[LEE]

Big Brother goes back to basics

By Darren Waters
BBC News Online entertainment staff


As the fifth Big Brother series on Channel 4 comes to an end, BBC News Online looks at whether the format has passed its sell-by date.
Channel 4's Big Brother was recently voted one of the most innovative programme genres of all time, by a panel of TV experts for Radio Times.


The full line-up of Big Brother 5 contestants


Enlarge Image


But innovation can quickly become dated if it does not continue to evolve and push boundaries.

After a moribund series in 2003, Channel 4 has been under pressure to restore interest in the format.

Their success can be determined in three ways - ratings, the numbers of eviction votes and tabloid press interest - and on all three counts the latest series has been a success.

The fifth series has averaged 4.9 million viewers, up 9% on the same period last year, although the peaks are not as high as in previous years - pointing to a series which has developed a core audience but is no longer able to generate the excitement of "event television".

Channel 4 long ago dropped any pretence that the show was a psychological experiment and has concentrated on making the programme the epitome of tabloid TV.

"It's all pantomime," Davina McCall whispers into the ear of each evicted housemate as they face the inevitable boos and cheers.

And as televised pantomime, Big Brother is the best thing on screens during the summer.

The above is the start of an article from todays BBC website, which also asks for our views on this and previous BB series.