Big Brother (franchise)

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File:Bbworld.jpg
The Big Brother logo (2000)

Big Brother is a popular reality television format, where, over 10 weeks or so, a number of contestants (typically 10 or 12) try to avoid periodic publicly-voted evictions from a communal house and hence win a cash prize. The show, a kind of 'real life soap', was invented by John de Mol of the Netherlands and developed by his production company, Endemol. It has been a prime-time hit in nineteen different countries, earning Endemol large sums. The show's name comes from George Orwell's 1949 novel Nineteen Eighty-Four, a dystopia in which Big Brother is the all-seeing leader.

Format

Initially shown in the Netherlands in September 1999, and subsequently cloned across the world, the "housemates" are confined inside a specially designed house (where every single point in the house is within view of a video camera), and not permitted any contact with the outside world: no TV, radio, telephone, Internet or other media are available to the housemates, not even writing materials. Private chats with a psychologist are a special exception. At weekly intervals, the public is invited to vote to evict one of the contestants. The last remaining is the winner. It is similar to the balloon problem where a balloon is sinking and someone has to be forced to bail out in order to keep the balloon afloat.

Besides the same living together, which is the principal axis and major attraction of the contest, this one turns concerning 4 basic props: the stripped-bare back to basics environment in which they live, the evictions system, the weekly tasks set by Big Brother, and the "diary room", in which the housemates individually convey their thoughts, feelings, frustrations and their eviction nominees.

Initially, the hostel in which they had to reside for the duration of the competition was very basic. Although essential amenities such as running water, furniture and a limited ration of food were provided, luxury items were forbidden. This added an element of survival into the show, thus increasing the potential for tensions within the house. Now almost every country has a nice house for the contest, with jacuzzi, sauna, VIP suite, etc. in contraposition to other zones, or characteristics, of the house, more common, even precarious.

To fill in time, the residents have various chores to maintain the house, and are set apparently random tasks by the producers of the show, who communicate with the housemates through one (unseen) individual issuing commands, termed "Big Brother". The tasks are designed to test their team-working abilities and community spirit. The housemates have a weekly allowance with which they can buy food and other essentials. To obtain a greater allowance, they may gamble some of their initial amount on the success of the completion of tasks. Of course, their allowance is lessened if they fail to complete the weekly task.

Each week, the housemates each privately nominate a number of people who they wish to see removed from the house more than the other residents. The ones with the most nominations are then named on the television show, and viewers can call a special premium rate telephone number, send a premium rate text message, or in some areas, use a digital interactive red button, to vote for whom they want to evict.

After the votes are tallied, the "evictee" leaves the house and is interviewed on-camera by the host of the show, usually in front of a live studio audience. The last remaining housemate is declared the winner and receives a substantial sum in prize money, the amount of which has varied widely around the world.

The series is notable for involving the Internet. Although the main show, typically broadcast daily with a weekly roundup, is by necessity heavily edited, viewers can also watch a continuous, 24-hour feed from multiple cameras on the web. These websites were highly successful, even after some national series started charging for access to the video stream. In some countries, the Internet broadcasting was supplemented by updates via email, WAP and SMS. The house is even shown live on satellite television (with a 10-15 minute delay to permit muting of unacceptable content in the UK). Indeed, John de Mol has said: "We aren't really a television producer at all anymore. We are a content provider for multiple platforms." [1]

Despite derision from many intellectuals and other critics, the show has been a commercial success around the world. Criticisms typically are based on the ironic aspects of George Orwell's dystopic vision of Nineteen Eighty-Four being consciously aped by producers for public entertainment. More generally, the voyeuristic nature of the show, where contestants volunteer to surrender their privacy in return for minor celebrity status and a comparatively small cash prize, has attracted much scorn.

While any pretences to be a cultural experiment are dubious, reports of the different results of the show around the world have been mildly interesting from a pop-anthropology standpoint; i.e., in Spain, the competitors designed an agreement to achieve they all were nominated automatically and annul then their power of decision inside the process of elimination in the contest. This only happened once, as afterwards, Big Brother modified its rules to prohibit this type of agreement. On the other hand, other versions have involved plotting in the vein of the most cruel soap opera. Some versions have been filled with sex-crazed housemates, whereas others decided to base the conflict within their programs around difficult or romantic personalities, as in Brazil, Mexico or Spain. With the passing of time, it has been demonstrated that the most successful versions have emulated a soap opera, whereas the versions where the principal attraction was sex have been eliminated, as in Hungary or Poland. The amount of sex shown on the televised versions varies from country to country depending on censorship rules, with some countries editing out all sex and nudity, and others allowing the show to border on the pornographic.

The majority of winners have been men, although a number of countries have now had a female winner. Although a number of countries have (knowingly) included transsexual contestants, only one has won (Nadia Almada, UK)

One interesting development is that German scientists have discovered that former Big Brother contestants may be at risk from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, a condition sometimes suffered by those who leave the armed forces. Indeed, in the second Polish edition, one of the housemates was taken to a psychiatric hospital.

The format has also spawned novels, in particular Ben Elton's book Dead Famous about the televised death of a housemate.

Special Versions

File:Bbargentina.jpg
Big Brother Argentina Logo
  • In France, the format has been developed using couples. Twelve single people stay in the same house until only the winning couple are left.
  • Big Brother USA currently uses different rules than other countries' versions of the show, as it has starting with its second season. (The first season followed the traditional format.) In the US version, viewers do not vote for eviction; all voting is done by houseguests. Also, the nominations are done by one houseguest, the HOH (Head of Household). The US version also introduced the Power of Veto, with a houseguest having power to save a housemate from the nominations. It's been adapted in Brazil and since then some countries modified their nominations rules.
  • The third Dutch edition introduced the notion of "The Battle", in which the house is separated into a luxurious and a poor half, with two teams of housemates constantly fighting for time in the luxurious half. Separated houses have also been used in Spain, Australia, Poland, Denmark, Greece, UK, Scandinavia, Sweden, Norway and Germany. Italy and Mexico added punishment zones to their houses.
  • The fifth UK edition had the "Evil" touch, where the Big Brother voice became almost a villain. He was establishing punishments and was proposing hard tasks. This was also seen in Australia in 2005.
  • The fifth German edition, running for a full year, separated the contestants into three teams (rich, regular, survivor) and equivalent living areas. The sixth version (currently airing in RTL II) is running in a small artificial town denominated "Das Dorf". This version is reminiscent of the movie "The Truman Show", inasmuch as it has no definite ending.
  • Other special versions:
    • Teen Big Brother (United Kingdom). Teenage houseguests not competing, just living together.
    • Big Brother, All Star (Belgium). Housemates from the different BB Belgium seasons living together.
    • Big Brother, Reality All Star (Denmark). Contestants from different reality shows living together at the BB house.
    • Big Brother, 100 Days After (Norway). The BB1 Norway housemates living again together after 100 days since the contest's ending. They also welcome 4 new housemates.

Big Brother around the world

RegionLocal NameChannelOfficial WebsiteWinners
Africa(1)Big BrotherM-NetWebsite
  • Cherise Makubale
ArgentinaGran HermanoTelefeWebsite
  • Marcelo Corazza
  • Roberto Parra
  • Viviana Colmenero
AustraliaBig BrotherNetwork TenWebsite
  • Ben Williams
  • Peter Corbett
  • Regina Bird
  • Trevor Butler
  • TBA
BelgiumBig BrotherKanaal 2Website
  • Steven Spillebeen
  • Ellen Dufour
  • Kelly Vandevenne
  • Kristof van Camp
BrazilBig BrotherGloboWebsite
  • Kleber Bambam
  • Rodrigo Leonel Fraga
  • Dhomini Ferreira
  • Cida da Silva
  • Jean Wyllys
BulgariaBig BrotherNTVWebsite
  • Zdravko Vasilev
  • TBA
CanadaLoft StoryTQSWebsite
  • Julie Lemay & Samuel Tissot
Central AmericaGran Hermano
  • TBA
ColombiaGran HermanoCaracol TVWebsite
  • Mónica Tejón
CroatiaBig BrotherRTLWebsite
  • Sasa Tkalcevic
  • TBA
Czech RepublicBig BrotherTV NOVA
  • TBA
DenmarkBig BrotherTV DanmarkWebsite
  • Jill Liv Nielsen
  • Carsten B. Berthelsen
  • Johnni Madsen
EcuadorGran HermanoEcuavisaWebsite
  • David Burbano
FinlandBig BrotherSubTVWebsite
  • TBA
FranceLoft StoryM6Website
  • Christoph Mercy & Loanna Petrucciani
  • Karina Delgado & Thomas Saillofest
Germany(3)Big BrotherRTL IIWebsite
  • John Milz
  • Alida Kurras
  • Karina Schreiber
  • Jan Geilhufe
  • Sascha Sirtl
  • TBA
GreeceBig BrotherANT1Website
  • Giorgios Xanthopoulos
  • Alexandros Moskhos
  • Thodores Jspógloy
  • TBA
HungaryBig BrotherTV2Website
  • Evi Párkányi
  • Zsofi Horvath
ItalyGrande FratelloCanale 5Website
  • Cristina Plevani
  • Flavio Montrucchio
  • Floriana Secondi
  • Serena Garitta
  • Jonathan Kashanian
  • TBA
MexicoBig BrotherTelevisaWebsite
  • Rocio Cardenas
  • Silvia Irabien
  • Evelyn Nieto
Middle East(4)Big BrotherMBCWebsite
  • None
NetherlandsBig BrotherTalpa TVWebsite
  • Bart Spring in het Veld
  • Bianca Hagenbeek
  • Sandy Boots
  • Jeanette
  • TBA
Norway(5)Big BrotherTVNWebsite
  • Lars Joakim Ringom
  • Veronica Agnes Roso
  • Eva Lill Baukhol
Pacific(6)Gran HermanoTelesistema
RedTV
ATV		Website
  • TBA
PhilippinesPinoy Big BrotherABS-CBNWebsite
  • TBA
PolandBig Brother TVN PolskaWebsite
  • Janusz Dzieciol
  • Marzena Wieciezyla
  • Piotr Borucki
  • TBA
PortugalBig BrotherTVIWebsite
  • Zé Maria Povinho
  • Henrique Guimarães
  • Catarina Eufémia
  • Nando Geraldes
RomaniaBig BrotherPrimaTVWebsite
  • Soso Joi
  • Iustin Popovici
  • TBA
RussiaBig BrotherTNTWebsite
  • TBA
ScandinaviaBig BrotherKanal5
TVN		Website
  • Britt Goodwin
SerbiaBig BrotherB92
  • TBA
South Africa(7)Big BrotherM-NetWebsite
  • Ferdinand Rabie
  • Richard Cawood
SpainGran HermanoTelecincoWebsite
  • Ismael Beiro
  • Sabrina Mahi
  • Javito García
  • Pedro Oliva
  • Nuria Yañez
  • Juan José Rocamora
  • TBA
SwedenBig BrotherKanal5Website
  • Angelica Freij
  • Ulrica Andersson
  • Danne Sörensen
  • Carolina Gynning
SwitzerlandBig BrotherTV3Website
  • Daniela Kanton
  • Christian Ponleitner
ThailandBig BrotherITVWebsite
  • TBA
United KingdomBig BrotherChannel 4Website
United StatesBig BrotherCBSWebsite
  • Eddie McGee
  • Will Kirby
  • Lisa Donahue
  • Jun Song
  • Drew Daniel
  • TBA
VenezuelaGran HermanoTeleven
  • TBA


  • (1) Previously was "Big Brother South Africa" but became panregional before the third season.
  • (2) To Be Announced. New season in sight.
  • (3) In 2004 edition, this was the first version to run for 365 days consecutively. The ultimate winner got a prize of 1,000,000 €. Inmediattly after, BB VI started. This is the first show in television history which has no time limit. The producers of the show say that when the ratings are too low, the show will be cancelled. The show is called "Big Brother: Das Dorf", lit. "Big Brother: The Village". The set includes a church, a market place, four houses, ...
  • (4) Filmed in Amwaj Island. Discontinued after 10 days because of religious protests.
  • (5) For the 2005 edition see also Big Brother Sweden.
  • (6) Made in Colombia, this is a panregional version with contestants from Chile, Ecuador and Peru. It's name came because all of the participating countries are in the border of the Pacific.
  • (7) Became the panregional Big Brother Africa after the 2002 season.

Big Brother Facts

  • First Big Brother Winner: Bart Spring, Netherlands, 1999
  • First Couple To Have Sex: Bart Spring And Sabine Wendell, Netherlands, 1999
  • First VIP season: BB Netherlands, 2000
  • First Female Winner: Diana Kanton, Switzerland, 2000
  • First BB In America: Big Brother USA, 2000
  • First Gay Winner: Brian Dowling, UK, 2001
  • First The Battle Season: Netherlands, 2001
  • First Housemates Swap: GH3 Spain - BB1 Mexico, 2002
  • Oldest Housemate: Mihalis Apostolides, 63 years old, Greece, 2003
  • First International Version: Big Brother Africa, 2003
  • First Black Winner: Cherise Makubale, Africa, 2003
  • First Asiathic Winner: Jun Song, USA, 2003
  • First BB In Asia: Big Brother Arabia, 2004
  • First Big Brother Suspended: Big Brother Arabia, 2004
  • First Transsexual Winner: Nadia Almada, UK, 2004
  • Season With More Contestants So Far: 59 in BB5 Germany, 2005
  • Winners: 51 males and 37 females
  • Country With More Seasons: Spain, 6 finished seasons

Near copies of Big Brother

There are three specially important formats around the globe that attach to rules kind of similar with Big Brother:

External links

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