Exclusive – SAS: Who Dares Wins instructor Billy on just how intense the course is: “This isn’t Love Island"
The former SAS soldier told RadioTimes.com that the recruits are actually working up to 17 hours a day on the course.
SAS: Who Dares Wins instructor Mark 'Billy' Billingham has revealed just how "full on" the show is fo the contestants, who are put through their paces for up to 17 hours a day on the course.
Speaking about the train hijack in the ongoing series' first episode, Billy told RadioTimes.com in an exclusive interview that the SAS: Who Dares Wins instructors herded the recruits off of the train around the time that daylight broke, before blindfolding them, moving them to different locations several times, processing them for half an hour and eventually revealing themselves as their captors.
"There's a reason why we do all that. This is going to be hard, you need resilience, you need grit, you need determination. You've not come here to get your 15 minutes of fame – this isn't Love Island.
"We're not here to mess around. We're here to give you time, experience and this is where it starts."
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"I see a lot of comments going, 'Ah you know, but they stop and they do this,' – they don't. They are full on," the SAS: Who Dares Wins star added. "Every Sunday night, you see an hour's programme or however long it runs for. You've got to remember that they're working 17 hours a day. We're on it all the time.
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"They're not resting. It's not, 'let's film this bit and cut [that]' – everything's filmed, everything's real and they're pushed to their limits all the way through and that's for the duration of every day of every week for however long it goes on for.
"Hats off for anybody who's had the courage to come on the course for a start. To take the application and go, 'You know what, I'll do it.' That's what we call a ballsy call so good on them for doing that. Many come, few will be chosen – that's always the case."
The former SAS soldier has been a member of the show's Directing Staff since series two and stars in the current series alongside Chief Instructor Ant Middleton, Jason 'Foxy' Fox and new instructor Melvyn Downes.
Learn more about this year's SAS: Who Dares Wins contestants.
SAS: Who Dares Wins airs on Sundays at 9pm on Channel 4. To find out what else is on, check out our TV Guide.
