Unbreakable: Meet the hosts and cast of celebrity couples prepared to push their relationships to the limit

Signing up for any reality show takes a certain degree of courage.

After all, every show from Strictly Come Dancing to Celebrity SAS: Who Dares Wins likes to claim that the celebrity participants will be pushed out of their comfort zone.

However, the famous faces who have agreed to take part in the new series Unbreakable are arguably braver than most because they are putting their marriages and partnerships, rather than the dancing or survival skills, to the test.

Not only are they claiming that their relationships are rock solid, they and their significant others are willing to be put through a range of mental, physical and emotional challenges designed to reveal whose bond is the strongest.

In other words, it seems to be an invitation to have a row with your other half on national TV, or at the very least give the viewers at home a chance to feel a little bit smug if it turns out you and your loved one aren’t really soul mates after all.

It’s not just the viewing public who will be keeping an eye on them.

The show is presented by Rob Beckett with a little help from a couple of experts – president of Relate Anjula Mutanda, who believes that “maintaining connection, having mutual respect, and having fun together can really strengthen a couple’s relationship”, and agony aunt Maria McErlane, who says that “most problems can be solved with kindness and communication.”

The couple hoping to put those theories into action include Loose Women star Denise Welch (64) and her artist husband Lincoln Townley (49), world record-breaking BMX racer and track cyclist, Olympian Shanaze Reade (33) and TV personality Teddy Edwardes (32), comedian and presenter Stephen Bailey (35) and his employment lawyer boyfriend, Rich Taylor (37), and Strictly Come Dancing Head Judge Shirley Ballas (61) and award-winning star of the West End stage Danny Taylor (48).

Perhaps the couple to beat though will be Falklands veteran and author Simon Weston CBE (61) and his wife Lucy, who have already been together for 35 years. By contrast, Pimlico Plumber Charlie Mullins (69) and singer-songwriter RaRa (32) only met 18 months ago on a beach in Marbella, but they are keen to prove their relationship is already watertight.

But no matter who wins, it’s going to be fun for the viewers and presenter at least – maybe not for the celebrities.

Rob Beckett says: “Who doesn’t like to see celebrities and their real-life partners put to the test under pressure? It was an amazing experience to film, and I’ll never be able to un-see Shirley Ballas get a tattoo, Denise Welch fall into a lake, or Simon Weston blindfold his wife in a maze.”

The opening episode will introduce us to the couples, and show a side of the celebs that we’ve never seen before – but will that side also come as a surprise to any of their partners?

And will anyone be considering calling it quits after the first instalment?