Big Brother is the name of the reality TV show that has become a worldwide phenomenon¹. Originating in The Netherlands, the game show is revolutionary in that contestants are monitored 24 hours a day, seven days a week for up to ten weeks in a house that they share with the other contestants. Live webcasts on the Internet and on dedicated digital television channels have made it a hit with audiences everywhere. The first UK series of Big Brother UK appeared on British Television screens during the summer of 2000.

The Concept

A selection of contestants are picked by the production company, usually with an even mix of male and female, to enter the specially-built Big Brother house. This house is isolated from the 'outside world', with no television, radio, telephone or Internet connection, making the contestants completely cut off with no communication with their friends and family. The contestants may each bring one suitcase with them into the house, which is searched for 'contraband items'. Objects banned from the Big Brother house include mobile telephones, computers, paper, pens and pencils, drugs and other illegal substances, and most forms of electronic equipment. There is also a limit on the number of allowed items contestants can bring into the house, such as one lipstick and a small number of 'luxury items' such as a pack of playing cards. In the Big Brother household, everything is controlled.

After an introductory two weeks, the contestants must each week nominate two of the other housemates² for eviction, which takes place privately in the 'diary room'. The two housemates, or more if it's an even result, with the highest number of nominations are put to the public as candidates for eviction. The public votes who is to go by phoning special phone numbers. Eventually a winner is selected by the public, and wins a cash prize. This nomination and eviction knockout process provides the main focus of the show. The nominations encourage the housemates to reveal their dislikes of the other contestants, which gives the housemates paranoia and encourages conflict, and which gives the viewer an all-seeing eye³ into what is going on.

The Diary Room is where the main revelations take place. A sound-proofed room, the diary room contains only a single, iconic chair⁴ and a camera. The Diary Room is where the contestants make their secret nominations, and also where contestants get to talk one-on-one with 'Big Brother', a character played in shifts by different members of the production staff. Contestants, who only get to hear the voice of Big Brother, through a speaker in the room, can either go into the room voluntarily if they have something to say to Big Brother or a question to ask, or alternatively Big Brother can call them to the Diary Room, in which case they will be called over the PA system with the commanding question, 'Would [contestant's name] please come to the Diary Room?' Disobedience of Big Brother is a serious offense. When Vanessa 'went mad' scrawling on the table, she refused to enter the Diary Room on Big Brother's command for a few minutes, eliciting gasps from the other housemates.

Food in the house must be bought from a weekly food budget, which is proportional to the number of contestants remaining in the house. To add some interest, and entertainment for the viewer, the contestants are set weekly tasks, on the success of which they can gamble a percentage of their food budget. If successful the housemates will get extra money to spend on food; if unsuccessful they will have to survive on less. The maximum percentage of the budget the contestants are allowed to gamble is 50%. Big Brother may also set 'mini tasks', offering a reward to the housemates, to stop the contestants from becoming bored. If unlucky however, the reward will simply be a screening of a video of Bobby Davro (considered by some to be a rather unpopular comedian).

The Setting

For the first and second series, and for the first celebrity Big Brother, the house was located in Newham, East London, on the Mill Meads partially surrounded by a river which acted as an effective moat. A bridge across the river, labelled 'the Bridge of Shame' by the production company, lead to the Three Mills Film Studios where the post-eviction interview takes place.

For Big Brother 3, the production was moved to a new house, which was built around a huge film studios in... This move gave the production team a bit more privacy, and allowed more control of the surroundings.

The Media Phenomenon

When a Big Brother series is running, it generates a big media event which increases the frenzy and hype surrounding the programme. Newspapers, magazines, websites, TV and radio constantly use the programme as a discussion point and news source. This is partly down to the 'critical mass' factor, where once awareness has reached a certain point, all avenues of the media want to jump on to the bandwagon and be part of the event. Newspapers can increases sales by upwards of 15% by featuring a Big Brother news story prominently on the cover. As both an effect of the media hype and a cause for it, Big Brother becomes a common topic of conversation and gossip, which is an essential factor for any successful media product. Eastenders⁵, for example, thrives on the idea that 'everybody's talking about it'. This happens to Big Brother on an even bigger scale as the series draws to a climax.

Most of the discussion in the media and among viewers is about the characteristics of the housemates. The all-seeing eye of Big Brother allows viewers to become familiarised with the contestants, with their every action, word and movement seen by the public. The public is quick to judge, and the whole nature of the Big Brother format puts the viewer in control of the contestants' destiny, with the power to choose who must leave and who must stay in the house. Opinions on whether individual contestants are good, bad, nice or horrible become hotly debated, often resulting in contestants becoming branded for certain characteristics, the most noticeable case of this being 'Nasty Nick' (Nick Bateman) from Series 1.

The Big Brother phenomenon affects most of the media, but by far the biggest Big Brother enthusiasts are the tabloid press. During the period when the programme is running, the tabloids run stories about what is happening in the house (they must spend most of their time watching it), print their opinions on the different housemates, and often try to influence the voting. During the first series, one unscrupulous newspaper attempted to fly a model helicopter over the garden, dropping leaflets with 'Nick Lies' printed on them (see below). Luckily, Big Brother ordered the contestants inside before the housemates had a chance to read them, ensuring that the social isolation was preserved. The tabloids also try to find out about the constants' previous lives by approaching their friends and family with offers of money, in the hope of being able to print some shocking revelations. As the housemates emerge from the house one by one, the newspapers fight for their exclusive stories, to give a boost to sales. Coverage of Big Brother does not stop when the series ends either; the newspapers often continue to print stories about the contestants after they have left, with the Helen and Paul love story lasting for ages, and pictures of Big Brother 3 winner Kate, snapped whilst topless on a holiday, appearing months after the event itself. Needless to say, no fame lasts forever, and it does not take long before the housemates are forgotten.

The Live Feeds

The central focus of the Big Brother schedule is on the nightly TV programmes, which feature edited highlights of the previous day (or day before, depending on the time gap). This show is heavily edited though, and contains a voiceover commentary on the major events. For pure and unbiased footage of the contestants you have to watch the 'live feeds'. Originally these were only available through the Internet as streaming video, but during the second series viewers were also able to watch the live feeds through E4, a digital television channel.

The live feeds mark an aspect of show that is similar to The Truman Show⁶ in that viewers are able to maintain a constant watch on the contestants in the Big Brother house. This voyeuristic element can come to be obsessive, with reports of some people leaving their televisions or computers permanently tuned in to the live feed. The live feeds sometimes come under criticism for being boring, with 'a load of people sitting around in baggy T-shirts' being the main content, but for whatever reason it is a formula that works. The Big Brother UK website was one of the most successful UK websites ever during Big Brother 1, reporting millions of visitors and video streams served.

Davina McCall

The UK version of Big Brother is presented by Davina McCall. Previous to hosting the show, Davina was most famous for presenting the dating show Streetmate. Davina has become an essential element to the show, so much so that she continued to present Big Brother 2 despite being heavily pregnant. On eviction night, Davina informs the house who has received the most votes for eviction, giving them an hour to pack their bags. When they leave the house she is there to greet them, and then interviews them about their stay in the house as part of the live programme. Presenting the show has been a good career move for Davina, propelling her to household fame and giving her as many job offers as Carol Vorderman⁷.

The Series

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Related Links

• Series 7: The Contenders - A film satirising the reality TV format.