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IMAGINE a small corner of Scotland where there was no Brexit, no falling pound and no imploding politics. A place where we could start again.

That scenario exists for 23 people taking part in new TV show Eden, set on the Ardnamurchan estate in the most westerly extremity of the Scottish Highlands.

The participants in the Channel 4 survival show have had no contact with the outside world since they went in March.

They have had to create their own micro-society, build their own shelter and provide their own food by growing crops and raising livestock.

The inhabitants of this remote utopia have no phones, no access to social media, no contact with family and friends or the outside world.

It’s not so much Lord of the Flies as Lord of the Midgies as they decide on their own rules and laws.

They have goats, sheep, access to the sea from an idyllic beach – and not much else.

Those taking part include two doctors, a fisherman, a gamekeeper, a chef, a carpenter, a shopfitter, a yoga instructor and a shepherdess. They are all aged 24-55.

There is one married man with grown-up children.

The rest are single. They were allowed to take tools of the trade, so the chef took knives and the shepherdess brought a sheepdog.

They could also take as many personal possessions as they could carry, including cigarettes, alcohol and condoms.

Series editor Liz Foley said the idea was to bring together people with skills and not strive for the large personalities and conflicts of reality shows like Big Brother.

She said: “We wanted it to succeed, to thrive.

“They had to bring something sustainable to the community – to be everyman, everywomen, doing ordinary jobs, rather than a bunch of hippies living in a commune.

“We didn’t cast for conflict or drama. It was about the ability to create and sustain the community.”

The show has been marketed on escapism, which seems so attractive in these unsettled times of sensory overload from social media.

Ads to promote it were placed in strategic places. One posted near phone shops, asks: “No cyber bullying. No dodgy wifi. Dfntly no txtspk. What if we could start again?”

Other ads placed near banks read: “No poverty. No recessions. No bankers’ bonuses. What if we could start again?”

Jack Croft, who designed the ads, said: “We wanted to make the public think about what they would ditch if someone hit the reset button.

“Would we repeat the recession? Would we ditch gender inequality? Would we really have space in the new world for selfie sticks?”

The series is being filmed from the inside by an embedded crew, personal cameras and a fixed rig.

The participants also wear GoPro cameras and leave footage for the crew to pick up.

A fence surrounds the area where the Eden dwellers have settled and there are security guards on patrol.

The series aims to challenge everything about modern living, raising questions about what we need to be happy, what we want from our communities and how we are all influenced by society.

Caroline, 27, a shepherdess from Hawick, said she had always had a dream of living in isolation.

Before she went in, she said: “I am ready for it. I feel a bit suffocated by social media.

“This is the bravest thing I have ever done. I have never even been on a plane by myself.”

Her parents thought she was daft but her sister Emma Gray found the idea exciting. And she knows a thing or two about isolation.

Emma wrote One Girl and her Dog: Life, Love and Lambing in the Middle of Nowhere, after

moving from Hawick to a farm in Northumberland. There was no gas or mains electricity and she had just 13 border collies for company.

Glasgow -born Jack, 31, was an estate agent before becoming a member of the Household Cavalry. He said the isolation from loved ones was his biggest fear in Eden.

But he said his Army background would be useful.

He said: ”We are good at being wet and cold and getting on with it.”

He fears he might be dubbed the next Nasty Nick, as in Nick Bateman, the back-stabbing contestant in the first series of Big Brother.

There are major differences with BB. The producers were keen that none of those taking part were striving for stardom and a TV career.

And if there is a spark between any of those in the community, there will be no footage of them having sex, only a focus on the romance in the interests of the experiment.

Comparisons will be made with Castaway, the BBC show set on the Scottish island of Taransay in 2000.

But in that show, the inhabitants lived in eco-pods, got letters from home and were allowed one visit a year from their families.

A number of people living near the Eden site submitted strong objections to Highland Council about the show.

Critics said the filming could spoil an area of natural beauty, cause pollution, damage wildlife and have a negative impact on the local economy.

Others welcomed the prospect of publicity and tourism and the council gave the green light for the show.

The new Eden, although remote, is not that isolated.

It is less than five miles from the village of Acharacle, Lochaber, where there is a chip shop, a bakery, a hotel and a shop.

The township of Arivegaig is even closer and the beach used in the show is a favourite for picnic fans.

But Donald Houston, who owns the Ardnamurchan Estate, said it will be a tough exercise.

He said: “We thought they were completely mad at first, as we know how challenging the landscape is around here and it seemed impossible people could survive on their own.

“It can get very wet and windy here, which will make it difficult to build shelter and to find food.

“The weather will be a very big issue.

“The land is not very fertile for growing crops. There are a few more sheltered areas on the sites but they will need to find them.”