Tenth series of Big Brother set to begin
New housemates to enter Big Brother house for start of tenth series
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Thursday, 04, Jun 2009 08:57
A set of new housemates will enter the Big Brother house for the start of the tenth series of the reality show tonight.
Though the Channel 4 show has been dogged in controversy in recent years - from allegations of racism to Alexandra De Gale's ejection from last year's show over making alleged 'gangster' threats - the Endemol series has survived for a decade now.
However, the popularity of the show has certainly declined - the ninth series saw a 15 per cent drop in average viewing figures from the previous year and one housemate's eviction was watched by just 2.4 million viewers, the lowest since the second series began.
And while the live final of Britain's Got Talent picked up what are believed to be the highest terrestrial ratings in five years, contestants from recent series of Big Brother are reportedly charging just £500 for personal appearances - a far cry from the days in which recently-evicted contestants could stand to make thousands after appearing on the show.
The identities of the tenth set of housemates will be unveiled live on Thursday evening, but tabloid newspapers have claimed in the last week that two former beauty queens are in the running to enter the Big Brother house, while the eldest housemate is 40 years old and the youngest 18.
A new spin on this year's show sees contestants being told after their official arrival that they are not yet official housemates.
All entrants will have to each earn housemate status over the next three days by completing tasks set by Big Brother, with tests set to challenge contestants' fears and pride and, in some cases, pitching them head-to-head against other hopeful housemates.
Only after successfully completing a task will houesemates they be allowed access to the 'real' Big Brother house but initially they will only be able to access the virtually empty living room, a toilet and the garden.
Contestants will be forced to spend their first night sleeping on the living room floor and if they wish to bath, will have to do so in a bath in the garden which can only be filled by carrying cold water in a hole-ridden bucket across the garden.