A YOUNG woman from Redbourn is one of the stars of a controversial reality television series, currently being watched by millions across the country.

Miss Miranda Rayner, 20, of Harpenbury Farm, caused quite a stir when she arrived on the set of Bar Wars, a Channel 4 documentary "battle of the sexes" on a Greek island.

Promoted as a "reality game show that is definitely not for the timid", the show features "dirty tricks, sabotage, back-stabbing, bitching and sexual infidelity."

Filmed this summer, a team of girls and a team of boys were each given a beach bar to manage in Kavos, Corfu, and competed to attract the most punters and make the biggest profit.

Tensions ran high and at the end of each week, a member of the losing team was ousted, to be replaced by a new recruit.

A television advertisement prompted Miss Rayner to apply to join the show "for a laugh" and she was put on standby until week seven of the series, which runs for nine weeks.

On joining, she admits there was plenty of bad behaviour, cattiness, drinking and tears, but revealed that a controversial romance with a member of the rival team "saved her".

She said: "I'm quite loud and don't really care what people think so I jumped right in to it.

"I made quite an entrance on the first night I just bounded into the restaurant.

"I had a little romance when I was there and it's still going on now.

"It was so unexpected I got there and we hit it off straight away but it caused a lot of controversy and didn't make my life easy with the other girls."

She felt ostracised by the other girls who, she claims, had already bonded from the beginning of the show.

"For me, it was a game at the end of the day but for the other girls the bar was the priority.

"I thought I will put in the hard work but I will enjoy myself as well.

"When I got there I hadn't slept for 48 hours but was up for going out straight away.

"It was tiring and quite stressful because we were working long days.

"You would get up at 9am to get ready, get to the bar by 11am, the bar opened at 12pm and work until it closed at 1am.

"Then I wanted to go out after that as an escape from it.

"By the time you got back after a few drinks and going out, you only got about an hour's sleep."

Miss Rayner confesses she is worried about how she will be portrayed in the series and hopes she "comes across as a good person."

A preview of this week's show depicts her in "complete hysterics", she added.

The eldest of four children, she lives with her parents and is looking for work in the media.

She can be seen on Bar Wars on Friday, November 2, and on Friday, November 9, on Channel 4 or at various times throughout the week on cable Channel E4.

A video entitled Bar Wars Exposed, featuring all the raunchiest uncut scenes from the show that didn't appear on television, is to be released next week.

We have three copies to give away, but you must buy a copy of the St Albans Observer, issue dated November 1 to enter.

October 31, 2001 19:43

Clair Weaver