (film)
The Human Stain is a 2003 American romantic thriller film directed by Robert Benton. The screenplay by Nicholas Meyer is based on the 2000 novel of the same name by Philip Roth...
, and The Last Kiss
The Last Kiss
The Last Kiss is a 2006 American romantic comedy-drama film which is based on the 2001 Italian film L'ultimo bacio, directed by Gabriele Muccino. The plot revolves around a young couple and their friends struggling with adulthood and issues of relationships and commitment.The film stars Zach Braff,...
. In 2004 she married actor Gabriel Macht
Gabriel Macht
Gabriel S. Macht is an American actor. Macht is known for playing The Spirit in the film of the same name, and lately for his role as Harvey Specter on the USA Network series Suits.-Personal life:...
. On August 20, 2007 she gave birth to a daughter, Geraldine Macht, in Los Angeles.
Sharon Gitau works as a singer, song writer, composer and producer.
Real World/Road Rules Challenges
| Cast Member | RW/RR Challenges Real World/Road Rules Challenge The Challenge is a reality television game show on MTV that is both dependent on and spun off from the network's two flagship reality shows, The Real World and the now cancelled series, Road Rules. It is currently hosted by T.J... |
Challenges Won |
|---|---|---|
| Kat Ogden | Challenge 2000 | None |
| Neil Forrester Neil Forrester Neil A. Forrester is a British research assistant in the field of developmental disorders and language acquisition at the University of London. He is best known to the general public as one of the cast members of the fourth season of the MTV reality television series The Real World: London, which... |
RW/RR Challenge | None |
| Jay Frank | - | - |
| Mike Johnson | Battle of the Seasons | None |
| Lars Schlichting | - | - |
| Jacinda Barrett Jacinda Barrett Jacinda Barrett is an Australian American model turned actress. She first became known to audiences as a cast member on The Real World: London before appearing in films such as Ladder 49, The Namesake, The Human Stain, and Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason.-Early life and career:Born in Brisbane,... |
- | - |
| Sharon Gitau | Battle of the Seasons | None |
The contestant was a finalist on the Challenge, but lost in the Final Race.