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Big Brother UK (franchise) is the United Kingdom version of the popular international reality show Big Brother. It was broadcast on Channel 4 for its first 11 seasons before moving to Channel 5 starting with Big Brother 12 (UK). The show was once again axed in 2018 before ITV bought the rights to the show in 2022, with Big Brother 20 (UK) being the first British series of Big Brother to air in almost 5 years of the show being axed by Channel 5. The series has received much critical acclaim over its run, with several housemates becoming notable media figures following their time on the show. The popularity of the main series has resulted in four spin-off series (Teen Big Brother, Big Brother Panto, Big Brother: Celebrity Hijack, and Ultimate Big Brother), as well as a celebrity edition of the show which has become a staple in its own right.

How it Works

BBUK Days Chart Civilian

The amount of days per season (Civilian).

BBUK Days Chart Celebrity

The amount of days per season (Celebrity).

BBUK Days Chart Spin-Off

The amount of days per season (Spin-Offs).

Big Brother is a reality television show in which a group of people live together in a large house, isolated from the outside world but continuously watched by television cameras. Each series lasts for around three months, and there are usually fewer than 15 participants. The housemates try to win a cash prize by avoiding periodic evictions from the house.

Civilian Series

The UK version of the show largely follows the same format as the original Dutch version of Big Brother where each week the housemates will nominate two of their fellow housemates for eviction and the public will then vote to evict the two (or more) housemates who received the most nominations. Previously, Irish housemates have been allowed to apply for Big Brother, and have entered the Big Brother house, however the terms and conditions of ITV's reboot series application form stated only permanent residents of the United Kingdom were able to apply.

What differentiates Big Brother UK from other versions of the show is not only its massive popularity but also its heavy reliance on twists. It is not uncommon for multiple twists to change the standard layout of the game each season, with past twists including the house being divided into Rich and Poor sides, housemates becoming "Power Housemates" and gaining special powers for the week, and housemates being fake evicted and moved into a secret house next door to the main house. It is not uncommon for housemates to move into the house after the series has already begun, and some of the tension on the show can come from the clash between people who have already been living in the house for a while and new people moving into the house.

Celebrity Version

The celebrity edition of the show contains a number of differences from the regular version of the show, although the core idea remains the same. With some exceptions, all housemates are celebrities in the outside world, and as such are often paid more for their appearance on the show than regular housemates are. Further, the celebrity version of the show often lasts for a much shorter time than the regular version does. Housemates are often only in the house for a maximum of about a month, as opposed to the 2-3 months regular housemates spend in the house. As a result of this, evictions on Celebrity Big Brother are held every few days rather than once a week, and double evictions are much more common.

Originally, the winner would have the money they would have received from winning instead donated to a charity of their choice. This practice has since been discontinued, and the winner often receives no special prize at all outside of the money they were paid to appear on the show.

Civilian Series

History

Celebrity Version

History

The first series of Celebrity Big Brother was intended to be a one-off special series for charity, and was held in association with Comic Relief. Only six housemates participated in the series, and they were only in the house for eight days. The series finale was aired on Red Nose Day 2001, and winner Jack Dee's winnings were donated to Comic Relief. The second series of the show continued the charity element of the original series, this time by having all proceeds gained from public voting split among four charities. This would be the last series to feature a charity component and all series since would be treated as a standard Big Brother series.

Celebrity Big Brother 4 became notable due to the fact that its winner, Chantelle Houghton, was not a celebrity at all but instead tasked by Big Brother to convince her fellow housemates that she was a celebrity.

The show was the subject of a large amount of controversy during its airtime, mainly during Celebrity Big Brother 5 (UK) and Celebrity Big Brother 22 (UK). In 2007, Shilpa Shetty was the victim of racist bullying from Danielle Lloyd, Jo O'Meara, and most notably Jade Goody. This caused the series to be scrapped the following year, and was replaced by the spin-off Big Brother: Celebrity Hijack. During Celebrity Big Brother 22, Roxanne Pallett accused Ryan Thomas of assaulting her.

When the regular version of Big Brother UK moved from Channel 4 to Channel 5, Celebrity Big Brother moved along with it, and Celebrity Big Brother 8 became the first overall series of Big Brother to air on Channel 5. Although ITV revived the civilian series, the revival of the celebrity edition has yet to be announced.

List of Series

Series Channel Series Run Days Housemates Winner Runner-Up(s) Prize
Big Brother UK 2000
Big Brother 1
Channel 4 July 18, 2000 -
September 15, 2000
64 11
Craig Phillips
Anna Nolan
£70,000
CBB 1 Eye
Celebrity Big Brother 1
Channel 4
BBC One
March 9, 2001 -
March 16, 2001
8 6
Jack Dee
Claire Sweeney
BBUK2 Eye
Big Brother 2
Channel 4 May 25, 2001 -
July 27, 2001
64 11
Brian Dowling
Helen Adams
£70,000
BBUK3 Eye
Big Brother 3
May 24, 2002 -
July 26, 2002
14
Kate Lawler
Jonny Regan
CBBUK2
Celebrity Big Brother 2
November 20, 2002 -
November 29, 2002
10 6
Mark Owen
Les Dennis
BBUK4 Eye
Big Brother 4
May 23, 2003 -
July 25, 2003
64 13
Cameron Stout
Ray Shah
£70,000
Teen BB
Teen Big Brother
Channel 4
E4
October 13, 2003 -
October 18, 2003
10 8
Paul Brennan
Caroline Cloke
Trip
BBUK5 Eye
Big Brother 5
Channel 4 May 28, 2004 -
August 6, 2004
71 13
Nádia Almada
Jason Cowan
£63,500
BB Panto
Big Brother Panto
Channel 4
E4
December 20, 2004 -
January 5, 2005
11 10 No Winner or Prize
CBBUK3
Celebrity Big Brother 3
Channel 4 January 6, 2005 -
January 23, 2005
18 9
Bez Berry
Kenzie MacKenzie
BBUK6 Eye
Big Brother 6
May 27, 2005 -
August 12, 2005
78 16
Anthony Hutton
Eugene Sully
£50,000
CBBUK4
Celebrity Big Brother 4
January 5, 2006 -
January 27, 2006
23 11
Chantelle Houghton
Michael Barrymore
BBUK7 Eye
Big Brother 7
May 18, 2006 -
August 18, 2006
93 22
Pete Bennett
Glyn Wise
£100,000
CBBUK5
Celebrity Big Brother 5
January 3, 2007 -
January 29, 2007
26 14
Shilpa Shetty
Jermaine Jackson
BBUK8 Eye
Big Brother 8
May 30, 2007 -
August 31, 2007
94 22
Brian Belo
Amanda & Sam Marchant
£100,000
BBCelebHijack Eye
Big Brother: Celebrity Hijack
E4 January 3, 2008 -
January 28, 2008
26 12
John Loughton
Emilia Arata
£50,000
BBUK9 Eye
Big Brother 9
Channel 4 June 5, 2008 -
September 5, 2008
93 21
Rachel Rice
Michael Hughes
£100,000
CBBUK6
Celebrity Big Brother 6
January 2, 2009 -
January 23, 2009
22 11
Ulrika Jonsson
Terry Christian
BBUK10 Eye
Big Brother 10
June 4, 2009 -
September 4, 2009
93 22
Sophie Reade
Siavash Sabbaghpour
£71,320
CBBUK7
Celebrity Big Brother 7
January 3, 2010 -
January 29, 2010
27 12
Alex Reid
Dane Bowers
BBUK11 Eye
Big Brother 11
June 9, 2010 -
August 24, 2010
77 21
Josie Gibson
Dave Vaughan
£100,000
BBUK11 Eye
Ultimate Big Brother
August 24, 2010 -
September 10, 2010
18 14
Brian Dowling
Nikki Grahame
Ultimate
Housemate
BBChannel5 Eye
Celebrity Big Brother 8
Channel 5 August 18, 2011 -
September 8, 2011
22 10
Paddy Doherty
Kerry Katona
Big Brother UK 2011 Eye
Big Brother 12
September 9, 2011 -
November 11, 2011
64 15
Aaron Allard-Morgan
Jay McKray
£50,990
BBChannel5 Eye
Celebrity Big Brother 9
January 5, 2012 -
January 27, 2012
23 12
Denise Welch
Frankie Cocozza
BBUK13 Eye
Big Brother 13
June 5, 2012 -
August 13, 2012
70 17
Luke Anderson
Adam Kelly
£50,000
CBBUK10
Celebrity Big Brother 10
August 15, 2012 -
September 7, 2012
24 13
Julian Clary
Coleen Nolan
CBBUK11
Celebrity Big Brother 11
January 3, 2013 -
January 25, 2013
23 11
Rylan Clark
Heidi Montag & Spencer Pratt
BBUK14 Eye
Big Brother 14
June 13, 2013 -
August 19, 2013
68 14
Sam Evans
Dexter Koh
£100,000
CBBUK12
Celebrity Big Brother 12
August 22, 2013 -
September 13, 2013
23 13
Charlotte Crosby
Abz Love Breen
CBBUK13
Celebrity Big Brother 13
January 3, 2014 -
January 29, 2014
27 12
Jim Davidson
Dappy Contostavlos
BBUK15 Eye
Big Brother 15
June 5, 2014 -
August 15, 2014
72 19
Helen Wood
Ashleigh Coyle
£100,000
CBBUK14
Celebrity Big Brother 14
August 18, 2014 -
September 12, 2014
26 14
Gary Busey
Audley Harrison
CBBUK15
Celebrity Big Brother 15
January 7, 2015 -
February 6, 2015
31 15
Katie Price
Katie Hopkins
BBUK16 Eye
Big Brother 16
May 12, 2015 -
July 16, 2015
66 18
Chloe Wilburn
Joel Williams
£116,100
CBBUK16
Celebrity Big Brother 16
August 27, 2015 -
September 24, 2015
29 14
James Hill
Austin Armacost
CBBUK17
Celebrity Big Brother 17
January 5, 2016 -
February 5, 2016
32 16
Scott Timlin
Stephanie Davis
BBUK17 Eye
Big Brother 17
June 7, 2016 -
July 26, 2016
50 19
Jason Burrill
Hughie Maughan
£70,000
CBBUK18
Celebrity Big Brother 18
July 28, 2016 -
August 26, 2016
30 15
Stephen Bear
Ricky Norwood
CBBUK19
Celebrity Big Brother 19
January 3, 2017 -
February 3, 2017
32 18
Coleen Nolan
Jedward Grimes
BBUK 18 Eye
Big Brother 18
June 5, 2017 -
July 28, 2017
54 22
Isabelle Warburton
Raph Korine
£100,000
CBBUK20
Celebrity Big Brother 20
August 1, 2017 -
August 25, 2017
25 15
Sarah Harding
Amelia Lily
£50,000
for charity
CBB21 NB
Celebrity Big Brother 21
January 2, 2018 -
February 2, 2018
32 16
Shane Jenek
Ann Widdecombe
CBB22UK Logo
Celebrity Big Brother 22
August 16, 2018 -
September 10, 2018
26 13
Ryan Thomas
Kirstie Alley
BBUK 19 Eye NB
Big Brother 19
September 14, 2018 -
November 5, 2018
53 16
Cameron Cole
Akeem Griffiths
£100,000
BBUK 20 Eye NB
Big Brother 20
ITV2 October 8, 2023 -
November 17, 2023
42
Jordan Sangha
Olivia Young
CBBUK23 Logo
Celebrity Big Brother 23
ITV1 March 4, 2024 -
March 22, 2024
19 12
Big Brother 21 ITV2 2024
Celebrity Big Brother 24 ITV1 2025

Ratings

Big Brother UK Average Viewers Per Season
Season Launch Date Final Date Avg Viewers
(in millions)
Episodes Network(s)
Big Brother 1 July 18, 2000 September 15 , 2000 4.5 52 Channel 4
Celebrity Big Brother 1 March 9, 2001 March 16, 2001 5.2 8 BBC One Channel 4
Big Brother 2 May 25, 2001 July 27, 2001 4.5 55 Channel 4
Celebrity Big Brother 2 November 20, 2002 November 29, 2002 4.4 12
Big Brother 3 May 24, 2002 July 26, 2002 5.8 72
Big Brother 4 May 23, 2003 July 25, 2003 4.6 73
Teen Big Brother October 13, 2003 October 17, 2003 2.6 5
Big Brother 5 May 28, 2004 August 6, 2004 5.1 82
Big Brother Panto December 20, 2004 January 5, 2005 N/A 12 Channel 4 E4
Celebrity Big Brother 3 January 6, 2005 January 23, 2005 4.3 18 Channel 4
Big Brother 6 May 27, 2005 August 12, 2005 4.6 90
Celebrity Big Brother 4 January 5, 2006 January 27, 2006 4.9 28
Big Brother 7 May 18, 2006 August 18, 2006 4.7 107
Celebrity Big Brother 5 January 3, 2007 January 28, 2007 4.6 30
Big Brother 8 May 30, 2007 August 31, 2007 3.9 96
Big Brother: Celebrity Hijack January 3, 2008 January 23, 2008 0.7 28
Big Brother 9 June 5, 2008 September 5, 2008 3.6 108
Celebrity Big Brother 6 January 2, 2009 January 29, 2009 3.1 28
Big Brother 10 June 4, 2009 September 4, 2009 2.5 108
Celebrity Big Brother 7 January 3, 2010 January 29, 2010 3.7 32
Big Brother 11 June 9, 2010 August 24, 2010 3.0 86
Ultimate Big Brother August 24, 2010 September 10, 2010 3.1 22
Celebrity Big Brother 8 August 18, 2011 September 8, 2011 2.6 23 Channel 5
Big Brother 12 September 9, 2011 November 11, 2011 1.6 71
Celebrity Big Brother 9 January 5, 2012 January 27, 2012 2.6 25
Big Brother 13 June 5, 2012 August 13, 2012 1.6 73
Celebrity Big Brother 10 August 15, 2012 September 7, 2012 2.2 26
Celebrity Big Brother 11 January 3, 2013 January 25, 2013 2.8 23
Big Brother 14 June 13, 2013 August 13, 2013 1.9 69
Celebrity Big Brother 12 August 22, 2013 September 13, 2013 2.3 26
Celebrity Big Brother 13 January 3, 2014 January 29, 2014 3.1 27
Big Brother 15 June 5, 2014 August 15, 2014 1.6 72
Celebrity Big Brother 14 August 18, 2014 September 12, 2014 2.1 26
Celebrity Big Brother 15 January 7, 2015 February 6, 2015 3.1 32
Big Brother 16 May 12, 2015 July 16, 2015 1.4 66
Celebrity Big Brother 16 August 27, 2015 September 24, 2015 1.9 29
Celebrity Big Brother 17 January 5, 2016 February 5, 2016 2.8 36
Big Brother 17 June 7, 2016 July 26, 2016 1.6 50
Celebrity Big Brother 18 July 28, 2016 August 26, 2016 2.1 33
Celebrity Big Brother 19 January 3, 2017 February 3, 2017 2.4 36
Big Brother 18 June 5, 2017 July 28, 2017 1.2 54
Celebrity Big Brother 20 August 1, 2017 August 25, 2017 1.8 25
Celebrity Big Brother 21 January 2, 2018 February 2, 2018 1.9 37
Celebrity Big Brother 22 August 16, 2018 September 10, 2018 2.0 28
Big Brother 19 September 14, 2018 November 5, 2018 1.0 45
Big Brother 20 October 8, 2023 November 17, 2023 1.7 36 ITV2
Key: Increase in Viewership Decrease in Viewership

Trivia

References

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