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Confirmed: 'Big Brother' to end on Channel 4



Channel 4 has confirmed speculation that next year's run of Big Brother will be its final series with the broadcaster.

Speaking at the network's Autumn press launch this morning, C4 director of television Kevin Lygo said: "We will not be continuing with Big Brother. Next year will be the last series for Channel 4. There will be a celebrity version, plus the regular one. We've decided it's time to move on."

Lygo added that the broadcaster is now thinking about programmes to replace Big Brother in 2011 but acknowledged that it would be "a challenge for the commercial side of the business".

The current series of Big Brother has been its lowest-rated to date, with an average of around 2 million viewers watching each night.

"Big Brother is still profitable for Channel 4 despite its reduced popularity and there could have been the option to renew it on more favourable terms," Lygo explained. "That’s what a purely commercial broadcaster would have done, but Channel 4 has a public remit to champion new forms of creativity."

Of the estimated Β£50 million budget freed up by the cancellation of Big Brother, Channel 4 pledged to invest Β£20 million into new "event" dramas such as Red Riding and "quirky series" for younger audiences, such as Skins.

C4 head Julian Bellamy described the show as "the voice of a generation", adding: "It will be sorely missed, [but] we're going to go out with a bang next year."

Big Brother production company Endemol is now expected to take the show to another broadcaster in 2011. ITV has previously expressed interest in acquiring the rights, although Five and Sky1 are also potential candidates.

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Thank goodness for that !
BB is no longer the show it started out as. The first shows were all about how an ordinary member of the public could cope with the pressures of confinement and detachment from real life.

Tasks were interesting and the consequences of failure were more exciting.

For the last few years, all it has attracted in terms of the HM's are those that wanted something out of it, rather than the taking part in it. The more outrageous the character, the better they did when they left.

It's become a zoo for misfits....
MysTerry
quote:
Originally posted by MysTerry:
Thank goodness for that !
BB is no longer the show it started out as. The first shows were all about how an ordinary member of the public could cope with the pressures of confinement and detachment from real life.

Tasks were interesting and the consequences of failure were more exciting.

For the last few years, all it has attracted in terms of the HM's are those that wanted something out of it, rather than the taking part in it. The more outrageous the character, the better they did when they left.

It's become a zoo for misfits....


I totally agree with everything you've said.

Hopefully, whoever takes over BB will return to the original format, which was more experimental. Since BB3 it's merely become a launch pad for desperate, delusional, talentless wannabes!
Barolo
quote:
Originally posted by boink:

Of the estimated Β£50 million budget freed up by the cancellation of Big Brother, Channel 4 pledged to invest Β£20 million into new "event" dramas such as Red Riding and "quirky series" for younger audiences, such as Skins.




I can hardly wait (NOT) and don't forget these new "event" dramas will be wedged between endless friends repeats.

It'll still be a case of same shit different day as far as I'm concerned, so CH4 you can stick it where the sun don't shine Mad



.
Canicant
A comment from the Guardian website. That could be quite a good idea.

"Given there is only one year left of Big Brother (the TV show not Brown's government, though both could be true), why not for it's final year revert the programme back to being a social psychological show it was originally billed as, for example why not conduct a modern version of the Stanford Experiment (this would also be quite topical given the reports which have come out of Abu Ghraib & Gauntanimo Bay in recent years). "

Apologies for the apostrophe outrage in the quote btw. From a Guardian reader too! Eeker
FM
quote:
Originally posted by Daniel J*:
A comment from the Guardian website. That could be quite a good idea.

"Given there is only one year left of Big Brother (the TV show not Brown's government, though both could be true), why not for it's final year revert the programme back to being a social psychological show it was originally billed as, for example why not conduct a modern version of the Stanford Experiment (this would also be quite topical given the reports which have come out of Abu Ghraib & Gauntanimo Bay in recent years). "

Apologies for the apostrophe outrage in the quote btw. From a Guardian reader too! Eeker

It's already been done. The BBC broadcast their version of the Stanford experiment (called "The Experiment") back in 2002.

There was a lot of controversy over the show (Philip Zimbardo was particularly critical), and I seriously doubt any TV station would risk trying it again...
Eugene's Lair
quote:
Originally posted by Daniel J*:
A comment from the Guardian website. That could be quite a good idea.

"Given there is only one year left of Big Brother (the TV show not Brown's government, though both could be true), why not for it's final year revert the programme back to being a social psychological show it was originally billed as, for example why not conduct a modern version of the Stanford Experiment (this would also be quite topical given the reports which have come out of Abu Ghraib & Gauntanimo Bay in recent years). "

Apologies for the apostrophe outrage in the quote btw. From a Guardian reader too! Eeker


Hi Daniel, have you read Zambardo's book 'The Lucifer effect'? It's a fascinating read covering Abu Grahib in detail. He did a report on the place for the prosecutors , and interviewed some of the people charged, plus the whilstleblower who blew the whole thing wide open!
kimota
quote:
Originally posted by kimota:
Hi Daniel, have you read Zambardo's book 'The Lucifer effect'? It's a fascinating read covering Abu Grahib in detail. He did a report on the place for the prosecutors , and interviewed some of the people charged, plus the whilstleblower who blew the whole thing wide open!

I haven't. I confess I'm not sure I want to know the full details The whole thing makes me really mad.
FM
quote:
Originally posted by Daniel J*:
quote:
Originally posted by kimota:
Hi Daniel, have you read Zambardo's book 'The Lucifer effect'? It's a fascinating read covering Abu Grahib in detail. He did a report on the place for the prosecutors , and interviewed some of the people charged, plus the whilstleblower who blew the whole thing wide open!

I haven't. I confess I'm not sure I want to know the full details The whole thing makes me really mad.


He put forward his central thesis that situational forces and systems are a better predictor of the way people act than individual personality quirks. Basically he told them the 'barrel was rotten, corrupting the apples within it' Of course, for political purposes it suited the prosecuters to lay the blame on 'a few bad apples' but behind the scenes they did listen to what he had to say and followed some of his recommendations!
kimota
quote:
Originally posted by **Nipple Twister**:
Ch4 should have listened to us more on the forums I have been very frustrated with the programme this year and have thought its not worth watching. I f another chanel takes over I hope they take more notice of what the viewer wants.

I'd like to think so, but I seriously doubt it.

Remember that many of the faults with BB this year (HM selection, weak punishments and mucking-around with the rules) were decisions made by Endemol, not C4, so they will remain if the show moves to another channel.

My guess is that if another channel takes BB over, it will be in a different form: e.g. they may do away with the public vote and make it more like BB USA...
Eugene's Lair
I'm very annoyed about this. I sent a comment to Have your Say about this which is filled with frothing-at-the-mouth Daily Hate Mail readers being incredibly abusive about Big Brother viewers and MY comment was the one that was rejected by the moderators!

I've never said anything controversial in my life and the comment was fairly innocuous so I have written to the moderation asking exactly why they felt my comment was inappropriate to stand against the anti-BB bias being shown.

but something I'll reserve for here and not express it there - TWATS!!!!!!! Angry
littleleicesterfox

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