This article was originally published on Kueez
In the past two decades or so, reality TV has delivered some of the most beloved, shocking, outrageous, silly, and even most violent moments in television history. From arguments, fistfights, and public meltdowns, to death-defying stunts and scenes of unintentional comedy gold. From Ozzy Osbourne and Paris Hilton to cheese-rolling, and horses wearing pants, here are just a few of the absolute best, unforgettable unscripted moments.
American Idol: William Hung Bangs! He Bangs!
Over the years, American Idol‘s audition episodes have provided some of the most must-see TV moments. From delusional, talentless, and aggressively rude singers to hilarious contestants ruining much-loved songs. Way back in Season 3, William Hung tried to sing Ricky Martin’s “She Bangs!” Simon Cowell stopped proceedings, saying: "You can't sing, you can't dance..." whereupon the 20-year-old proudly told the judges he'd received no professional training. "Noooo!" Simon snarkily snapped back.
And yet, William Hung ended up having the last laugh. The Los Angelean went on to release three albums and returned to the American Idol stage as a true idol in Season 15 for an encore. He even performed on The Tonight Show!
America’s Next Top Model: Tyra Banks Has A Breakdown
Remember when Tiffany Richardson was eliminated during Season 4 of America's Next Top Model? Tyra Banks decided to give the aspiring model a pep talk saying Tiffany needed to take responsibility. But within seconds, this pep talk turned into a tirade after Tiffany laughed about being eliminated. Next, Tyra took her to task for her bad attitude, and the two women ended up screaming at each other in one of reality TV's most unforgettable moments.
It all ended with Tyra’s now-infamous decree: “I have never in my life yelled at a girl like this! When my mother yells like this, it’s because she loves me! I was rooting for you! We were all rooting for you! How dare you? Learn something from this!” Ouch!
The Bachelor: Jason Dumps Melissa For Molly
Over the years, ABC's The Bachelor has provided dozens of dramatic moments, but perhaps the most dramatic of them all came in the finale of Season 13. Can you believe that was way back in 2009? Seems like only yesterday. Anyway, Jason Mesnick gave his final rose and proposed to Melissa. But during the After the Final Rose reunion special, he changed his mind, breaking it off with her and getting back together with runner-up Molly.
Then, in a moment no one saw coming, and no writer-producer could have scripted, Jason and Molly went on to get married in real life! They recently celebrated their 11th wedding anniversary and are still together.
Bad Girls Club: Tanisha’s Wake-Up Call
Bad Girls Club has seen more fights than Mike Tyson, but Tanisha Thomas’ iconic blow-up during Season 2 might be the best. Her incredibly messy roommates pushed her way beyond her breaking point––if you saw the series, you'll remember even the phone had syrup poured on it––so Tanisha decided to exact her revenge in the noisiest way possible. First, she gathered pots and pans, and then...
She went from room to room banging aforementioned pots and pans while yelling: “I didn’t get no f***in’ sleep ’cause of y’all, y’all not gonna get no sleep ’cause of me!” at the top of her voice. That's the way to do it!
Big Brother: Dan’s Funeral Flips The House
Big Brother 10 winner Dan Gheesling was so popular; he was invited back for Season 14. But he wasn't too popular with his former best friend Danielle Murphree after completely calling her out. Then, in a genius move, Dan staged his own Big Brother funeral, saying his gameplay was over in a famous speech: “In this game, you’ll never earn my trust back. You know what you did. And in this game, you’re dead to me.”
Danielle was heartbroken, but it was all part of the greatest play in Big Brother history. Dan’s "funeral" saw him survive that week and secure his place in the final two.
Celebrity Big Brother UK: David Is Dead!
January 2016. Rock God from another planet David Bowie dies, and the world mourns. Meanwhile, producers break their no-outside-news rule inside the Celebrity Big Brother UK house to inform Angie Bowie that her ex-husband had tragically passed away. So when Tiffany "New York" Pollard––most famous for Flavor Flav's reality TV show, Flavor of Love––asked Angie why she was upset, Angie blurted out, “David is dead!”
Now, our Tiff took this to mean that fellow housemate David Gest had died in the Big Brother house! Stunned, Tiff went around telling all the other housemates that David was dead... Upon further investigation, they found David Gest alive and well in his bed. TV Gold!
The Challenge: CT Pulverizes Adam
MTV's The Challenge has seen its fair share of fistfights, but Adam King was on the receiving end of perhaps the worst beating. It all came about during The Duel 2, when fellow contestant CT mistakenly thought Adam (his former Real World Paris roommate) had told his ex-girlfriend, Diem about his latest hook-up. The misunderstanding quickly descended into one of reality TV's craziest fights ever.
Ultimately, it took five guys to stop CT from pulverizing Adam. Then, when the posse of peacekeepers eventually let CT go, he chased Adam down to give him another beating. Finally, both contestants were eliminated and sent home under a cloud.
Dancing With The Stars: Ryan Lochte Gets Bum-Rushed
Ryan Lochte joined Dancing With the Stars 23rd season hot on the heels of the Rio de Janeiro Olympics. The Olympic swimmer had been in trouble after claiming he and three other swimmers had been robbed at gunpoint in a Brazilian gas station.. before later admitting they'd actually vandalized the gas station. Ryan said DWTS was part of his redemption tour, but not everyone was ready to forgive.
During the season premiere, two audience members bum-rushed the stage, trying to attack Ryan Lochte. Security quickly stepped in and took down the protesters. Host Tom Bergeron joked: “I would like to personally thank our security team for staying in shape.”
Flavor of Love: Somethin’ Poops On The Stairs
The Fugees famously rapped about defecating on the microphone, but former-Public Enemy rapper Flavor Flav was left confused when Flavor of Love contestant Tykeisha Thomas defected on the floor of his mansion. Flav's house has plenty of restrooms, but Tykeisha, aka Somethin’, chose to answer the call of nature by taking a poop not one time but two-time. First on the floor behind the group of women during a cocktail toast, and then on the stairs.
Fortunately, viewers were spared the sight of Somethin’s housewarming gift, but the same can't be said of her later description of went down. Her words: “It just, like… pushed itself out” will, unfortunately, be burned into viewers' memories forever.
Jersey Shore: Snooki Gets Punched In The Face
Early during the very first season of MTV's Jersey Shore, a crazy thing happened. The kind of crazy thing that generally only happens in New Jersey. On a night out drinking, a random drunk local guy gets into an altercation with show staple Snooki before knocking her to the floor. Okay, Snooki was pretty annoying, but this type of behavior–a grown man hitting a woman––is disgusting. That's not to say the producers didn't exploit the moment.
And of course, reality TV producers always know best. First, they allowed the incident to let the group bond. Next, they exploited the random act of violence to boost the show's ratings. Thanks to this moment, Jersey Shore became an unlikely breakout hit and making Snooki a household name.
The Real Housewives Of New Jersey: Teresa Flips The Table
Staying in Jersey now, The Real Housewives of New Jersey and its various spin-offs have seen more drama than the original soap operas that inspired them. Over the years, there have been a plethora of explosive confrontations, but the first season's finest moment came when Teresa unleashed her volcanic, vitriolic vocal violence on Danielle by calling her that age-old insult, a “prostitution whore”.
But Teresa doesn't stop there. For the camera, she flips the swanky country club table over and continues hurling abuse at Danielle before being dragged away by security. Stay classy, Teresa!
The Real Housewives Of New York City: Aviva Throws Her Prosthetic Leg
A hop and skip across the Hudson River, and we arrive in The Real Housewives of New York City territory. Aviva Drescher didn't appear in RHONY for long, but she sure as hell made an impact. During a heated argument, Aviva was accused by some of the other "ladies" of being fake. So what did she do? She responded in the only way she knew how; creating television gold!
Aviva detached her prosthetic leg, declaring it the only artificial or fake thing about her, and placed it on the up-market restaurant table. Next, she hurled it across the room to prove her point.
The Real World Seattle: Stephen Slaps Irene
Did you know that before Big Brother started out on Dutch TV in 1999, MTV's The Real World kicked off the genre in 1992? So, by The Real World Seattle Season 7, everyone knew what to expect. Irene McGee left the compound with a dig at Stephen Williams: “Stephen, I left everybody a gift, and I want to leave you one, too. You were right. A marriage between you and I would never work out. You know that… because you’re a homosexual, Stephen.”
At the time, Stephen hadn't come out as gay, so he slapped Irene in the face on national TV. She looked bad for outing someone against their wishes, but his reaction was still not cool. The series’ most infamous moment left audience members shocked, appalled, and aghast.
Road Rules: Kalle Goes Wing-Walking
Most reality TV contestants know they're in for a rollercoaster ride, but nothing could have prepared Kalle Dedolph for what MTV's Road Rules Islands had in store for her! Kalle had a fear of heights, so producers made the brave lady go wing-walking strapped to the top of an airplane as it looped, barrelled, rolled, and soared three thousand feet into the sky. Just don't look down Kalle!
Even topping the UK's I'm A Celebrity Get Me Out Of Here, where D-list celebrities have been known to parachute into their jungle camp (and eat kangaroo testicles to win food), this has got to go down as one of reality TV's craziest stunts!
RuPaul’s Drag Race: Asia O’Hara’s Finale Flop
RuPaul’s Drag Race shocks as much as it entertains, and Asia O’Hara’s lip-syncing to Janet Janet's "Nasty" was no exception. As the pièce de résistance to her show-stopping song, she opened her costume to reveal... Okay, let's freeze-frame right there while we explain what was meant to happen. The way Asia O'Hara envisaged things, a flotilla of pretty butterflies would burst forth from her costume and fly into the audience.
But when Asia opened her colorful butterfly-inspired costume, the butterflies emerged dead or dazed and dying and fell to the floor to the horror of the girls in the audience. She later took to Instagram to offer a heartfelt apology.
Survivor: The Snakes And Rats Speech
Back in season one of Survivor: Borneo, a staggering 51 million viewers tuned in to watch Sue Hawk take down Richard Hatch and Kelly Wiglesworth. After calling Richard an “arrogant, pompous, human being,” and Kelly “two-faced and manipulative,” Sue declared that if she saw Kelly dying of thirst, she wouldn't give her water but would instead: "let the vultures take you and do whatever they want with you, with no ill regrets."
Sue went on to deliver the ultimate take-down speech, saying Richard was a snake and calling Kelly a rat and adding: "Mother Nature intended ... for the snake to eat the rat.” Don't hold back now, Sue! Imagine an H.R. meeting with her!
Vanderpump Rules: Stassi Slaps Kristen
If JFK's assassination was the shot that was heard around the world, Season 2 of Bravo's Vanderpump Rules gave us the slap that was heard around the world. After suspecting her former best friend had slept with Stassi’s ex Jax (although Kristen denied it but later confessed), Stassi gave Kristen a backhand that Serena Williams would have been proud of!
It was exactly the kind of thing reality TV viewers love and helped turn Vanderpump Rules from sleeper-hit into a must-see guilty pleasure. The show went from strength to strength, and it all started with this one backhand slap.
The Voice: Adam Plays Favorites
Coaches on The Voice are meant to treat their singers equally, but that wasn’t the case for Adam Levine during Season 15. When both his remaining team members––DeAndre Nico and Reagan Strange––appeared in the bottom three, the Maroon 5 frontman threw his full support behind Reagan, who happened to be sick that day, so couldn’t sing to save herself in the show's Instant Save round.
With poor DeAndre still standing on the stage, Adam stated: “There is an unbelievably talented little girl right now who is not able to fight for her position on this show ... The thought of breaking her heart by not urging everyone to give this girl a shot to go and redeem herself next week would be too far beneath me.” Reagan Strange was saved by viewers and lived to sing another day.
Keeping Up With The Kardashians: Jail Trip Selfies
Back in the day, Keeping Up With the Kardashians was an absolute doozy. With the levels of delusion and ego on display, it was like watching Danish author Hans Christian Andersen's "The Emperor's New Clothes" folktale play out on television. In one memorable episode, Khloe Kardashian was on her way to jail for violating probation stemming from her 2007 DUI arrest, and Kim wouldn't stop taking selfies!
Kim didn't even stop posing for the camera when her mom––Kris Jenner––started screaming, "Stop taking pictures of yourself; your sister is going to jail." Of course, that didn't stop Kris suggesting they stop at IHOP along the way for Khloe's last meal!
Jersey Shore: Bros Before Hair Lint
Another fine moment from Jersey Shore was Pauly D and Vinny's bromance. The two hunks genuinely seemed to be in love and could often be seen gazing into each other's eyes. But the highlight came when Vinny was sitting on Pauly's lap on the pier and reached into Vinny's hair to remove a piece of lint. It made the whole world feel like David Attenborough watching gorillas grooming each other.
Pauly later tried to put his feelings into words: "On the beach, I had a piece of lint in my hair, and Vinny took it out... and that was the nicest thing anyone has ever done for me."
Newlyweds: Nick And Jessica: Is There Chicken In Chicken Of The Sea?
Whoever came up with the idea for Newlyweds: Nick and Jessica deserves a medal. Or at least an Emmy. In the very first episode, singer Jessica Simpson proved she was one tuna sandwich short of a picnic when tucking into her tunafish dinner. She asked her new husband Nick Lachey: "Is this chicken, what I have, or is this fish?" before adding, "I know it's tuna, but it says 'Chicken … by the Sea.'"
It's a good job she wasn't eating a Bombay Duck. Which isn't a duck at all; it's a fish from India. Are you gonna tell her, or should we leave it to Nick? The newlyweds divorced in 2006 after three seasons of their show.
Shark Tank: The Ionic Ear
Darrin Johnson was one of the first entrepreneurs to brave the Shark Tank as he appeared in the pilot episode. Based on the UK's Dragons' Den, which is, in turn, based on Japan's Money Tigers, Darrin asked for $1 million for a 15% stake in his company, Ionic Ear... a surgically implanted Bluetooth device. The Shark Tank investors agreed this is the worst pitch they've seen on the show.
Fun fact of the day: Bluetooth technology is named after 10th Century King of Denmark and Norway, Harald Bluetooth. The Bluetooth symbol we know and love is actually a thousand-year-old Norse rune depicting his name.
Punk'D: Justin Timberlake Cries
It's been called the greatest moment in reality TV history. But that's not saying much! Back in 2003, 22-year-old Justin Timberlake had left *NSYNC and had just released his first solo album, Justified. So, Ashton Kutcher thought pranking JT on his TV show Prank'd was... justifiable. Actors posing as IRS agents came to Justin's home and started repossessing his cars, dogs, and house saying he owed $900,000 in back taxes.
With Justin visibly distraught, distressed, and crying, Ashton casually strolls onto his property, declaring JT needs to start appearing on TV if he's not making enough money from music. Yeah, thanks for that advice, bro!
Amazing Race: My Ox Is Broken!
As we've already seen, reality TV often provides drama, tension, and even outbursts of violence, but it sometimes contains laugh-out-loud, side-splitting moments. Step up, Amazing Race! Looking for a clue in a swampy rice paddy in the Philippines, Colin had a meltdown when his ox wouldn't do what he asked and started wandering off instead of plowing.
Getting more and more frustrated as Christie shouts bad advice from the sidelines, Colin erupts and shouts, "My ox is broken!" before adding, "This is bullsh*t!" Only one of those statements was true. He was literally standing in it.
America's Next Top Model: 50 Cent Pushes Model into Pool
Another America's Next Top Model moment that caused a splash was the imaginatively titled 2007 episode, "The Girl Who Gets Thrown in the Pool." The venue was a swanky rooftop party where potential ANTMs were networking. The girl was Jaelle Strauss, while the phantom swimming pool thrower of Old Los Angeles was rapper Curtis Jackson, aka 50 Cent. Jaelle climbed out of the pool, and you'll never guess what happened next!
50 Cent threw her straight back in the pool. Although, in fairness, it sounds like she was being pretty annoying and wouldn't leave Curtis alone. And we presume the pool was heated.
The Osbournes: Ozzy's Forever Hating Bubbles
In one episode of perhaps the funniest unscripted show, The Osbournes, former Black Sabbath frontman Ozzy learned that there would be an explosion of bubbles in his otherwise dark and demonic rock show. "Oh come on, Sharon..." he started at his former wife and manager before unleashing one of the funniest, most expletive-laden rants in TV history.
"I'm f***ing Ozzy Osbourne, the Prince of f***ing Darkness. Evil! Evil! What's f***ing evil about a f***ing of f***ing bubbles!?" he retorted in his unmistakeable plodding, pedestrian, and monotone Birmingham (UK) accent. Hilarious.
Toddlers and Tiaras: Baby Madonna
What is wrong with people? Of course, we all know that there's something wrong with parents who enter their tiny children in beauty pageants, but TLC's show Toddlers and Tiaras––which ran from 2009 to 2013––featured a two-year-old girl dancing to a Madonna song while dressed in a gold bodysuit with a pointy cone bra. Aren't there laws against this kind of thing appearing on television?
We get that reality TV is meant to shock and sometimes even disturb, but this is a case for Child Protective Services. Not just the parents but the network, too. Don't you have lawyers to protect the vulnerable and broadcast behavioral standards to comply with, TLC?
Here Comes Honey Boo Boo: Wash Your Toosie Noots
And while we're on the subject of vulnerable children... Here Comes Honey Boo Boo! Similarly exploitative of the young and the fiscally challenged inhabitants of Georgia, the trashiest show of all time revolved around six-year-old beauty pageant contestant Alana "Honey Boo Boo" Thompson. In one episode, her mother, Mama June, explained to the audience why it was important to wash your genitals at least once every two weeks.
Three guesses where Alana "Honey Boo Boo" Thompson sprang to fame? That's right; it was TLC's Toddlers & Tiaras. If you had any doubts about this show, Here Comes Honey Boo Boo was canceled after Mama June was seen hanging around with a registered sex offender and child molester.
Pawn Stars: Loading A Crossbow
The hilariously titled Pawn Stars made stars of Rick "Old Man" Harrison, Corey "Big Hoss" Harrison, and Austin "Chumlee" Russell buying, pawning, and unearthing old junk. They were hilarious characters but our favorite moment arrived when two chubby presenters tried in vain to load a medieval crossbow. The killer comedy line came when one of them announced: "This would take you forever to kill someone."
Knowing that we also don't possess the upper body strength of a medieval crossbow archer, we weren't laughing at them, we were laughing with them. Right, guys?
Keeping Up With the Kardashians: Lord Scott Disick
Another classic Keeping Up With the Kardashians moment came when Kourtney's beau Scott Disick visited London and thought he got became a Knight of the Realm by buying a plot of land and becoming Lord Disick. During the kniting ceremony––which took place in an English pub and was overseen by someone who looked like they were on their lunch break from their job in a cell phone shop––Scott made his most earnest statement yet.
"I don't need to be walking around like some kind of peasant... I need to be walking around like royalty," proclaimed Scott as his buddy supped a pint of lager wearing a backward baseball cap and pink, black and blue sneakers in the background.
Amazing Race: Wheels Of Cheese
Just like the aforementioned ANTM episode was imaginatively titled "The Girl Who Gets Thrown in the Pool," season 14 of The Amazing Race kicked off with an episode called "Don't Let a Cheese Hit Me." In Switzerland, the contestants had to carry huge cheese wheels weighing 50lbs down a hill in a wooden backpack without dropping them. And guess what... it's harder than it sounds.
While cheese rolling competitions are far more fun and dangerous, it was pretty funny to watch these lunatics. What was even funnier was the Swiss cheesemakers watching on from the bottom of the hill drinking beer, laughing, and––for some unexplained reason––doing so dressed as boy scout Smurf Oompah Lumpah gnomes.
Hell's Kitchen: Contestant Eats All The Leftovers
Who's the least popular person to ever appear on Hell's Kitchen? Okay, apart from Gordon Ramsey, who's the least popular person to ever appear on Hell's Kitchen? If you said Ranjit "Raj" Brandston, we're working from the same recipe book. The wannabe chef was not only a disaster in the kitchen, he constantly helped himself to any and all leftovers while no one was looking.
And when he got busted by Chef Ramsey, things went from bad to worse! The celebrity chef blasted: "Haven't you got enough in there?" It seems the only stock Raj could make was a laughing stock.
The Simple Life: Paris Hilton Has Never Heard of Walmart
Another genius reality TV move was the whole premise of The Simple Life. The Fox show took out-of-touch wealthy socialites Paris Hilton and Nicole Richie and made them perform menial, blue-collar jobs like working on farms or flipping burgers. But some of the show's best moments came when the more pampered of the duo––that's Paris, in case you were wondering––was forced to interact with normal people.
In one episode, as the girls sit eating fried chicken, Paris has to figure out what the heck a "Walmart" is. Her best guess? "They sell Wall stuff?" Again, the reason we love reality TV so much is because you literally couldn't make it up.
The Osbournes: Ozzy Osbourne Goes After A Stray Cat
The Osbournes second entry sees aging rocker Ozzy Osbourne attempting to remove a stray cat from their home. The producers had placed The terrified kitty had somehow gone crazy in the house and hidden itself on top of an antique dresser, so Jack and Ozzy came up with a plan to get it down. When she stopped screaming and cackling in the background, Sharon suggested using a feather duster, or as she calls it, a tickling stick.
So off intrepid Ozzy sets, clambering up the rickety old piece of furniture as the whole family, America, and half the world watched on thinking, "What the hell are we watching?"
Shark Tank: Horse Pants
We've already seen the worst pitch in Shark Tank's history but we've saved the best for last. A man enters the Shark Tank to explain: "Years ago I took my family to a petting zoo ... I was disturbed by what I saw, and more importantly what my family saw. Every animal there was naked." With a completely straight face, he asked for a $500,000 investment for "docker-style khakis" modeled by his business partner "Buttercup".
When asked how he knew horse pants would go on to make $700 billion, he explained that humans started off wearing no pants... and look at us now. He's got a good point!