Amy
23-02-2004, 11:54 AM
PLAYING the instant fame game on TV's Big Brother made an unlikely media star of Jade Goody.
And "Nasty" Nick Bateman also hadthe Channel 4 programme to thank for a surprise leap into the limelight.
The two former nobodies helped turn the fly-on-the-wall reality show into cult viewing.
And they inspired up to a thousand wannabes to flock into Manchester city centre in the hope of following in their lucrative footsteps in the next series of the show.
The fans started turning up in the early hours - and were given only a minute to impress the judges with auditions in front of a camera at New Century House in Corporation Street.
The ones with winning ways were called back to have a chat with producers, before heading to London if they made a big enough impression.
The show-makers are staging similar auditions in Newcastle, Cardiff, Birmingham, Belfast and London before a final ten or 12 are selected to go on the show.
Natalie James, 24, from Denton, said: "It's not just about being famous, it's about having a laugh - although eight weeks off work would be good.
"My family think I am mad, but I've watched all the Big Brother series' and I thought I'd give it a go.
"But I hadn't planned anything to say for the one-minute video diary."
more of this article Here (http://www.manchesteronline.co.uk/news/stories/Detail_LinkStory=81949.html)
And "Nasty" Nick Bateman also hadthe Channel 4 programme to thank for a surprise leap into the limelight.
The two former nobodies helped turn the fly-on-the-wall reality show into cult viewing.
And they inspired up to a thousand wannabes to flock into Manchester city centre in the hope of following in their lucrative footsteps in the next series of the show.
The fans started turning up in the early hours - and were given only a minute to impress the judges with auditions in front of a camera at New Century House in Corporation Street.
The ones with winning ways were called back to have a chat with producers, before heading to London if they made a big enough impression.
The show-makers are staging similar auditions in Newcastle, Cardiff, Birmingham, Belfast and London before a final ten or 12 are selected to go on the show.
Natalie James, 24, from Denton, said: "It's not just about being famous, it's about having a laugh - although eight weeks off work would be good.
"My family think I am mad, but I've watched all the Big Brother series' and I thought I'd give it a go.
"But I hadn't planned anything to say for the one-minute video diary."
more of this article Here (http://www.manchesteronline.co.uk/news/stories/Detail_LinkStory=81949.html)