TV Squad

Big Brother contestant expelled because of racism

Paul Goebel — Fri, 08 Jun 2007 10:02:00 EST

Filed under: Big Brother (UK), Big Brother (US)

A contestant on the British version of Big Brother has been expelled from the house by the shows producers and Channel 4 for using a racial epithet. Sources say that the contestant used the n-word on the air which caused his expulsion.

The producers were quick to act after the incident partly due to the fact that a previous season of Celebrity Big Brother had a racial incident as well. Bollywood actress Shilpa Shetty was the victim of a racial tirade and has spoken out in favor of the recent ousting.

Will this incident have an effect on the American version of Big Brother? In the past, houseguests have been expelled for exhibiting dangerous behavior but none have ever been punished for things they have said. In fact, insults and threats seem to fly quite freely in the BB house almost every season.

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Celebrity Big Brother Finale: winner announced

Martin Conaghan — Sun, 28 Jan 2007 17:35:00 EST

Filed under: Other Reality Shows, News, TV Royalty, Programming, Big Brother (UK), Celebrities

It's been a long, long month in the Celebrity Big Brother house here in the UK, and following a marathon live show tonight, the winner has finally been announced.

If you don't want to find out who the public voted as the winner of 2007's quite remarkable and totally sensational series of this bizarre program, then don't click the link to find out after the jump.

Warning: spoilers ahead.

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Celebrity Big Brother UK update: Friday evictions announced

Martin Conaghan — Fri, 26 Jan 2007 18:00:00 EST

Filed under: Other Reality Shows, News, TV Royalty, Big Brother (UK), Celebrities

If you're of a sensitive disposition, and are planning to watch tonight's live eviction of Celebrity Big Brother on your Sky+ PVR, look away now, as we're about to get all spoilery on you.

Following a total debacle earlier this week when no fewer than five housemates were nominated for eviction, Channel Four had to issue an apology after messing up the telephone appeal by asking viewers to save Bollywood actress Shilpa Shetty, not evict her.

Of course, Shlipa was at the centre of last week's racism row, starring none other than former housemate Jade Goody, and was waiting patiently tonight for host Davina McCall to announce the last two people to be dumped out of the house by the public.

Warning: spoilers after the jump.

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Celebrity Big Brother UK Update: Five up for eviction

Martin Conaghan — Thu, 25 Jan 2007 08:35:00 EST

Filed under: Other Reality Shows, News, TV Royalty, Programming, Big Brother (UK), Celebrities

In a new twist to Celebrity Big Brother here in the UK, no fewer than five of the remaining seven housemates have been nominated for eviction.

The public vote will take place on Friday, with Dirk Benedict, Jo O'Meara, Ian 'H' Watkins, Shilpa Shetty and Cleo Rocos all facing the possibility of an exit from the show before the finale.

Oddly enough, Danielle Lloyd, one of the key figures in the recent racism and bullying scandal, is not facing eviction.

The show concludes on Sunday night, with Bollywood actress Shilpa Shetty still the firm favourite to win.

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Celebrity Big Brother UK Update: Jade evicted

Martin Conaghan — Fri, 19 Jan 2007 19:05:00 EST

Filed under: Other Reality Shows, News, TV Royalty, Programming, Big Brother (UK)

Former 'civilian' Big Brother contestant Jade Goody went head-to-head against Bollywood actress Shilpa during the public eviction vote tonight on Celebrity Big Brother, and was given her marching orders to leave the house.

Following on from a week of insane news coverage over an alleged 'racism' and bullying row in the Big Brother house, Jade made her exit from the show with no eviction night crowd present, and faced some harsh truths during her interview with the show's host Davina McCall.

There's really no way to paint Jade's behaviour in the house in recent days -- other than downright nasty at times -- but I'd hesitate to call her a racist. Stupid, maybe, but certainly not a racist.

Either way, her life is going to be a whole lot different in the coming days, weeks and months -- not least of all from the multitudes of people living in the UK who probably haven't even watched the show, but who have blindly followed the tabloid headlines and over-stated news coverage, and who will now inevitably view her as a bully and a bigot.

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Celebrity Big Brother UK update: 'racism' row spills over

Martin Conaghan — Fri, 19 Jan 2007 08:42:00 EST

Filed under: Other Reality Shows, News, Programming, Big Brother (UK)

When I posted about the most recent incarnation of Celebrity Big Brother starting up here in the UK a few weeks ago, I didn't really have any intentions of watching the current series, despite commenting that it might actually be worth watching for once.

The reason for this was largely down to the rag-tag bunch of has-beens and would-bes that the Endemol producers decided would be our entertainment for this year, and having watched the first few shows, I had to resist the urge to dip my head into a vat of boiling porridge, rather than watch any more.

However, a few days ago, things started to get very interesting.

Very interesting indeed...

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Celebrity Big Brother Five begins (UK)

Martin Conaghan — Wed, 03 Jan 2007 22:05:00 EST

Filed under: Other Reality Shows, Programming, Big Brother (UK), Celebrities

The most popular reality TV show in the UK, Big Brother, returned tonight for the fifth series of its celebrity edition and will air every night on Channel Four for the next month.

Among the 11 guests to enter the house were Danielle Lloyd, an English model and former Miss Great Britain; 79-year-old film director Ken Russell (The Devils and Tommy); Jo O'Meara, former member of the pop group S Club 7; Leo Sayer, a pop star mostly famous in the UK with 1970s hits; Shilpa Shetty, a truly gorgeous Bollywood actress; Carole Malone, a columnist for the Sunday Mirror newspaper in the UK; Donny Tourette, lead singer of Towers of London; Ian 'H' Watkins, former member of the pop group Steps and Cleo Rocos a comedy actress who made her fame on The Kenny Everett Television Show in the 1980s.

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Big Brother 7 (U.K.) winner announced

Martin Conaghan — Sat, 19 Aug 2006 19:22:00 EST

Filed under: Other Reality Shows, News, Programming, Big Brother (UK)

The 13-week long marathon that was the seventh series of the popular reality TV show Big Brother in the U.K. ended last night, with Tourette Syndrome sufferer Pete Bennett ending the show as the last remaining contestant in the house and earning himself £100,000 prize money in the process.

Having re-introduced former evictee Niki back to the BB house last week (and thereby confirming what a sham the whole Big Brother process is), viewers watched as the final six housemates were left to slug it out and then departed the house one at a time on the whim of the public, starting with Liverpudlian Jenny, then Niki, followed by Canadian Richard.

Davina McCall then chopped it down to the last two when Aisleyne Horgan-Wallace was evicted from the house, leaving just Pete and Welsh lad Glyn.

When the announcement finally arrived, Pete jumped around the house throwing pillows into the air, and found it difficult to speak to Davina in the traditional post-celebration interview. Glyn was presented with his exam results and a message from the Welsh First Minister Rhodri Morgan, who described him as an "inspiration for other young people in Wales".

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Big Brother 7 (U.K.) update: yes, it's still running

Martin Conaghan — Mon, 07 Aug 2006 18:25:00 EST

Filed under: Other Reality Shows, News, Programming, Big Brother (UK)

I haven't updated on the U.K. Big Brother series for several weeks, mostly because it started to lose whatever appeal it ever had as a reality TV show when the producers introduced half a dozen new housemates half-way through the series, but also because it started to feel like I was watching some kind of bizarre, mind-numbing TV marathon that had absolutely no point to it whatsoever.

In the intervening weeks since my last post on the show, we've lost Nikki (the most irritating person in the western hemisphere), the 'golden ticket' housemate Susie, loudmouth Jayne, Irish DJ Spiral, Michael and Mikey.

Things picked up a few weeks ago when Big Brother introduced a hidden prison in the house and split the housemates up like some kind of Stanley Milgram experiment, but it was temporary relief from the mundanity of this overly-extended offering from Endemol.

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Big Brother 7 update: evictions, tasks and nomination twists

Martin Conaghan — Mon, 10 Jul 2006 16:43:00 EST

Filed under: Other Reality Shows, News, Programming, Big Brother (UK)

Now that the World Cup is over, I'm able to get back into some Doctor Who reviews and trying to keep up with the goings-on in the U.K. Big Brother house (more's the pity, in the case of the latter).

I reckon I've enjoyed every Big Brother since the series kicked-off here in the U.K. over seven years ago, but something about the current series has killed it for me. Perhaps it's the quality of the housemates this year, or the constant over-egging by the producers to try and make the show seem twisted and cruel -- perhaps it's because a World Cup has taken precedent for four weeks -- but it's probably just that the format has out-lived its shelf-life and maybe it's time to say goodbye.

Warning: spoilers after the jump.

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Big Brother 7 update: evictions, twists and more evictions

Martin Conaghan — Mon, 03 Jul 2006 13:06:00 EST

Filed under: Other Reality Shows, News, Programming, Big Brother (UK)

Another week, another twist to the Big Brother U.K. house.

If you're recording the shows and watching them later, like me, you might want to go elsewhere.

Warning: spoilers after the jump.

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Big Brother 7 update: Friday eviction announced

Martin Conaghan — Sat, 24 Jun 2006 10:05:00 EST

Filed under: Other Reality Shows, News, Programming, Big Brother (UK)

This week's eviction from the U.K. Big Brother house took place last night, but it wasn't the result I was expecting, nor the one I wanted.

Following on from a twist in the nominations procedure, Mikey, Imogen, Lisa and Nikki were all facing the public vote as a result of their own rule breaking. As part of the normal nomination process this week, they were required to nominate one of their fellow rule-breakers for nomination in full public view of the other non-rule breaking housemates.

Warning: spoilers after the jump.

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Big Brother 7 update: Friday eviction and weekend tasks

Martin Conaghan — Sun, 18 Jun 2006 19:51:00 EST

Filed under: Other Reality Shows, News, Programming, Big Brother (UK)

I'm finding it increasingly difficult to watch this year's Big Brother, despite being quite a big fan of the show in previous years. I think it's down to the group of housemates chosen to take part this year; with the exception of Pete, there's very little to like about the bunch of lunatics they've caged up for our so-called enjoyment for a whole 13-weeks.

Probably the worst of this year's bunch was Grace, who spent her entire time in the house maliciously bitching about every single housemate, with the notable exception of herself. Thankfully, she was evicted in the Friday public vote when she went head-to-head with Nikki, following a single nomination each from new housemate Susie.

When Davina McCall announced Grace's eviction live on the show, she stood up and threw a glass of water of Susie, thereby disgracing herself one final time, before stepping out to an exceptionally hostile crowd.

I sat down to watch Sunday's show tonight (which shows events from the previous day in the house) and eventually turned it off due to the repulsive nature of the task Big Brother had set the housemates; a breathing challenge which required each housemate to eat a plate of food and breathe in to a machine which was connected to individual gas-masks.

The other housemates had to then guess what the others had been eating, based on the fumes from their breath.

Thank God there's a World Cup on.

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Big Brother 7 update: nominations announced

Martin Conaghan — Tue, 13 Jun 2006 20:39:00 EST

Filed under: Other Reality Shows, Programming, Big Brother (UK)

As ever folks, look away now if you don't want to know who will be facing the chop in the Big Brother 7 public vote over here in the U.K. this week...

Warning: spoilers after the jump.

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Big Brother 7 update: eviction, new housemate and nominations twist

Martin Conaghan — Mon, 12 Jun 2006 11:19:00 EST

Filed under: Other Reality Shows, News, Programming, Big Brother (UK)

Plenty has happened since my last Big Brother update, so look away now if you don't want to know what's been going on in the mad house.

Warning: spoilers after the jump.

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Big Brother 7: eviction night update

Martin Conaghan — Fri, 02 Jun 2006 21:13:00 EST

Filed under: Other Reality Shows, News, Programming, Big Brother (UK)

If you are of a nervous disposition, it might be a good idea to point your browser or RSS reader elsewhere, lest you spoil the latest goings-on in the Big Bother house, namely, who has been evicted by the public at the end of week 2.

Warning: spoilers after the jump.

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Big Brother 7 update

Martin Conaghan — Wed, 31 May 2006 17:52:00 EST

Filed under: Other Reality Shows, News, Programming, Big Brother (UK)

As they say just before the classified soccer results here in the U.K., if you don't want to know the results of this week's nominations in the U.K. Big Brother house, look away now.

Warning: spoilers after the jump.

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Big Brother 7 update

Martin Conaghan — Tue, 30 May 2006 12:55:00 EST

Filed under: Other Reality Shows, News, Programming, Big Brother (UK)

I've deliberately held off on updating about Big Brother 7 over the weekend, partly because some of our readers felt we were giving too much away about the various goings-on in the house, but also because not much of any interest happened -- apart from a bit of minor bickering and a food task that didn't quite work out for the incarcerated housemates.

However, if you're of an easily-spoiled disposition, you might want to cover your eyes and ears now, then run around your house shouting "la-la-la-la-la I'm not list-en-ing!".

Warning: spoilers after the jump.

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Big Brother 7 update: Bonnie evicted

Martin Conaghan — Fri, 26 May 2006 19:53:00 EST

Filed under: Other Reality Shows, Programming, Big Brother (UK)

The third housemate in a week left the Big Brother house tonight when Bonnie was voted out by the public. The 19-year-old care worker from Loughborough was pitted against Welsh lad Glyn and lost out in the live vote.

I can't say she offered much in the way of entertainment in the house, but she wasn't such a bad lass -- just a bit on the boring side. Her audition tape promised so much in the way of wild times, but the reality was nothing like it. Her accent made her speech barely comprehensible, and she failed to connect with the majority of the housemates, with the exception of Leah.

When Bonnie left the house tonight, BB presenter Davina McCall promised a surprise on Monday night, as the Big Brother producers seem likely to take steps to rectify the unexpected loss of three contestants in the first seven days.

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Big Brother 7 update: Dawn walks

Martin Conaghan — Thu, 25 May 2006 16:04:00 EST

Filed under: Other Reality Shows, Programming, Big Brother (UK)

Well folks, as reported yesterday on TV Squad, another housemate has now left the Big Brother house in the U.K., after only one week of the new series.

Dawn, the 38-year-old 'exercise scientist' from Birmingham was evicted by Big Brother this morning after breaking one of the fundamental rules of the show -- she entered the house in the first place. Actually, I just made that bit up. She was removed for "communication with the outside world."

A statement released by Channel Four read: "Before all housemates enter the house, Big Brother asks them whether there are any circumstances of a personal nature that they wish to be informed of, whilst in the house. Yesterday, a member of Dawn's family contacted Big Brother with a confidential message, which Dawn had stipulated she wished to be informed of, should the situation arise. This message was delivered to Dawn by Big Brother, in confidence and in good faith, in the Diary Room yesterday. Last night Dawn revealed to the housemates that the message Big Brother delivered contained a pre-arranged code from her sister. As this is a fundamental breach of the rules, Big Brother removed Dawn from the house this afternoon."

I'd suspect that an introduction of new housemates is almost inevitable, although the Kit-Kat Golden Ticket housemate won't appear until June. What fun.

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