'Big Brother' Britain

Apologies for the possibly misleading headline; this blog has nothing to do with Britain's 4 million CCTV cameras (a world record by the way) or the government's plans to introduce compulsory identity cards. In fact what I was refering to is the annual summer ratings battle between the various reality TV show formats, with Channel 4 currently airing its seventh instalment of the enduringly (and somewhat inexplicably) popular 'Big Brother' and ITV competing with another offering of 'Love Island' (formerly known as 'Celebrity Love Island' but the producers presumably dropped the first word of the title because of worries about being accused of false advertising considering the Z-list 'celebrities' on show). Peruse the music charts at any stage over the last few years and you'll undoubtedly see the names of various manufactured solo artists and groups produced by shows such as Pop Stars and Fame Academy, while open the pages of any tabloid newspaper and you're more than likely to see the face (or possibly other more prominently-displayed body parts) of Jordan or Jodie Marsh, who are famous for apparently nothing more than turning up anywhere they are likely to find the paparazzi and having well-publicised affairs with celebrities. While these kinds of shows and wannabe celebrities can be found all over the world, they seem to be more abundant and popular in Britain than anywhere else, raising questions about where our obsession with reality TV and the culture of instant celebrity comes from and what it says about us as a people.

While Big Brother initially promised to be an interesting quasi-psychological experiment to see how those locked inside a house together for a few weeks would cope with the situation, each series has descended further into dreary attempts to encourage sordidness, stress and scandal by lumping together a motley collection of weirdos, ridiculously well-endowed plastic surgery victims, promiscuous, heavy-drinking twenty-somethings and the odd cross-dresser of dubious sexuality. What is sad though is that despite all the attempts to include the most outrageous contestants possible (or perhaps because of it), what is most striking when watching the show is how dull all the housemates really are. Watching their drunken loutishness, banal conversations and childish bickering is to see the very worst of what British society can produce. Finally though it does seem that the Big Brother format is coming to the end of its shelf life. The current series has attracted lower viewing figures and more criticism for its tediousness than usual, leading to rumours that it could be axed; but it seems more likely that producers will attempt at least one more instalment with some new gimmick to attract us voyeuristic viewers.

If we only had to bear Big Brother then perhaps things wouldn't be so bad. Unfortunately though it has spawned numerous imitations, usually more outrageous and/or banal than the last. As well as the aforementioned Love Island, where psuedo-celebrities are encouraged to engage in raunchy antics with each other, we've had 'I'm a celebrity....get me out of here', which is as bad as the name suggests; 'Extreme Makeover', where average-looking middle-aged women are encouraged to undergo plastic surgery; 'The Salon', which followed day-to-day goings-on in a hair dressers (it really was as boring as it sounds); and numerous dating shows such as MTV's 'Dismissed'. For a rough idea of the kind of people these shows are looking for take a look at this website searching for new reality 'stars' (my personal favourite is the advert 'Calling Teenagers' who are 'binge drinkers, geezer birds, hoodies, yobs, gang members and people who are anti-immigration').

Many people argue, with much justification, that it is wrong to criticise these reality shows. It is the TV stations' job to get the highest ratings possible and they are simply satisfying public demand. I take issue with this on two points. The first is that while many of these shows are undoubtedly popular, there are many which aren't, and either way I find it worrying that so many resources are being devoted to producing this kind of entertainment. Reality shows have their place on TV but it is depressing and frustrating when, flicking channels during an evening at home, one finds them on nearly all the major stations simultaneously. The second point, which is certainly not the fault of the TV networks, is what the reality shows' popularity says about British society in general. Millions would apparently prefer to watch a group of rather dull nobodies talk about nothing to each other than be stimulated, amused or have their emotions played with by more high-quality shows. A depressing statistic is that more young people vote for their most-hated Big Brother contestant to be evicted than participate in local elections. Of course one couldn't, and shouldn't, force TV channels to stop producing these kinds of shows; but it is important to think about why they remain so popular and if there is anything we should do about it.