Over Six Million Tune In For First Big Brother “Bonk”
A peak of more than six million viewers tuned in to Channel 4 last night to watch Big Brother contestants Michelle and Stuart disappear under a table, appearing to have sex in what could be a landmark event for the five-year-old reality show.
Last night’s hour-long screening of Big Brother culminated in the two house-bound lovebirds disappearing into a makeshift den in the house’s lounge, watched by an average audience of 5.8 million, with an average share of 40.2%.
Although the event was shrouded in secrecy, with the contestants discussing events in code and hidden behind a tablecloth, the screening was enough to convince bookmakers that the event had happened, paying out winnings to lucky punters nation-wide.
The ratings boost will be music to the ears of Big Brother producers, although the event is sure to spark outrage amongst taste and decency watchdogs. Earlier this month Channel 4’s programming was branded ‘sleazy’ by Mediawatch-UK, previously the National Viewers’ and Listeners’ Association, who called for the broadcaster’s licence to be revoked over the broadcast of sexual scenes in numerous programmes (see Watchdog Calls For Viewers To Desert ‘Sleazy’ Channel 4).
High ratings are, however, not uncommon for this series of Big Brother, with a range of headline-grabbing antics, this year’s housemates have been amongst the most popular in the show’s history. Last month saw 5.2 million viewers tune in to watch political activist Kitten be thrown off the show, while a peak of seven million watched the now infamous ‘Big Brother Fight‘ (see Almost 7 Million Watch ‘Bedsit Babes’ Return To Big Brother).
‘Fight Night’ in particular proved so controversial that it has attracted the attention of both Ofcom and the police, with investigations into the airing of the housemates’ riotous antics currently under way by both organisations (see Ofcom Investigating Big Brother As Over 100 Complain).
Channel Four: 020 7396 4444 www.channel4.com
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