by Jennifer J. Raymond

Created on: July 28, 2008

Love it or hate it, this controversial television programme is in its ninth year and still pulls in regular viewers for Channel 4. Big Brother first hit our TV screens in 1999, when the idea of locking ten strangers in a house for the entire summer seemed ludicrous (and probably still does to a lot of people!). The nation was gripped by the sly behaviour of Nasty Nick', who dared whisper and write the names of fellow housemates in an attempt to influence their choice of nominations. He was soon found out and removed from the Big Brother house, but that was enough for this programme to win the hearts of the public and ensure further series of the hit show.

Every year since its first airing (which looking back now seemed pretty tame) hordes of fame-hungry, wannabes flock to auditions to secure their fifteen minutes of fame. It seems the weirder and wackier a person is the better the chance of success. So far, some of the contestants who have graced our screens have included Nadia', the Portuguese Transsexual, Pete', the guy who had Tourettes syndrome and Sam and Amanda', the annoyingly-happy, identical twins. And this years contestants are no different, among the 16 new housemates we have Mikey, who has been blind for 10 years and Darnell, the albino, black man who was deported back here from the US after getting involved in gang culture.

Big Brother is also responsible for discovering the infamous Jade Goody' who in 2001, caught the attention of the media for her antics on the show which included a fumble under the covers with a fellow housemate and baring all in a game of strip poker. She later disgraced herself when appearing on the 2007 celebrity edition of the show by making racial comments towards the Bollywood actress, Shilpa Shetty. Celebrity Big Brother has since been axed.

In the past few years the carefully selected contestants have resulted in many a controversial outburst, forcing producers to promptly remove another housemate from last years show for a racially inappropriate comment, and this year, two housemates have already been removed for aggressive behaviour.

It was announced a couple of weeks ago that the Australian version of the show will be finishing after the current series ends. Which leaves viewers here wondering how many more series are scheduled for air in the UK. But for now, fans can enjoy the 24-hour a day action, which claims daily headlines from the tabloids and remains a favourite talking point in many a workplace coffee room, school playground and hairdressing salon.

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