The BBL – Brazilian Butt Lift – is the most dangerous cosmetic surgery in the world – with one in every 3000 resulting in death. Yet it remains one of the fastest growing cosmetic procedures, with Turkey becoming a renowned destination for cheap surgeries.
In a shocking investigative film for Channel 4 Documentaries YouTube, Hunting the BBL Butchers, journalist Mary Mandefield goes deep into the murky world of rogue Turkish operators, as she attempts to track down and confront the people responsible.
While most medical surgery in Turkey is successful and trouble free, it’s clear that other clinics are operating highly unsafely. Not only are they leaving women with life changing injuries – or worse – there is also evidence that they are specifically targeting Black and Brown women and using sophisticated techniques to get around advertising regulations.
Mary’s investigation focuses on one Turkish cosmetic surgery company, UniqueZone, with sources alleging botched BBL procedures in need of hospital treatment and corrective surgery, coercive selling techniques, and inadequate aftercare. She speaks to women who have been left with life threatening injuries at the hands of Unique Zone – who had to be urgently treated by the NHS. As well as Mary exposing the medical malpractice at this one company, she drills into troubling social media techniques that lots of cosmetic surgery companies use to manipulate customers into signing up for surgery in the first place.
Mary is outraged at some of the first-hand evidence and testimony of ex-patients about their botched surgery. Determined to find out just how UniqueZone operates, Mary poses in an assumed identity as a prospective client, to experience the hard sell first hand.
Deeply unsettled by what she finds out, Mary tries to speak to the company owners about their business; however, they seem in no hurry to talk to her. Not settling for being seemingly stonewalled, Mary finally tracks them down to an address in the Netherlands, where they seem to be enjoying a bling lifestyle. In an edge-of-the-seat tense and explosive finale, Mary travels to try and get them to answer the allegations against them.
Unique Zone told Channel 4 through their lawyer:
“We do not recognise the allegations made in the film and further information is required to respond to individual cases. Unique Zone is a transparent organisation with a passion for beauty and its clients.
“Unique Zone is an intermediary between patients and renowned medical specialists in Turkey. Unique Zone do not perform medical procedures.
“Patients who arrange medical procedures via Unique Zone are informed of the risks of surgery prior to treatment. Complaints are always taken seriously, and attempts are made to resolve them to the satisfaction of clients.”
This investigation is the latest in a suite of original YouTube documentaries commissioned for the In Too Deep strand on Channel 4 Documentaries, with this twenty-minute film commissioned in partnership with Northern Ireland Screen. Due to the nature of the investigation, the production company did not wish to be named. The film was commissioned for Channel 4 Documentaries by Catriona White, Digital Commissioning Executive.
Hunting the BBL Butchers is available to watch now on the Channel 4 Documentaries YouTube.
