Big Brother 7 - Week One

The housemates have been banged up in the lunatic asylum that is the Big Brother house and one will be leaving this weekend. Here are the “first impressions” of the housemates during their short stint as reality TV stars thus far.

Pete Bennett
Win Odds: 11/10
Since falling down the stairs to enter the house and being asked if he was “on something” by Bonnie, Pete has emerged as the favourite to win and at present looks unstoppable. The Tourette’s sufferer is genuine, funny and at the moment is liked by all the housemates despite him not joining one of the two “camps”. It’s early days yet but Pete will be odds on to win within the next few days.

George Askew
Win Odds: 16/1
George has not come to the forefront as yet in that he has not paired off with one of the female housemates nor has he done anything to rile anyone else. He has bonded with Mikey and appears to be part of the “in crowd” for the time being at least and should be safe for a few weeks yet.

Mikey Dalton
Win Odds: 16/1
Mikey has emerged from the shadows this week and has taken over the mantle as the leader of the “Big Brotherhood” following Shabaz’s exit. He has also paired up with Grace and has formed an alliance with George. Originally thought to be quite a boring housemate, Mikey looks to have done enough to stick around until the latter stages.

Richard Newman
Win Odds: 16/1
With Shabaz gone, Richard looks set to revel as the “only gay in the village”. He sees himself as a father figure to the group and looks set to battle Sezar for the role of alpha male. He has found friends in Lea and Nikki but may find his position in the house precarious after some of the weaker members of the group are picked off.

Nikki Graham
Win Odds: 20/1
Given that Nikki’s pre-entrance video suggested she wanted to find love in the house, she hasn’t made any effort to pair up with any of the available men in the house, preferring to find comfort in gay Richard. Nikki may adopt the role of “baby” in the group due to her childlike behaviour despite being older than six other housemates and showed during the infamous “bottled water” scene she could explode into fits of tantrums should she not get her own way. Despite being part of the London nightclub circuit scene, she has not formed alliances with Sezar, Imogen, Grace or George and is in danger of finding herself an early casualty if her behaviour irritates the others.

Lisa Huo
Win Odds: 20/1
Lisa is the other leader of the “Big Brotherhood” but could also find herself in a precarious position when she is eligible to be voted out of the house. She has found a friend in Pete but her laddish behaviour, coarse language and chainsmoking could grate on the other housemates when they are looking for reasons to nominate people for eviction.

Imogen Thomas
Win Odds: 20/1
Before entering the house Imogen said she would “make all the boys fancy her” and she has certainly done that.  She shared a kiss with Sezar after three days and appears to revel in stringing him along. Should he grow bored of her and if she wanted to score points off Grace, Imogen could also move on to Mikey who described her as “beautiful”. Bar a short interaction in Welsh, she has failed to bond with fellow countryman Glyn, preferring the company of the London social set.

Bond Fans Not Happy With Craig

In the upcoming James Bond film, “Casino Royale,” British actor Daniel Craig will play the lead role of James Bond.  This, however, does not sit well with a group of James Bond fans, who have launched a Web site, http://www.craignotbond.com.

A statement on the site said that “EON Productions angered fans around the world when they fired Pierce Brosnan at the height of his popularity as Bond.  To add insult to injury, EON cast a short, blond, odd-looking Daniel Craig in the role of Bond.”

The site goes on to ask, “How can a short, blond actor with the rough face of a professional boxer and a penchant for playing killers, cranks, cads, and gigolos pull off the role of a tall, dark, handsome and suave secret agent?”

The angry group of Bond fans have threatened to boycott “Casino Royale” and any other Bond films that Craig will star in.

Though Craig may have a wounded pride from all of these happenings, he does have a big supporter in his predecessor, Pierce Brosnan.

“I think Daniel is a very fine actor.  These are rocky waters, and they’re going to get him one way or another, but I think he will have the last laugh at the end of it,” Brosnan said.

Craig has had roles in “Munich” and “The Jacket.”  He accepted the role of Bond last October, and filming for the movie began last month in Prague.  Last week the producers of the film cast French actress Eva Green as Bond girl Vesper Lynd and Danish actor Mads Mikkelsen as the villain le Chiffre.

Big Brother 7 - Week One (Part Two)

This is the second part of the first impressions of the remaining seven housemates as the first week of Big Brother 7 draws to a close.

Glyn Wise
Win Odds: 33/1 (Bet365)
Fervent Welshman Glyn is also up for the first eviction and still Dons the red shorts he wore on opening night as he has not been given his suitcase. Like Bonnie, Glyn is very quiet and early indications suggest he is another example of terrible miscasting. However, being a man, he will survive the first eviction at the expense of a female opponent, i.e. Bonnie, and will treat the nation to his emaciated body for another week at least.

Grace Short
Win Odds: 22/1 (Bet365)
Grace, who admitted “the fame would be nice” before entering the house would not be undone by the Imogen / Sezer pairing and, spying a glossy magazine deal of her own, soon latched on to Mikey and shared a kiss on day six. Other than that, she has done little in the house thus far, but is unlikely to be voted out any time soon.

Sezer Yurtseven
Win Odds: 22/1 (Bet365)
Sezer would like to think he is more popular than he actually is, but he may get a shock should he be put up for eviction. He is looking at house survival from a “safety in numbers” perspective and has formed an alliance with love interest Imogen, George and the pairing of Mikey and Grace, using their London social lives as a basis for common ground. He is battling for the role of alpha male in the house but could find himself come unstuck, as Maxwell did in last year’s show.

Lea Walker
Win Odds: 40/1 (Ladbrokes)
Lea has adopted the role of “mother” in the house but is another housemate who could find themselves up for eviction sooner rather than later. She hasn’t done anything to upset the other housemates and has fought their corner when Shabaz was acting appallingly during his short stay. However, she has not formed any real alliances and may find herself picked off within the next few weeks.

Bonnie Holt
Win Odds: 66/1 (Bet365)
Bonnie (or “Bonneh” as she pronounces it) has done very little to justify her “chatterbox” personality since entering the house and is red hot favourite for the first eviction. Bonnie has melted in to the background and has been hardly noticeable on the highlights shows bar a few harsh words for Shabaz and moaning to Big Brother about not receiving her suitcase. This Rosie Webster look-a-like is like a fish out of water away from her native Loughborough and is one of several horribly miscast house mate members this series. Gone on Friday and won’t be missed.

Dawn Blake
Dawn was ejected from the Big Brother house after eight days but threatened to leave on her own accord shortly after Shabaz walked on day six. She was officially expelled from the house due to receiving “coded communication” from the outside world but was not a particularly popular housemate in any case. She was accused by Nikki, although not to her face, of stinking out everyone elses clothes with her body odour due to not showering for four days.

Shabaz Chauhdry
Shabaz was another example of dreadful miscasting. The producers were hoping for an older, more extreme version of last year’s Kemal, but what they got instead was a mentally deranged idiot who couldn’t cope with living and interacting with other people. He lasted six days before leaving of his own accord and won’t be missed in the slightest.

Big Brother 7 - Sezer Eviction

Sezer Yurtseven was the second housemate to be evicted from the Big Brother house and won two dubious honours in the process. Firstly, he was evicted by the largest public vote margin of all time – a massive 91.6%, making him the show’s most detested housemate in Big Brother’s seven series run.

He also became the earliest male housemate to be evicted from the house, having been shown the door by the end of week two.

Sezer was a shoe-in to leave as far as the bookmakers were concerned as soon as it was revealed he was one of three housemates up for eviction. He was available at 3/10 which plummeted to 1/33 by Friday evening.

However, first thing Monday morning, Sezer was available at comparatively gigantic odds of 12/1 to be the second person evicted as whinging Nikki was the firm favourite to leave next at even money.

The situation changed dramatically by the time it came to nominations as not only was Nikki receiving favourable edits from the production team, showing the likes of Grace talking about her behind her back, but in a dramatic twist both Sezer and Imogen were banned from nominations after being caught discussing them.

Both Sezer and Grace were not portrayed well in the highlights show, with Grace bitching at every opportunity and Sezer bragging about how he could survive the chop against almost anyone in the house, especially the surgically enhanced Lea.

Just before the nominations were announced to the public, Grace was odds-on favourite to leave at 1/2 and both Nikki and Sezer at 7/2.

Despite behaving like a proper little madam since she arrived in the house, Nikki didn’t receive a single nomination while Grace received two which wasn’t enough to put her up for the public vote.

Richard received the most at four nominations, with both Lea and Sezer receiving three apiece. The trio would be put up for the public vote and Sezer got his wish of going head-to-head with Lea.

The bookmakers didn’t believe in Sezer’s invincibility as much as the Turkish Cypriot stockbroker did and immediately priced him up as 3/10 favourite. Sezer’s cause was not helped by one leading tabloid newspaper which only published his eviction number and urged readers to vote him out.

The press and Big Brother themselves love a pantomime villain and Sezer duly delivered and not even Victor from Big Brother 5 was detested as much for “ruining” Shell’s mock wedding if you judge by the overall voting percentage.

Big Brother 7 - Sam is Evicted

Sam became the third housemate to be evicted from the Big Brother house after receiving 53% of the public vote against perennial whinger Nikki Grahame.

Newcome Sam, who entered the house after a fortnight alongside Aisleyne Horgan-Wallace was available at 5/2 before nominations were announced as Grace Adams-Short was the early favourite to face the boot.

Public opinion on the 20-year-old dance teacher has changed dramatically in the last week or so after viewers have seen her two-facedness on the highlights programes.

On Monday 5 June, the day nominations took place, Grace was favourite to leave at even money due to the public likely to vote her out no matter who she was up against. Plus, her close ally Imogen Thomas was banned from nominating for the second week running. Lisa, who may also have supported her, was also banned after being caught discussing possible nominations.

The odds were as follows before the nominations were announced:

Grace - Evens
Sam - 5/2
Lisa  - 10/1
Lea - 10/1
Aisleyne - 12/1
Richard - 16/1

At this point the 5/2 available on a Sam eviction looked exceptional value for money as he / she should have been odds on. Many of the housemates had confided in each other or in the diary room that they had grown tired of the gender bending unemployed nail technician (seriously) for a variety of reasons.

Grace and Lea both complained that Sam stands nearby when they are about to use the bathroom and Nikki expressed her disgust at it’s practice of taking the concept of “girls” going to the toilet together to an extreme level.

Glyn said he didn’t like the way Sam followed him around, that he’s too clingy and is desperate to get on with people. Sam always needed reassurance that she was close friends with the other housemates when they were not that interested.

The fluctuating odds on the betting exchanges while the housemates were going through the nomination process suggested Sam and Lea would be up for eviction as Grace’s price drifted further out.

The confirmed possible evictees were Sam who immediately plummeted to 1/4 while Nikki was available at 5/1.

There was no way that Nikki was going to leave and was shown in a positive light during the run up to Friday, being given the role as PA to Big Brother during a task while some unsavoury late-night footage of Sam was broadcast for viewers morbid curiosity.

Sam was favourite to leave from then on and was evicted with 53% of the vote, suggesting it was more closely contested than the bookmakers and weight of money against him / her suggested.

Big Brother 7 - Bonnie is Evicted

Bonnie Holt became the first housemate to leave the Big Brother house by public vote at a best price of 1/33 on eviction day.

Bonnie was actually the third housemate in a week to leave the Big Brother house following Shabaz’s decision to walk and Dawn’s ejection for receiving messages from the outside world. She had the dubious honour of being the first housemate to go in and was also the first to leave via the traditional public voting method of eviction.

Bonnie was a disappointing housemate and didn't offer much in the way of entertainment. She was originally chosen for "chatterbox personality" but that was not at all evident as she hardly spoke during her seven days incarceration. She wasn't a bad housemate - just a boring one.

Her original audition tape promised much in the way of wild times, with her claiming she was "sexy" and prepared to "blaze it up", but the reality was nothing like it. The only airtime she received on the show was when she was whinging in the Diary Room about her suitcase and her accent made her speech barely comprehensible ("me names Bonn-eh"). She failed to bond with the majority of the housemates, with the exception of Lea Walker and won't really be missed by the rest of the Big Brother housemates.

Shrewd punters will have spotted that Bonnie wasn’t really “fitting in” to life in the house and was even after 24 hours a few of her housemates were complaining they couldn’t understand a word she said and she was becoming withdrawn from the rest of the group while they all got to know eachother. At this stage Bonnie was around 6/1 to be the first housemate to face eviction.

She briefly drifted to almost 9/1 on the betting exchanges but by Saturday (two days into the show) had dropped to 5/2. By this time she was seen as a loner who had distanced herself from the group bar the odd exchange with Lea.

First impressions count for a lot on Big Brother and while she wasn’t generating any hatred from the other housemates, she became a bit of a non-entity and wasn’t giving the rest of the group any reason to keep her in.

By the time Wednesday came she was odds-on favourite to leave at 1/3, with the remaining housemates not deemed worthy of the “Big Brotherhood” Glyn and Dawn both available at 5/1.

Of course, Dawn was ejected before the final eviction day and Friday saw Bonnie become the overall favourite for eviction while Welsh sixth form head boy could have been backed art 12/1.

Being a girl against a boy never helps when it comes to survival in the house and Bonnie was evicted after receiving over 80% of the public vote.

During her post eviction interview, Bonnie tipped Nikki to win although hopes Lea will come out victorious at the end.

Big Brother 6 - Saskia Howard-Clarke

Saskia Howard-Clarke is a "promotions girl" from London. She was the fifth evictee from the Big Brother house on July 1 2005 when she participated in the sixth series of the popular television programme.

In the first couple of weeks, Saskia proved to be popular with housemates and viewers alike. This was evident in week two when all of the housemates were put up for eviction via a public vote due to rule breaking because when Saskia's name was announced, the live studio audience cheered her.

However, events took a turn for the worse things took a wrong turn when a divide in the house occurred and two members of her group, Anthony and Maxwell were banned from nominations - leaving Saskia in the vulnerable position of being nominated by the other group who sided with Makosi Musambasi after a heated confrontation between the pair.

Some of the comments Saskia made in her argument with Makosi sparked a debate about racism being a factor in the house and both Maxwell and Saskia were put up for the public vote. Saskia was evicted by a majority 71% of the vote and greeted the crowd to a mixed reception on Day 36. She received the highest percentage of any eviction vote during the whole series.

In her post-eviction interview, she later denied the matter by stating she was a quarter-Sri Lankan, a statement that did not justify or alter the opinions of many viewers.

This was Saskia’s nomination history during her stay in the Big Brother house:

1st (Day 5) - Saskia was nominated by Derek and Mary.

2nd (Day 11) - Saskia was nominated by Craig, Derek, Lesley and Vanessa.

3rd (Day 18) - Saskia was nominated by Science only.

4th (Day 25) - Saskia received no nominations.

5th (Day 32) – Saskia was nominated by Derek, Kemal, Makosi and Vanessa and was evicted via the public vote.

During her time in the Big Brother house Saskia coined phrases such as "end of" and "it's dog eat dog" although she didn't last too long and was evicted fifth when she and the oafish Maxwell were both nominated.

Even before her stint on Big Brother, Saskia enjoyed dating "famous" people and past boyfriends have included an Olympic swimmer, a Premiership footballer and she also dropped down a few divisions to hook up with Nottingham Forest striker Adam Nowland.

Saskia claims to go to the gym five times a week, she gets her nails done every month and is obsessed by fake tans.

Since leaving the house Saskia has been busy touring grotty nightclubs in a double act with Maxwell while also posing for glamour shots in lads mags to ensure she remains in the public eye.

Big Brother 7 - Meet The Contestants - Part Two

The seventh series of reality TV show Big Brother opened to a record television audience of 8.1 million on 18 May and placed 14 contestants in the goldfish bowl environment for 13 weeks, the longest stint ever.

Here are the remaining three women people brave enough, or stupid enough, to go under televised scrutiny and have their past dredged up in the gutter press for the next three and a half months.

Dawn BLAKE
Age: 38. From: Birmingham. Occupation: Exercise Scientist.
Dawn is single and loves her own company, claiming “I was born alone and will die alone”. She doesn’t drink alcohol and has never been drunk, doesn’t eat meat and describes herself as a "pensioner in a young person’s body". When asked why she wanted to participate on Big Brother she answered: “So many people are addicted to reality TV that it has been such a source of interest. It’s the only thing people talk about across the age range. It’s a massive challenge and I want to raise my profile in my field”. If she was reincarnated, she would like to come back as Jesus or Hitler because “the very good and the very bad fascinate me”.

Grace SHORT
Age: 20. From: London. Occupation: Dance Teacher.
Grace is single and lives in a £340,000 flat in Notting Hill bought by her mother. She “supports herself” by teaching dance classes. She loves designer clothes, reading glossy magazines and drinking champagne at some of London’s most exclusive clubs. Grace gives herself an 8/10 for attractiveness ("with make-up on") and would be insulted if anyone compared her to a bimbo or glamour girl. When asked why she wanted to be on Big Brother she replied: “For the laugh and the fame would be nice”. As a child she was sent to army camp for discipline, but ended up loving it so much she went back each year.

Imogen THOMAS
Age: 23. From: Llanelli. Occupation: Bar Hostess.
Imogen is single and lives and works in London. She combines brains and beauty by holding a degree in Health Studies and was crowned Miss Wales in 2003. When asked the question “why Big Brother?”, she replied: “I want the opportunity to show the nation what I’m like. I want to be free from the outside world and that would be great as I would have no worries”. She claims to have once spent over £1,000 on underwear in one shopping spree and describes her most outrageous experience as dressing up as a playboy bunny at her own party, but getting so drunk she passed out and missed all the fun.