Beyond the veil in Wife Swap

CHANNEL 4 is stepping into a religious minefield again by signing up a strict Muslim woman for its life- switch series Wife Swap.

And the mum — who wears a traditional hijab — will swap with a woman whose 16-year-old daughter is a LESBIAN.

The Muslim woman, her husband and three children live by strict Islamic law. They all pray five times a day and shun alcohol. She and an “arty” liberal mother will swap homes for two weeks, spending the first week living by the others’ rules.

In the second week they will introduce their own rules.

A show source said: “Yes, it sounds like a gimmick, but there is a serious point to this.

“Like every Wife Swap, it’s about forcing people to confront their views in bringing up kids and running a home.”

The stunt follows Channel 4’s move to have a veiled Muslim woman read its alternative Christmas message. That programme was attacked for being deliberately controversial.

Meanwhile, Channel 4 has confirmed that magician Paul Daniels and his wife Debbie McGee will star in a Celebrity Wife Swap special, as predicted by TV Biz.

They will switch homes with chat show host Vanessa Feltz and her musician fiance Ben Offoedu.

The specials will air next month as part of the next series of Wife Swap. Producers RDF also plan to include a Muslim swap for the show’s US series. They are offering families £10,000 to take part.

http://www.thesun.co.uk/article/0,,2001320029-2007110474,00.html