Big Brother

[natalie_1982]

Is being Big Brother or 'Big Guy and Big Lass' a full time job?  I mean do they have to sit 24/7 waiting for someone to go into the diary?  Is it a shift?  Or are they production staff who act as Big Brother as well?

[jenstar]

They are indeed production staff who take turns at "being" Big Brother. Often the contestants start to have favourites as well.

[acw]

And yes, I think they do sit around waiting for them to go into the diary room.  I guess at the same time they're designing tasks or thinking of new ways to increase the viewing figures.

I'm just glad that this year the tactics have got beyond "alcohol" which was about all they could think of in previous years.  The mind games sound far funnier. 

I don't have a TV mind you- so I'm REALLY missing out! :-p

[twiglet4frog]

They dont sit and wait, they are usually producers of the show that sit amongst the banks of tellys directing the shots. When someone wants to come to the diary room they have to press a "eye" symbol that flashes, this sets off an alert to the producer someone is waiting to chat, What they have to do is prepare the production team for it and then the producer enters a soundproof booth to talk to the housemate. When they are all ready the light up a green light above the diary room door and unlock it for the housemate to enter.

The reason it can take a while is because they have to notify all the camera directors, recorders, editors and producers on shift what is happening as apparently they can only record/direct 2 different situations at one time and must choose what to stop recording/directing the cameras to allow the diary room to fill one of the 2 slots. So the producers and directors have to decide which to cut away from. In the case of all hell erupting this can take a few minutes.

I know all this because they showed all the behind the scenes of last years Big Brother on how it all works and why they cant record everything at once. Oh, and the voice changes as the producers are on shift patterns of work. I doubt too much has chnged for this year