This week, I was delighted to see The Agency Unfiltered return for its third season on BBC iPlayer. In a media landscape where Scottish arts and entertainment often feel underfunded and underrepresented, having a reality show like this feels like a real win for Scottish television.

Scottish Representation: Why This Show Feels Important

Coming from Scotland, I’ve often felt that we’re overlooked in mainstream British media. We rarely see Scottish voices, businesses, or entrepreneurs given the platform they deserve, and the statistics back this up. Out of 20 seasons of The Apprentice, only a handful of contestants have been from Scotland. Given Scotland’s long history of world-changing inventors, business minds, and entrepreneurs, it’s surprising to see so little representation in mainstream business-focused television.

That’s why The Agency Unfiltered is such a breath of fresh air. Not only does it showcase a thriving business, but it’s also run by two inspiring women—something we don’t see often enough in business-related reality TV. And for me personally, the fact that the agency now operates out of Hamilton, South Lanarkshire, is particularly exciting. Representation matters, and having a local area like mine featured on national television is something I won’t take for granted.

The Diversity Conversation: Are We Missing the Bigger Picture?

After watching the season, I went on social media and was surprised to see people commenting on what they perceived as a “lack of diversity” on the show. This reaction made me pause, because my experience watching it was different—I actually thought the show showcased quite a diverse range of people.

I think part of the issue comes down to how we define diversity. Often, when people discuss diversity, they think about certain protected characteristics while overlooking others. But diversity is much broader than that, and it is often intersectional. Socioeconomic background, regional representation, care experience, and religion all play a part too.

One thing I feel is often overlooked is that diversity isn’t always something visible. Just because we see certain characteristics doesn’t mean we understand the full range of diversity in a group. For example, religious beliefs are a huge part of diversity, but in a setting like The Agency Unfiltered, they might not come up in conversation. There could have been contestants from a variety of faith backgrounds, but unless it was explicitly mentioned, we wouldn’t know.

This is particularly relevant in Scotland, where sectarianism has historically been a source of tension. People often carry their religious or cultural identities in ways that aren’t immediately obvious. So, when we talk about diversity, we need to move beyond just thinking about what people look like and instead consider their life experiences. True diversity isn’t about ticking boxes—it’s about making space for people from different backgrounds, whether those differences are immediately visible or not.

Can You Be From a Minority Group and Still Have Blind Spots?

Another thing to consider is that just because someone comes from a minority background themselves doesn’t necessarily mean they understand or are educated in diversity across all experiences.

Diversity isn’t just about representation—it’s also about education and awareness. It’s easy to assume that because someone is part of one marginalised group, they automatically “get” diversity as a whole, but that’s not always the case. We all have our own perspectives, but we also all have blind spots. That’s why conversations around inclusion need to go deeper than surface-level representation.

One moment that stood out to me was when a contestant made a comment to another woman on the show, implying that when they first met, she expected her to start a fight. This seemed like a thinly veiled dig at the contestant’s social class background—an assumption that someone who grew up in a housing scheme must be aggressive or confrontational. These kinds of class-based prejudices don’t get called out enough in conversations about diversity, but they’re just as harmful.

Maybe the real question isn’t just “Are we diverse enough?” but “How do we ensure that diversity is understood, respected, and intersectional?”

A Step in the Right Direction

For me, The Agency Unfiltered is a brilliant example of what Scottish reality TV can be. It’s empowering, it’s engaging, and it challenges the idea that business and entrepreneurship are reserved for a certain type of person from a certain type of background.

Instead of constantly asking, “Is this diverse enough?”, maybe we should be asking, “Are we being inclusive enough?” Diversity isn’t just about having different groups represented—it’s about creating an environment where people from all walks of life feel valued, respected, and able to succeed. Because at the end of the day, what’s the point of diversity if it doesn’t lead to real inclusion?