Salvage Hunters is not necessarily staged but the producers of the show might add staged elements like recreating comical and dramatic moments, which is expected of the format.
In 2011, Salvage Hunters premiered on Quest TV and was an immediate hit with fans in Europe as well as internationally, as it followed the format of the US’ American Restoration.
Considering the format, there are elements of the show that are “staged”, but for the most part, the show is as real as any other reality show.
What is Salvage Hunters?
Salvage Hunters first premiered in 2011 and has been airing ever since, as it has remained Quest TV’s flagship show.
The premise of the antique and artefacts restoration reality-format show follows modern-day treasure hunter Drew Pritchard, as he travels in and around the United Kingdom in search of antiques and artefacts, with his friend and driving-companion John Tee.
Is Salvage Hunters staged?
Salvage Hunters’ format is structured around Drew Pritchard and Tee John travelling in and around the UK in search of antiques and artefacts to restore.
Given that it is a reality show, it aims to capture the “moment as it is.” However, that does not mean that there are no elements of the series that are coordinated.
That being said, this does not mean that the series is staged, as the pieces they find and restore are found in the respective stores, yard sales and homes featured on the show, but these elements below are coordinated.
Guests featured on the Salvage Hunters
Salvage Hunters does take into consideration the places featured on the show. This is as the show puts out calls on social media for antique and artefact hotspots ahead of travelling to the location.
Therefore, the producers of the series would have decided on which places to visit or not.
The element of surprise
While Drew Pritchard and John Tee might genuinely be surprised at the antiques and artefacts found in the location of the episode, it is a known fact that ahead of them travelling to the location, it is first canvassed by the producers of the show to confirm if the location is worth shooting.
The banter in the show
While chemistry between people might be hard to fake, repeating comical or enacted moments, especially between friends and long-time friends like Drew Pritchard and Tee is not.
Therefore, there might be times when they are asked by the director to repeat something or to do it again as if it was the first time.
Final thoughts
Salvage Hunters might be a reality show, however, as we have learnt with the popularity of the format that even reality can be staged.
However, the places visited and the people profiled are real. What can be coordinated is choosing the subjects and possibly re-enacting moments the camera did not capture.
