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Big Brother Factfile
As followers of the series will know, the Channel 4 production of Big Brother is
a reality show in which a number of contestants live together in isolated circumstances,
watched by the viewing public, who vote to evict the house guests one by one. The
last remaining contestant receives a cash prize. The series was first shown on Dutch
television in 1999 and has now become immensely popular in scores of countries around
the world. The format and rules can vary in some countries - for instance, in Big
Brother USA, it is the house guests that vote off other contestants for eviction
and not the viewers.
In the UK version, the housemates are not permitted any contact with the outside
world and have no access to a telephone, TV, radio or the internet. Their time is
filled with household chores, the various tasks set by Big Brother and expressing
their thoughts and feelings in "The Diary Room". They also can disclose
their opinions on the other guests and nominate them for possible eviction.
It may seem strange that people would be prepared to live for over three months
in the glare of the public eye, but maybe this is the attraction - their only opportunity
to gain temporary fame on national television - or, perhaps it is the possibility
of winning a large sum of money if they can stay the distance? Whatever the reason,
the contestants provide fascinating reality entertainment, probably because followers
may feel that they gradually get to know the Big Brother housemates over each series,
thereby producing compulsive viewing.
However, there could be a price to pay, as a group of German scientists believe
that some contestants could be at risk from Post Traumatic Stress and there have
been instances in other countries resulting in psychiatric treatment and attempted
suicides. In the UK version, Shahnaz threatened suicide after only 5 days in the
Big Brother house. Indeed, serious concerns regarding the health and welfare of
the housemates have been raised, particularly in the case of Pete Bennett who suffers
from Tourette's Syndrome.
But Channel 4's Big Brother is no stranger to controversy. In 2004, a late night
drunken brawl erupted, which resulted in the police being called and security guards
entering the house. Although live coverage was eventually cut, a high volume of
complaints was received because it was felt the coverage of an unacceptable level
of violence was not terminated early enough.
Over 2,500 viewers complained when, having phoned premium rate lines to vote off
housemates Lea, Mikey, Nikki and Grace, they reappeared in the show later.
In 2005, Ofcom stated that Big Brother was operating at the limits of acceptability
when Kinga simulated sex with a wine bottle and Makosi and Anthony got rather intimate
in a hot tub!
More recently, in Celebrity Big Brother, there was a public outcry regarding the
unfair treatment of Shilpa Shetty, the Bollywood star. Channel 4 and Ofcom received
over 21,000 complaints relating to alleged racism and as a result, Jade Goody and
her mother, who also appeared in the show, were interviewed by the police. Fellow
housemates Jo O'Meara and Danielle Lloyd were also accused of making racist remarks.
However, this incident is unlikely to daunt Goody, who first appeared in Big Brother
in 2002. She quickly gained notoriety for getting drunk on the programme and for
remarks such as: "Is East Anglia abroad?" and "Rio De Janeiro - ain't
that a person?" They say that the only kind of bad publicity is no publicity
and to demonstrate this, amid the Shilpa Shetty controversy, Celebrity Big Brother
amassed its third largest audience, with the main highlights show drawing over four
and a half million viewers.
Celebrity Big Brother is one of the most successful spin-offs from the original
series. In this version, famous personalities (and some not so famous!) come under
the viewing microscope, producing many classic episodes - who can forget that scene
featuring George Gallaway and Rula Lenska! Pete Burns, another celebrity housemate
in the same series actually revived his career by appearing in the show. The single:
"You Spin Me Right Round" was re-released and became a chart hit. Ironically,
the winner of the 2006 Celebrity Big Brother, Chantelle Houghton, was famous for
not being famous and then really became famous as a result!!
Celebrity Big Brother winners donate their cash prizes to charities of their choice
and a percentage of the revenue generated from viewers' votes for the Celebrity
shows is also given to charity. Celebrity Big Brother UK has featured numerous well
known entertainers and personalities - many of these can be found in our Big Brother
Hall Of Fame Wallpaper page.
Footnote: The term: "Big Brother" is derived from the 1949 novel: "Nineteen
Eighty-Four", written by George Orwell and later made into a film. The novel
depicted a futuristic view at the time of the year 1984, during which everyone was
constantly watched by a dictator called "Big Brother" - a chilling concept,
which thankfully didn't materialise. In the TV series, it is the producers of the
show who adopt the role of Big Brother and communicate their instructions for tasks,
etc., via one of the contestants.
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