FOR most people the idea of being hunted across the country by a team of former detectives, military staff and cyber security experts is the stuff of nightmares.
But each year a new batch of famous faces trade in their luxury lives to play the biggest game of cat and mouse on TV when they sign up to Channel 4’s Celebrity Hunted.
Katie Begley visited Hunted HQ to find out if the popular show is staged Credit: Supplied
The cast of this year’s series includes reality TV stars, disability advocate Sophie Morgan, Amy Dowden – and more Credit: Channel 4
This year it’s the turn of TV legend Brian Conley and his daughter, actor Lucy Conley, Strictly’s Amy Dowden and Carlos Gu, former soldier-turned-presenter JJ Chalmers and disability advocate Sophie Morgan, Love Islanders Chris Taylor and Toby Aromolaran, and comics Laura Smyth and Jen Brister.
The opening credits tell fans the show recreates the powers of the state, but how real is it?
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Scroll through social media and you’ll find plenty of messages from fans who think the entire show is staged, I mean, how hard can it be to spot someone from the telly being followed by a camera crew?
So I decided to stage my own hunt, turning the focus on the professionals to see how real this game actually is – and the truth blew my mind.
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From separate pub rule to humiliating act celebs have to perform, here’s what Katie discovered Credit: Supplied
Love Island alumni Chris Taylor and Toby Aromolaran swap the lavish villa for life as outlaws Credit: Colin Hutton / Channel 4 / Shine
With filming underway I slipped past security and made it into the heart of Hunted HQ in Central London, where I quickly discovered the show is made up of a 300-strong crew split into two teams, the Fugitives and the Hunters.
And surprisingly, the two gangs are as competitive off screen as the talent are on camera.
They’re banned from talking to each other and even choose their own local pubs that only their team can relax in during a much needed break. After all, loose lips sink ships.
On camera the Hunters have their own James Bond style lair complete with high tech gadgets, massive TV screens and state-of-the-art software. Then there’s their ground team of burly ex special forces types who are ready to chase down the celebs.
And behind one wall of Hunted HQ is a team of producers capturing every conversation as they lay their reputations on the line to catch the pesky TV personalities.
But down the hall, behind a locked door that no Hunter is allowed anywhere near, is base camp for team Fugitive.
Each celebrity pairing has their own member of staff who tracks their every move with the help of what is known as “the follow team”.
They are the spies on the ground, tracking their chosen celebrity duo every step of the way, filming them on the run like a roving CCTV unit.
They also inform base camp every time they pass obvious CCTV cameras, make a phone call, use an ATM, flag down a member of the public or call on their celeb pals for help.
It’s their job to collect all the content that in a normal police hunt would usually be captured by the millions of real CCTV cameras around the country or obtained via legal warrants.
All this information is stored in fugitive base camp and can only be passed to the Hunters when they uncover it as their investigation unfolds.
Overseeing the collection and sharing of information is Celebrity Hunted’s own Wizard of Oz. Or “the ref” as he’s known by both teams.
Kevin O’Leary is no stranger to high stakes hunts.
He was once a Detective Chief Superintendent at London’s Scotland Yard and specialised in kidnapping and organised crime cases.
He also oversaw the security for the London 2012 Olympics.
It’s Kevin’s job to make sure the show replicates exactly what would happen in a real-life man hunt.
Chatting to me in fugitive base camp he admits: “I’m the bane of all their lives!
“I know exactly how these kinds of investigations play out and we replicate that within the realm of TV.
“So for example, if the Hunters are chasing down a lead and request ‘CCTV footage’ captured by the follow team, they won’t get it the moment they ask because in the real world they’d need to apply to a judge for a warrant and that takes time. So I make sure there’s a comparable delay.
“Or if they spot a car being used as a getaway by one of the celebs, the follow team – because they’ve logged all the relevant information – know exactly who is driving the car.
“But in the real world the police would have to look at the paperwork for the car and that doesn’t always tell you who is likely to be driving. For example, my daughter’s car is a hire purchase that’s in my name because I actually pay for it.
“So I make sure the fugitive team only share information that’s absolutely correct and appropriate for the time and information the police would likely have in a real manhunt scenario.”
One of the biggest shocks I discovered is that before the stars even set one foot on the run they’ve already done the unthinkable in a world where their darkest secrets can be embarrassing at best, career ending at worst.
As part of the deal, they agree to hand over six months’ worth of bank statements and phone records.
This allows the Hunters to quickly build a “pattern of life” based on documents the police would normally analyse within hours of hunting a real target.
The celebs also hand in their personal phones which are dredged using high tech software that builds a digital picture of their lives, from places they’ve been and who they were with, their private emails and pictures they’ve taken to WhatsApp chats with their friends. Everything is scrutinised for real.
Only one person in the Hunter team has access to their phones to protect their privacy. I’m not allowed to reveal her identity because she actually works for the security services, having taken a holiday from her real job to film the show.
The celebs have put boundaries in place, for example no emails from their agents can be accessed or messages with certain loved ones.
The analyst places these behind a firewall but everything else is accessible, testament to the level of trust the stars place on the show because I wouldn’t want anyone going through my phone unless I had disappeared for real!
The Ref ensures the Hunters only have access to data from the minute the game starts so they can’t cheat and work up a quick profile ahead of time.
With the use of incredible tech and serious hard graft by the show’s analysts, a picture of the fugitive is quickly created within hours of the start gun flaring.
They use phone and bank records to answer a series of questions, like do they have a favourite coffee chain? What kind of travel habits do they have? And which friends and family do they connect with most who are likely to be their support system on the run?
Their phone and bank details provide so much data the Hunters quickly have new leads to start investigating.
And the celebs might think they’re being crafty by deleting messages and clearing their search histories before handing over their phones, but even that information is recorded on their devices.
The analyst boasts: “They think they’re being clever deleting messages going back a few weeks but as soon as I see that I know that person is important to them and likely to be part of their network on the run so someone we need to monitor.
“It’s a huge red flag!”
The CVs of those on camera in Hunted HQ are impressive, top-level cyber security experts, ex military intelligence to hardened detectives who have only just handed back their credentials.
Most still operate within the national security industry so are cagey when I try to do a deep dive into their background and respectfully ask for their details to remain their secret.
But it’s clear that while it might be a TV show, the Hunters take their job incredibly seriously and are extremely competitive.
Chief Hunter Ray Howard, who’s been the boss since joining the show last year, isn’t shy about roasting the celebs.
And this series is no different.
When I ask what he thinks of the line-up he can’t help but have a dig.
“They all think they’re superstars, we’ll prove they’re anything but,” he smiles.
“It’s us versus them and my money is on us every time. They might think they’re smart but they don’t have the experience we do.”
But Ray knows the celebs are going to give as good as they get – some more than others.
He adds: “Brian Conley and his daughter Lucy filmed themselves at a care home where they got all the residents to stick their fingers up at us on the CCTV footage and on social media!
“And those Love Island boys keeping sticking up their middle finger at CCTV cameras they pass, knowing we’re likely to see it.
“It’s annoying but only makes us work even harder to catch them, piss us off and it puts a bigger target on your back!”
While I’m at Hunted HQ there’s a flurry of activity.
After tracking down someone they believed was helping one of the pairs, the Hunters have intercepted a call where one celeb helpfully details their next pick up point giving the gaffer, Ray, time to set a trap.
Their actions have been approved by the Ref which means they now have access to the live footage being captured by the follow team tracking these celebs.
As tension builds inside Hunted HQ everyone watches the big screens relaying live footage and a cheer erupts when they get their hands on one celebrity.
But they can’t celebrate for long because the other half of the duo cleverly slips through their fingers, earning a few fruity comments from Ray and his team.
Of course, I’ve been sworn to secrecy over which celeb pair gets cut in half, but seeing it all unfold in front of my eyes has made me realise just how real this show is.
It’s also given me a front row seat to some of the powers the state has when it comes to tracking unsavoury characters across our shores.
And as I look at all the experts tapping away at their desks, I’m relieved it’s not me they are hunting because a few hours in their company has made me realise I’d never stand a chance.
To win this game the celebs are going to have to use every trick in their showbiz book.
Celebrity Hunted is streaming now on Channel 4.
