Young, Dumb and Living off Mum: Have the finalists grown up?
There's been plenty of sulking, temper-tantrums and tears as the latest series of Young, Dumb and Living off Mum draws to a close. The three finalists Coran, Levi and Danielle all made it through to the last show and tried to prove that they had grown up the most to win a round-the-world trip. So did the show really teach them about the responsibilities of becoming an adult? Well I thought I'd ask them. Winner Levi and runner-up Coran tell us what they've learnt... THE WINNER: LEVI
How does it feel to have won the show? Well I didn't think I was going to win. When my name was called out I was shaking, I thought it was going to be Coran who won. I don't think it will sink in until I take the first flight to wherever I'm going to go. I thought as long as I got to the final three I wasn't bothered because I did want to change, and getting to the final three is just as good as winning...but without the prize.
So what do you think you've learnt? How has being on the show changed you?
Well I don't go out as much and I don't drink as much. I don't spend my mum's money. I'm looking for a job and I job search every single day. I clean up around the house and me and my mum take it in turns. One day I'll do the hoovering and the next day she will, we alternate it.
So what about the trip, how's the planning for that going?
I've got plans on where I want to go but I still don't know a lot of details about it, like if I'm allowed a certain budget or whatever. I don't want to pick loads of expensive places in case they say you can't go. I want to go to places like Australia and New Zealand and I want to see sights. I don't just want to go and have a chilled holiday; I want to do something which is adventurous.
As part of the Adult Season, we've been asking people to share their thoughts on becoming an adult - do you think the show has made you more of an adult?
It's made me realise what being an adult is actually about. Before I just thought, when you turn 18 you can go out, get drunk, do whatever you want to do and you don't have to work and stuff like that. But being in the show has made me realise that you have to earn your own money to be able to live the life you want to live.
RUNNER-UP: CORAN
How do you feel about how far you made it in the programme?I came really close and I found it really stressful and I felt really run down afterwards. But I was proud that I made it so far, because when I think of it most 18 year olds who've had everything done for them would find it hard. It's like riding a bike with stabilisers and I just took them off and went running without them. I found it hard but I'm glad that I got that far. Four weeks of pain and agony living with them lot...they're class but it was different and eye-opening seeing that they were similar to me and we all have similar qualities. And I think that if I'm similar to them, my god, I owe my mum an apology.
What was the main thing that you took away from the experience?
I learned to grow up a bit more. I'd never got a job and that and I realised that it's not all about taking and you have to give back sometimes. I've got a job now and I've done really well at this job. I'm kicking ass at it at the moment. I'm doing sales and marketing.
I've been learning from my job and the TV show, it's helped me reflect. While I was in the house I learnt how to cook, I'd not even cooked once. I learnt to wash clothes, iron and do all the things that I would usually say "actually I'll leave that to someone else because I don't want to mess it up". And now I look for the positive angle, I might have messed up loads of times but now I know how not to do it. It's the learning process.
Do you think that being on the show gave you an appreciation of what your mum had been doing for you all these years? Yeah I wouldn't say my mum does everything for me now. Back when she was doing it, I didn't really appreciate it. I was like that's your job come on, your job title is 'Mother' not anything else. Whereas now I think she was going out of her way to do things for me, to make me feel better and I was just turning around and making her feel worse about herself. It was selfish but now that I realise that, I'm going to take my mum away now on holiday for Christmas. I'm just going to do things that she's done for me with my money.
So what do you think it means to be an adult. Do you feel like one now?
Being an adult is being your own person. An adult is somebody who can look at their own life and say I've changed. An adult is somebody who realises their faults. If you think of it, you're petty when you're a teenager and you're like, I can't do this and I can't do that and you don't try. You've got to give it a try anyway.
Levi and Coran were finalists in Young, Dumb and Living off Mum. If you missed any of the episodes, you can catch up online now.
Dana Stevens is Content Producer for ´óÏó´«Ã½ Three Online.
Comment number 1.
At 29th Aug 2010, ladysolis wrote:Well done to Levi for winning Young Dumb Living off Mum, I think it was a hard choice as they all did so well in the final, they should be so proud of themselves. But I liked Levi from the begining.
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Comment number 2.
At 30th Aug 2010, Clojo 1989 wrote:I just want to say I think it is absolutely disgusting to broadcast this programme in such a way. I an a 21 year old normal female who goes out at the weekend with her friends gets drunk but also is at uni and trying to make a career for myself, I am by no means perfect. However watching this program makes me sick. To take the mick out of these kids is a joke! They order they're parents around like they are there slaves! It makes me laugh so much as u say how bad theze kids are! But if I spoke to my mam and dad the way they spoke to there parents i would get a slap! It's not all the teenagers fault! It's those idiot adults that seem to want there children to treat them like a mat! Idiots!
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