Big Brother Panto
Encyclopedia
Big Brother Panto is a special series of Big Brother
that brought together ten housemates from previous Big Brothers to produce the pantomime
Cinderella
. It aired from 20 December 2004 to 5 January 2005 on the Channel 4
network.
The pantomime performed, Cinderella, was written by Jonathan Harvey
, who wrote the sitcom
Gimme Gimme Gimme. It was performed at a theatre near to The Lodge.
. It was broadcast each night on E4 at 10pm and repeated the following morning the T4
slot on Channel 4. On 28 December there was a live show on E4 at 11am where comments and suggestions from the public were read to the housemates. The finale aired at 9pm on E4.
The housemates went home twice, firstly from 23 December to 27 December and secondly from 30 December to 3 January to spend Christmas
and New Year
at home. Unlike all other Big Brother series, there were no evictions and no winner. The only public vote was for who played Cinderella.
On 27 December, Channel 4 accidentally broadcast the first half of the late-night E4 show, containing adult language and content, pre-watershed on T4. They later apologised. Big Brother Panto was sponsored by TalkTalk
.
and Melanie Hill, from series two was Narinder Kaur, from Big Brother 3
was Tim Culley, Jade Goody
and Spencer Smith, from the fourth series was Anouska Golebiewski and the fifth series' was represented by Victor Ebuwa, Kitten Pinder and Marco Sabba. The housemates were paid for appearing.
In addition to the housemates, there were coach and staff to train them for the pantomime. The director was Chris Denys, the dance
coach was Louie Spence and the dame
coach was Dave Lynn. The stage manager was Ruth and the voice coaches were Mike and Nick. Jonathan Harvey also appeared on the show.
Big Brother (UK)
Big Brother UK is the British version of the Dutch Big Brother television format, which takes its name from the character in George Orwell's 1948 novel Nineteen Eighty-Four...
that brought together ten housemates from previous Big Brothers to produce the pantomime
Pantomime
Pantomime — not to be confused with a mime artist, a theatrical performer of mime—is a musical-comedy theatrical production traditionally found in the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, Jamaica, South Africa, India, Ireland, Gibraltar and Malta, and is mostly performed during the...
Cinderella
Cinderella
"Cinderella; or, The Little Glass Slipper" is a folk tale embodying a myth-element of unjust oppression/triumphant reward. Thousands of variants are known throughout the world. The title character is a young woman living in unfortunate circumstances that are suddenly changed to remarkable fortune...
. It aired from 20 December 2004 to 5 January 2005 on the Channel 4
Channel 4
Channel 4 is a British public-service television broadcaster which began working on 2 November 1982. Although largely commercially self-funded, it is ultimately publicly owned; originally a subsidiary of the Independent Broadcasting Authority , the station is now owned and operated by the Channel...
network.
The pantomime performed, Cinderella, was written by Jonathan Harvey
Jonathan Harvey (playwright)
Jonathan Harvey is a British playwright whose work has earned multiple awards. He is also a former secondary school English teacher.-Life and works:...
, who wrote the sitcom
British sitcom
A British sitcom tends, as it does in most other countries, to be based on a family, workplace or other institution, where the same group of contrasting characters is brought together in each episode. Unlike American sitcoms, where twenty or more episodes in a season is the norm, British sitcoms...
Gimme Gimme Gimme. It was performed at a theatre near to The Lodge.
Broadcasts
Big Brother Panto aired from 20 December 2004 to 5 January 2005 and was presented by Jeff BrazierJeff Brazier
Jeffrey Carl Brazier is a British television presenter and reality TV star. Before becoming a television personality, he was a footballer on the books of Leyton Orient for three years, although he never played for the first team and quit the game due to injury.-Career:In 2001, Brazier took part in...
. It was broadcast each night on E4 at 10pm and repeated the following morning the T4
T4 (Channel 4)
T4 is a scheduling slot on Channel 4 from about 09:00 until 14:00 on Saturdays and 17:00 on Sundays. It also airs on weekdays in the school holidays. The slot has a separate station identification on screen graphic from Channel 4 and E4. The logo of T4 is noticeably the top right segment of the...
slot on Channel 4. On 28 December there was a live show on E4 at 11am where comments and suggestions from the public were read to the housemates. The finale aired at 9pm on E4.
The housemates went home twice, firstly from 23 December to 27 December and secondly from 30 December to 3 January to spend Christmas
Christmas
Christmas or Christmas Day is an annual holiday generally celebrated on December 25 by billions of people around the world. It is a Christian feast that commemorates the birth of Jesus Christ, liturgically closing the Advent season and initiating the season of Christmastide, which lasts twelve days...
and New Year
New Year
The New Year is the day that marks the time of the beginning of a new calendar year, and is the day on which the year count of the specific calendar used is incremented. For many cultures, the event is celebrated in some manner....
at home. Unlike all other Big Brother series, there were no evictions and no winner. The only public vote was for who played Cinderella.
On 27 December, Channel 4 accidentally broadcast the first half of the late-night E4 show, containing adult language and content, pre-watershed on T4. They later apologised. Big Brother Panto was sponsored by TalkTalk
TalkTalk
TalkTalk is a pay television, telecommunications and internet service provider company headquartered in London, United Kingdom...
.
House
The housemates spent the duration of the series in "The Lodge". There was a kitchen, bedroom, diary room, and a great hall. The Lodge was located in Bristol Studios.Housemates
Ten former Big Brother housemates took part. From Big Brother 1 were Nick BatemanNick Bateman
Nicholas "Nasty Nick" Bateman is a British media personality and a former contestant on the first series of the British version of Big Brother.-Big Brother:...
and Melanie Hill, from series two was Narinder Kaur, from Big Brother 3
Big Brother 2002 (UK)
Big Brother 3 was the third series of Big Brother UK. The series started on 24 May 2002, ending on 26 July 2002 and the final of this series drew 10.0 million viewers. Votes in the final week totalled 8.6 million...
was Tim Culley, Jade Goody
Jade Goody
Jade Cerisa Lorraine Goody was an English celebrity. She came into the public spotlight while appearing on the third series of the Channel 4 reality TV programme Big Brother in 2002, an appearance which led to her own television programmes and the launch of her own products after her eviction from...
and Spencer Smith, from the fourth series was Anouska Golebiewski and the fifth series' was represented by Victor Ebuwa, Kitten Pinder and Marco Sabba. The housemates were paid for appearing.
In addition to the housemates, there were coach and staff to train them for the pantomime. The director was Chris Denys, the dance
Dance
Dance is an art form that generally refers to movement of the body, usually rhythmic and to music, used as a form of expression, social interaction or presented in a spiritual or performance setting....
coach was Louie Spence and the dame
Pantomime dame
A pantomime dame is a traditional character in British pantomime. It is a continuation of en travesti portrayal of female characters by male actors in drag. They are often played either in an extremely camp style, or else by men acting 'butch' in women's clothing...
coach was Dave Lynn. The stage manager was Ruth and the voice coaches were Mike and Nick. Jonathan Harvey also appeared on the show.
Daily summary
| Day 1 | Date | 20 December 2004 |
|---|---|---|
| Events | Having entered The Lodge the day before, the housemates talk about what roles they want to play. | |
| Day 2 | Date | 21 December 2004 |
| Events | The housemates had to audition for a part in Cinderella. Jade and Anouska auditioned for Cinderella, Victor for Button, Mel for Dandini, Nick for Baron Hardup, Spencer for ugly sister Jordanne, Tim and Marco for ugly sister Jodey, Narinder for the Fairy Liquid and Kitten for Prince Charming. No one auditioned for the parts of Baroness Hardup and the Fairy Hairdresser. Later they had a dance Dance Dance is an art form that generally refers to movement of the body, usually rhythmic and to music, used as a form of expression, social interaction or presented in a spiritual or performance setting.... class with the dance coach. Later the director announced who had been cast in which part. Victor was cast as Buttons, Kitten as Dandini, Nick as Baron Hardup, Narinder as Baroness Hardup, Spencer as Jordanne, Tim as Jodey, Marco as the Fairy Liquid and Mel as Prince Charming. The director could not decide between Jade and Anouska for the role of Cinderella. |
|
| Day 3 | Date | 22 December 2004 |
| Events | During a dance class, Kitten walked out and threatened to leave because she did not want to play Dandini. | |
| Day 4 | Date | 23 December 2004 |
| Events | The housemates had a lesson from "dame coach" Dave Lynn and later had the first script read through with Chris and Ruth. After a Christmas dinner Christmas dinner Christmas dinner is the primary meal traditionally eaten on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day. In many ways the meal is similar to a standard Sunday dinner. Christmas feasts have traditionally been luxurious and abundant... the housemates left The Lodge. |
|
| Day 5 | Date | 27 December 2004 |
| Events | The housemates returned to The Lodge two by two on sleighs Sled A sled, sledge, or sleigh is a land vehicle with a smooth underside or possessing a separate body supported by two or more smooth, relatively narrow, longitudinal runners that travels by sliding across a surface. Most sleds are used on surfaces with low friction, such as snow or ice. In some cases,... down the chimney Chimney A chimney is a structure for venting hot flue gases or smoke from a boiler, stove, furnace or fireplace to the outside atmosphere. Chimneys are typically vertical, or as near as possible to vertical, to ensure that the gases flow smoothly, drawing air into the combustion in what is known as the... . It was announced that the decision over who played Cinderella would be put to the public vote. |
|
| Day 6 | Date | 28 December 2004 |
| Events | The housemates appeared live on T4 and Jade and Anouska auditioned for the role of Cinderella. The lines for who played Cinderella were then open from 11.30am to 6pm. Jade won the public vote with 83% of the vote. Having previously complained about the script, Narinder talked with the writer Jonathan Harvey in the Great Hall. | |
| Day 7 | Date | 29 December 2004 |
| Events | The housemates spent the day rehearsing. | |
| Day 8 | Date | 30 December 2004 |
| Events | The housemates left The Lodge to go home for the New Year New Year The New Year is the day that marks the time of the beginning of a new calendar year, and is the day on which the year count of the specific calendar used is incremented. For many cultures, the event is celebrated in some manner.... . |
|
| Day 9 | Date | 3 January 2005 |
| Events | The housemates returned to The Lodge. Later the housemates ran through Cinderella in full costume and had a singing lesson. | |
| Day 10 | Date | 4 January 2005 |
| Events | During a full day of rehearsals, Kitten walked out of rehearsals and threatened to leave. However, she later returned. | |
| Day 11 | Date | 5 January 2005 |
| Events | The housemates spent the day rehearsing. At 9pm, they performed Cinderella live on E4 and later left the house. |
External links
- Big Brother Panto at Channel4.com