Fly on the wall explained

Fly on the wall is a style of documentary-making used in film and television production. The name derived from the idea that events are seen candidly, as a fly on a wall might see them. In the purest form of fly-on-the-wall documentary-making, the camera crew works as unobtrusively as possible; however, it is also common for participants to be interviewed, often by an off-camera voice.^[1]

Decades before structured reality shows became popular, the BBC had broadcast fly-on-the-wall film Royal Family (a 1969 documentary produced in association with ITV),^{[2] [3] [4]} while 1974's The Family, is said to be the earliest example of a reality TV docusoap on the BBC.^{[5] [6] [7] [8]} In 1978 the BBC aired Living in the Past recreating a British Iron Age settlement. In the late 1990s, Chris Terrill's docusoap series The Cruise^{[9] [10] [11]} made a star of singer^[12] and TV personality Jane McDonald,^{[13] [14] [15]} while Welsh cleaner Maureen Rees^[16] became popular after her appearances on BBC One's^[17] Driving School.^[18]

Other British examples include and Channel 4's Educating... series, while in the United States popular examples include American Factory, Cops, Deadliest Catch, Big Brother and Weiner, a film about a political sex scandal which developed during a mayoral election in New York.^[19]

See also

• Cinéma vérité
• Direct cinema
• Reality television
• Television documentary

Notes and References

1. Web site: BFI Screenonline: 'Fly on the Wall' TV.
2. Web site: 'Royal Family': the fly-on-the-wall documentary the Palace doesn't want you to see. HistoryExtra.
3. Web site: Royal family documentary 'banned' by the Queen resurfaces online 50 years later. January 29, 2021. Stuff.
4. Web site: Banned Royal family documentary from 1969 resurfaces on Youtube. Neil. Shaw. January 29, 2021.
5. Web site: BBC - History of the BBC, April 1974 - The Family - the first 'fly-on-the-wall' documentary. BBC.
6. Web site: The Family first episode. bbc.com.
7. Web site: The family says goodbye. Laura. Miller. August 18, 2008.
8. Web site: The Wilkinses of Reading: Where Are They Now?. October 23, 2011. The Independent.
9. Web site: The Cruise. www.bbc.co.uk.
10. Web site: BBC One - The Cruise, Let the Dream Begin. BBC.
11. Web site: BBC One - The Cruise. BBC.
12. Web site: Jane McDonald | Biography & History. AllMusic.
13. Web site: Jane McDonald | full Official Chart History | Official Charts Company. www.officialcharts.com.
14. Web site: New series of Cruising with Jane McDonald to start this Friday | GoCruise & Travel Franchise. www.joingocruiseandtravel.co.uk.
15. Web site: Biography.
16. Web site: In search of Mo from Driving School. David. Owens. December 23, 2018. WalesOnline.
17. Web site: Driving School. bbc.com.
18. Web site: MAUREEN REES | full Official Chart History | Official Charts Company. .
19. News: Weiner – how a film about a political sex scandal suddenly got more intimate | Weiner | The Guardian. The Guardian . 30 June 2016 . Barnes . Henry .