Wife Swap

"Wife Swap," the critically-acclaimed unscripted reality show that takes us into the intimate heart of the American family home, revealing the extraordinarily different ways families live their lives, returns for a fifth season on FRIDAY, OCTOBER 3 (8:00-9:00 p.m., ET) on the ABC Television Network.

During the 2007-08 season, "Wife Swap" drew 6.2 million viewers and a 2.3 rating, 6 share among Adults 18-49. Opposite stiff competition in the hour, including NBC's "Deal or No Deal" and Fox's "American Idol-Wed" and "Moment of Truth," "Wife Swap" ranked No. 2 in its time period among Women 18-49 (3.2/8). Despite the competition, "Wife Swap" improved ABC's delivery in Wednesday's 8:00 o'clock hour in both Total Viewers (6.2 million vs. 6.1 million) and Adults 18-49 (2.3/6 vs. 2.2/6) compared to the Net's performance the prior year (Nielsen Media Research, NTI Live+7, 1/2/08-5/14/08 vs. 1/3/07-5/16/07, or as dated). During the 06-07 season, "Wife Swap" stood as ABC's most-watched series in the time period in four years, and its highest-rated among Adults 18-49 in eight years - since the 2001-02 and 1997-98 seasons, respectively (Nielsen Media Research, NTI & NHTI (Live+SD), 9/18/06-3/18/07, or as dated).

Each week from across the country, two families with very different values are chosen to take part in a two-week long challenge. The wives from these two families exchange husbands, children and lives (but not bedrooms) to discover just what it's like to live another woman's life. It's a mind-blowing experiment that can end up changing their lives forever.

In the first week of the swap, the wives move in and adopt their new family's lifestyle, no matter how different it may be. They agree to follow a manual written by the departing wife that sets out the rules of their new household - how they parent, shop, do the house work, manage their budgets and their social life. In the second week, everything changes. The new wives take charge. They introduce their own set of rules and get to run the new household their way. It's a radical shock to both families. The results are explosive, enlightening, emotional and often very funny. This is a show about the things that really matter to families across America.

At the end of the show, the two couples meet for the first time. In a highly-charged exchange of views, both couples make a frank assessment of each other and talk about what they've learned from the experience.

This season expect laughs, tears and the occasional tantrum as the wives struggle to deal with their new families. The show reflects the diversity of contemporary American life: a stormchaser finds herself swapped with the wife of a professional safety proofer; a record-holding female power-lifter has to become a genteel southern lady who stages tea parties for little princesses; a woman who spends her life running after her four muddy boys in the Louisiana bayou has to become a cultured and refined ballerina; an image conscious Cali girl becomes the wife of a Maine lobsterman; a Rastafarian woman has to adapt to military style structure in the home of an ex-marine; a competition-obsessed sweeper has to loosen up and party-on in Key West; a family of larpers (life action role play) find themselves invaded by a woman who swears by the power of motivational speeches; a woman who enters her one-year-old into baby pageants swaps with a feminist roller-derby chick; and a mother of one, struggling to manage her tempestuous teen daughter, swaps into a family with nine kids.

When "Wife Swap" premiered in 2003 in the United Kingdom, it was an instant television phenomenon. The program has won numerous awards, most recently the prestigious BAFTA (British Academy of Film & Television Arts) Award for Best Reality Show and the Golden Rose for Best Reality Program at the International Rose D'Or Festival, Europe's top entertainment television awards. "Wife Swap" currently airs from France to Australia and Germany to New Zealand. It has been sold as an acquisition or a format in more than 20 international territories.

"Wife Swap" is an RDF Media production. It was created by Stephen Lambert ("Faking It" and "Junkyard Wars") and is executive-produced by Mike Gamson, Stef Wagstaffe and Michael Davies ("Who Wants to be a Millionaire"). Stephen Pettinger, Neil Regan, Julie Cooper and Will Nothacker are co-executive producers.