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Big Brother contestants told of pandemic news

A rare -but not unprecedented- move by producers.

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Big Brother contestants have been informed of the coronavirus pandemic.

An Endemol Shine spokesperson has told Seven News, “Endemol Shine Australia takes the health and safety of our crew and contestants extremely seriously.”

“We are working in line with current guidelines and production on Big Brother is continuing.

“Housemates have been brought across the current situation and we are in constant contact with the families to keep all involved up to date.”

Housemates entered the Manly compound three weeks ago in what may well be one of the safest sets in the country.

The move to advise news is rare, but not unprecedented, across Big Brother history.

In the Australian series a handful of housemates were told of developments within their immediate family, while the US series told housemates about the 9 / 11 attacks.

Production of the Seven series continues.

Photo: Behind Big Brother.

26 Responses

  1. Well it looks like Big Brother is the safest place after all, in a way luckily it’s not going to be Live because there would not be a Live Audience anyway after whats happening with this Coronavirus.
    To the people talking bad about the Big Brother show, it will be the Only show unaffected, safe and worth watching, this great Show.!!
    I definetely will be watching Big Brother, Can’t Wait for it to start..!!!!

  3. Either way, still no audience at evictions

    If a mass lockdown in homes was called soon, Seven would be smart to launch it ASAP as a distraction and run MKR as a late arvo offering

    If you could fit two weeks into one (remember 10 only screened half hourly eps most nights) potential to go live broadcasts and streaming mid season

    1. To add to that, they could throw in a subscription-based live feed – that could become the media addiction of choice for anyone self-isolating.

  4. Its the right thing to do however knowing that this is being pre-recorded means i won’t be watching now. The live element takes it away. Seven would’ve been better off doing an Australian version of The Circle over this.

  6. That’s disappointing that they were told. Could have been an opportunity for good television seeing them walk out into a changed world of Coronavirus without experiencing the buildup that the rest of us have.

    1. Good television? I suggest not telling them would be unimaginably cruel. I’m struggling to cope with the world changing in a matter of weeks. How are these people, likely self absorbed individuals, expected to deal with the human suffering on release and the “look at me” culture they grew up in disappearing overnight replaced by a society where decisions are made for the greater good?

      1. Good television / unimaginably cruel: the two are not mutually exclusive.

        It’s what they’ve signed up for. If I was in the house and someone told me about the outside world before my eviction/win I’d be pretty pissed. I mean, spoiler.

        1. It doesn’t bode well for society’s ability to deal with the challenges ahead with attitudes like this in existence. Feeding off the misery of others for entertainment? I seriously hope your tongue is planted firmly in your cheek.

    2. No way they couldn’t tell them as Seven have a duty of care. Besides they don’t want another “scandal” keeping.housemates unaware of their families and friends facing danger.

      1. Exactly. Mr J is way off the mark here. I wouldn’t see any intrigue or entertainment value in seeing an evictee come out into a world that has changed fairly drastically in just a few weeks. It’s already worrying enough for us who are out experiencing it day by day, hour by hour.

  11. I don’t know how it is being produced, but I would imagine crew might be around and sometimes inside the house studio, so it seems like an appropriate thing to do to inform the housemates of the health situation.

  12. Does anyone remember the British Channel 4 comedy series by Charlie Brooker (who created “Black Mirror”) called “Dead Set”? It was a comedy set inside the Big Brother House whilst a zombie apocalypse was happening outside and the Producers refused to tell the contestants it was happening. This article reminded me of this a little bit.

    1. The producers on ‘Dead Set’ didn’t fail to tell their contestants-they were all overwhelmed by the very sudden ZA. Was an excellent show made many years before zombie series became a staple of Pay TV-films had been around since the 60s on the subject though.

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