What exactly is BB thinking? The arrival of the 'Golden' housemate caused minimal interest for the viewers, espaecially when it quickly became apparent that her selection was not entirely random.
This morning The Sun and the Daily Star are both fuming over "Goldengate", with the Sun's business editor Ian King even questioning whether this will have a knock on effect for KitKat sales and maker Nestle's finances.
The arrival of 'Golden' Suzie on Friday quickly descended into farce when it became obvious that she was known to four of the housemates and had auditioned for BB many times before. It appears that BB producers do not like to change a supposedly winning formula. Suzie is exactly like the rest of the housemates. A silicone enhanced model, with a desire for recognition. This only reinforces suspicions that this housemate was not randomly chosen out of the golden ticket winners live on air on Friday night but planted by BB producers.
Just what are the BB puppet masters trying to achieve? The whole 'Golden Ticket' promo is open to accusations of 'fix'. BB viewers are generally an outspoken bunch. Did BB not think their stunt would enrage those who most enjoy the (admittedly deliberate) random mix of housemates? Or was this another obvious trick to pull in the column inches?
Whatever their reasons, it sorely tests the whole premise of the show. BB is supposed to mess with the housemates, giving the viewer a sense of superiority. The viewer can see the games BB plays before the housemates do and gives us all the opportunity to congratulate ourselves for never wanting to become contestants. BB has therefore, broken a rule. It is not supposed to mess with the viewers. The outrage amongst BB fans is obvious. If BB wants to raise the shock value, it should concentrate on well thought out tasks and giving the housemates more to do. Not only does the arrival of Suzie insult the viewers, it is also just plain lazy.
* And in other Big Brother news: 2001 BB lovebirds Helen "I love blinking, I do" Adams and Paul "I live life like an international pop star" Clarke have split, it was revealed in Heat magazine today.
