Big Brother (British series 3)

Big Brother 3 saw the series move to a different location, as Newham London Borough Council ordered the complex to be returned to a natural habitat after planning permissions expired in 2002 for the former house. The Big Brother house has been located at Elstree Studios, Borehamwood, Hertfordshire, since Big Brother 3 onward. The house this season featured a completely different layout and look when compared to the two previous seasons. The house featured vibrant colors such as reds and oranges for both the walls and the furniture. This house was the first to feature stairs going from the front door to the house. On the launch night, host Davina McCall stated that there were numerous arguments over the sofa in the house, and that the one selected was the third to be placed in the house. The kitchen remained simple, with only necessities such as an oven, fridge, and sink. In the "Diary Room", in which housemates may speak privately and reveal their true feelings to the public, there is a more interesting look to it. The background of the room has the features the Big Brother logo of an eye in the background, with the chair this season is big and bright red. Like the previous editions, there are two bedrooms this season, with Davina referring to one of them as the "uncomfortable bedroom." Like the last season, the men and women chose to sleep in separate bedrooms, though this was not required by the rules. Big Brother 3 saw the return of chickens in the backyard, which was also a feature used in the first two seasons. The chickens are used as a source to get eggs, thus Housemates are not required to buy eggs as part of their shopping list. The house also features a garden, which the housemates use to grow plants and vegetables to eat. This season had a pool in the backyard, making it the first season in which one was provided. Before the season began, there were rumours that a twist this season would see two houses being formed, however, Endemol confirmed that this was just a rumour.[3] During the third to sixth week in the house, there was a large plastic gate separating the Poor and Rich sides of the house.

Big Brother is a game show in which a group of contestants, called housemates, live in isolation from the outside world in a custom built "house", which includes everyday facilities such as a fully equipped kitchen, garden, two bedrooms, and a bathroom. The house is also a television studio with cameras and microphones in most of the rooms to record the activities of the housemates. The only place where housemates can escape the company of the other contestants is the Diary Room, where they are encouraged to voice their true feelings. Not all Diary Room footage is broadcast due to the privacy of the contestants. Each week all housemates nominate two of their fellow contestants for potential eviction. Failure to do so may result in a punishment, such as a reduction in the prize fund. The two, or more, housemates with the highest number of nominations face a public vote conducted by phone, with the contestant receiving the most votes being evicted from the house. The last contestant remaining in the house is declared the winner and is awarded a cash prize of £70,000. On eviction night, there were two live eviction shows held. In the first, host Davina McCall would reveal to the housemates who had been evicted from the house, though the percentages were withheld from the group. Following the announcement, the evicted housemate had two hours to pack their belongings and prepare to leave the house. At the start of the second episode, McCall would inform the evicted housemate that they had only moments to walk out the door. Upon exiting through the house's front door, McCall led the evictee into a studio where they met with their family and friends. While in the studio, McCall had an interview with the evicted housemate, and showed their best bits - a video compilation of their time in the house.

Over the duration of the series, the Housemates are given a series of tasks by Big Brother which test them in many ways. They are also put to the test by their own ideals, prejudices and opinions against other people from different walks of life; something that has survived from the original "social experiment" of Big Brother 1. They live in the communal House and share cooking and cleaning chores among themselves, which usually provides plenty of tension. Housemates are forbidden to sleep during daylight hours (unless unwell) - Big Brother plays the wake-up call persistently in the morning if housemates do not wake up and will play an alarm clock noise into the house if a housemate falls asleep during the day. Housemates must also live by the fundamental rules of Big Brother; if the rules are broken it can result in formal warnings, various punishments or even a housemate's removal from the House. They must wash their own clothes by hand, and they have to make their own bread from scratch. Each week Big Brother sets the Housemates a task in order to determine the shopping budget for the following week. They must work together to win the tasks in order to win a luxury shopping budget which changed based on the number of people remaining in the house. If all food runs out in the House, Big Brother provides emergency rations of chickpeas and rice. Housemates are responsible for their own shopping and decide which items the budget will allow them to have. Only a small percentage of the overall budget can be spent on alcohol. Each night, the housemates were also given a discussion topic, and they would have group discussions in the living room.

Much like Big Brother 2, this series featured a twist in the format in an attempt to keep the series interesting. On the first night, it was revealed that all of the Housemates were nominated for eviction, and the public then began voting for who they would like to see leave the house. It was later revealed that the two Housemates with the highest number of eviction votes would be nominated for eviction, and that their fellow Housemates would vote to evict one of them. This resulted in the first eviction of the season occurring on Day 8, the first time that an eviction had occurred this early in the series. Another change in the format this season was the addition of the Rich and Poor sides of the house, in which one side would feature more benefits and luxuries than the other. This season also began using the "strikes" system, in which Housemates were allowed to have only three strikes before they were expelled from the series.

Weekly ratings for each show on Channel 4. All numbers are in millions and provided by BARB.[4]

Much like the previous two editions of the series, Big Brother 3 had controversial moments and issues as well. The main issue this season was with Housemates voluntarily choosing to leave the game. On Day 7, Housemate Sunita chose to walk from the game, stating she "was feeling claustrophobic" and the show had effectively deprived contestants of their rights.[5][6] Housemate Sandy decided to walk from the game on Day 20. Despite agreeing to leave that night through the door, he later climbed over the wall in the backyard and escaped the house.[7] On his decision to walk, Sandy stated "I went on to the show with no preconceptions. I did what I feel was right and left when I felt it was right to leave."[8] Housemates Lee and Sophie also talked about quitting the series, though neither of them did. The Rich and Poor divide caused numerous issues in the house, mainly when Housemate Tim became the only Housemate living on the Rich side for a week. The other Housemates were upset, with PJ later stating that the group should all walk; however, no Housemates left the game due to this issue.[9] The production this season has also been criticized as being too edited, mainly in terms of Housemate Jade Goody. This season was also the first to have controversy surrounding sexual relations in the series.[10] Though no actual sexual intercourse occurred in the house, Housemate Jade later gave Housemate PJ oral sex under the covers, and that same night Housemate Sophie was believed to have done the same with Housemate Lee.[11] There was a debate on whether or not to show the events occurring on the highlight episode, eventually they chose to show them.

• Big Brother - Series 3 at Channel4.com

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