Are you finding it difficult to connect with current season of Big Brother? Don’t look at the production team, it’s the housemates who are to blame according to Executive Producer Alex Mavroidakis.
In a perplexing interview with blog TV Tonight Mavroidakis (left in the image above) says the housemates are doing so many things in the house they’re producing “too many storylines”, causing production staff to struggle to create a cohesive program.
“We have a very outspoken cast this year. From Day One they have gone kaboom. They’re delivering us 3 or 4 storylines a day, which is actually too many, believe it or not,” he tells TV Tonight.
“We’re struggling to tell a cohesive story because there’s too much bloody going on.
This begs the question that if there are so many interesting things happening in the house, why has Channel Nine cancelled Sunday night shows and why are they about to roll out another marathon of stunts? This week not only sees another intruder, but a fake eviction, cameo by 2013 housemate Ben plus an appearance by commentator Derryn Hinch – all within the space of five days.
Interestingly, Mavroidakis has also backtracked on previous comments he made about Big Brother’s core audience figures. In interviews last year 600,000 was quoted as the core audience and “anything above that is a bonus”. In the TV Tonight interview however that figure has dropped to 500,000.
Naturally the storyline excuse went down like a lead balloon on both TV Tonight and our own discussion forums:
The first thing that jumped out at me reading the [interview] was sheer desperation, and I don’t know what kool aid Alex Mavroidakis is drinking from, but I think they may need to adjust the recipie/strength from totally delusional down to optimistic/heroic spin. (TV Tonight)
If there is too much, then provide online content. Problem solved. So much just comes up on the show out of no where. Last nights episode had a flashback to some painting room and task which was never in the show. There may be too much, but then don’t waste time on pointless stupid stuff. Focus on the drama. Not manufacture stuff.
They added Leo and in that show were already showing the promos for upcoming shows of the girls fighting over him. The storyline they wanted. Which never happened. It’s meant to be reality. Trying to script it and shape storylines is what is killing it. The show used to do a good job in 20 minutes a night. Now in 40 minutes we have no clue. (TV Tonight)
Don’t even try to tell me that the HM’s are “delivering us 3 or 4 storylines a day, which is actually too many” when the production has 60 minutes worth of episode (excluding ads) to fill most nights. If Channel 10 successfully did it in 20 minute episodes for 8 years then Alex can definitely find a way to deliver “3 or 4 storylines a day” to us if he really wanted to. (Behind Big Brother user)
What do you think? Is “too many storylines” a good enough reason for the current state of Big Brother? Leave us a comment below.
It feels like they’re deliberately sabotaging it so they can blame low audience numbers to cancel it. I’ll be really surprised if it’s back next year.
Give it back to 10. Get some real people not actors and models.
Before the storylines were organic and you could read your own opinions into them based on the behaviour of the hm’s. But now with nothing but scripted pre-recorded shows the editing has cut that humanist angle out of the show, to the point where we are now being fed a storyline and producers are missing out on key elements for the sake of production time. I guessed Lawsons bad mood was because of his mistake in the sanctuary days before the show highlighted it. The editing had hm’s calling him grumpy and short tempered with no reference to the stress he was under in the voice over, it was made to look like they thought he was always like that. Also continuity has gone out the window with evictions. How do we get to Wednesday night shows where there is footage including the monday night evictee still being aired? The timeline is nowhere near accurate. I wouldn’t be surprised to see Gemma pop up on tonights show if they thought one of her soundbites suited the script.
Don’t think so?! If the housemates were doing “too many things”, then why keep replaying the Lawson and Cat saga?!
Absolutely. We have stopped watching. First time ever.
I am currently watching big brother 2003 and have noticed a huge massive difference – for one they were real people not models or actors none were fake or playing for cameras it’s changed dramatically. – we want to see normal people
Believe me I am a massive big brother fan so much I actually have the first 8 seasons on dvd… This is the first series I have completely stopped watching due to lack of interest
If there is so much to show and they can not keep up WHY are they showing all the CRAP bits then. Love Ben but its just another week way to get people to watch. Boaring housemates (Actors) = a boaring show but they just do not get it, this year is CRAP
Can’t believe they are trying to pin all the issues on the HM doing to much ?? Please do they think we are fools
Cannot believe that BB, you arent showing us much at all!
Also Gretal Killeen would connect with the housemates. Could Sonya Kreuger get any faker? I doubt she even watches the daily shows, when she greets them on eviction she’s just like a puppet asking questions they feed her with no idea what the answers mean. It was just plain weird the way she kept asking Lisa “what was the point David was making in the spa?” As though she was waiting for that little click in her brain that meant producers were satisfied with the response. What was Lisa supposed to say? Uh… ask David what his point was maybe? IMO they were fishing for a very specific answer to support the script.
The level of control producers exert would be acceptable if only it made for entertaining viewing. But it falls so short, they are absolutely putting the show to bed for good with this season. I’ll shut up now.
If there are too many storylines have more shows!! Simple!
This is a cop out and a blatant attempt to lay blame elsewhere for a boring, overly contrived and controlled and altogether very disappointing series. This year demonstrates a distinct lack of imagination and production skills by the BB production crew. It all started with the selection of the HM and has continued through each day to date. The BB production crew have got to learn to select people from all walks of life from all age groups with a huge range of life experiences and stop with this stupid stereotypical beautiful people type of demographic. No, I blame Mavroidakis and the BB team, they have to take responsibility for a very poor choice of house mates this year. I stopped watching last week and have lost total interest.
Get your crap together BB. We are not fools.
3-4 story lines .. bullshit . we see whole episodes based on shit. example that episode that didn’t stop going on about the softdrink cans katie and lisa hid. most ridicoulous episode. this season is a joke
Mmmm, “Recorded in Qld”, yet we get a pre-recorded version, as it’s worked on Daylight Savings (in NSW), May as well move the “House” to Sydney…
Trouble with the ratings slump is that it is assumed that people are moving on from Big Brother, when Big Brother as a brand that can fully work if it is handled properly!
I still don’t know them!
No live feeds is a fatal mistake. We probably will lose Big Brother in the future because of this.
I look forward all year to be involved – I’ve
been left out. ????
Then why aren’t you showing it …
Are you kidding me? How about actually giving us content instead of continually showing repeated stuff that was boring the first time around! How about live access, hourly online updates and here is an idea, stop moving the show time! How about giving BB fans what THEY actually want which result in much higher ratings and revenue and let us direct the show!
FAR too much editing! Stoylines are disjointed
We don’t even get to see evictees goodbye speeches except for minuue select snippets. What are they hiding???!
And WHY insinuate something happened btwn Lawson & Cat but not show us?!!!! ( or was pulling covers over their heads in bed it??? Is THAT what the big deal was all about????)
That’s a very good point Marie, Channel 9 have stuffed this up so much that it well and truly could have caused the death of the program.
I also agree. Your job is to keep up. So do it. If they are doing to many things then show it. I have seen more of the same stuff over and over.
The amount of repeats on the nights it is aired, throws the to much content theory out the window.
Very sad effort channel nine, 500000 viewer’s wont cut it.
Time to go………..channel nine
Didn’t realise that Home and Away moved to Channel 9!! SOOOO much drama!! Bring back BB2012/2013
I think he’s talking bull.
We all saw this story he was telling as pure spin to make up for the lack of storylines. Why did we see so little of Dion, or of Ryan so far, if there was so much to show? There has not been enough diversity in the editing.
I agree with most of the recent posts, it is hard to get to know the contestants, there is a lot of tittle tattling , very little content, I cant really see as yet who really stands out from the bunch and deserves to win.
Absolutely, spot on.
Put live updates back then!!
What a load of rubbish! You’ve got an hour to fill most days and all we get is showmance! For a show that is in its 11th series it should be easy to tell a coherent story. I mean you only have to look at say BBUK, which is always explosive and usually has a lot going on. Yet they manage to balance a lot of storylines. The problem is sheer laziness.
Doing too much but we don’t see shit? And just get replays of stuff. What a load. Channel 9, your big brother is shyte
I’m still trying to work out who Ryan is!
I still don’t know them!
No live feeds is a fatal mistake. We probably will lose Big Brother in the future because of this.
I look forward all year to be involved – I’ve
been left out. ????
Then why did they stop the twitter live feeds? I didn’t mind at all seeing mini clips of things that weren’t going to be part of the daily shows…. they were fun/intriguing to watch and be UPDATED 24/7 when something would happened.
The less we see of Ryan the better. He’s a bitchy, nasty little man, only opens his mouth to back stab and complain about other hms. Can’t wait for him to be evicted.
I’m in da USA & have been a BB live feeder for 16 seasons & the BBAU is So much more interesting & fun filled drama & no live feeds either! We have live feeds here mostly 24/7 & there was No drama No fun Not really anything good about season 16 For ours had a house guest that was a total Debbie Downer a COP in real life Derrick he won the show but made the show a big bummer summer of a boredom! I have enjoyed watching BBAU as I always have in the past w/no live feeds just a daily shows. You all should be happy that you at least have content worth watching at all. Try watching the longest season ever in BB history w/NO FUN, DRAMA, NOTHING! Just a Predictable Boring season #BB16USABORING! I Love BBAU :)
Try some live feeds…or Big Brother after dark…too easy. We want to see the real day to day life in the house anyway
I totally agree. I am from and have watched all seasons of USA big brother and I think BBAU is way more interesting! I also love the point system for nominations, I wish USA would do that, it would really change their game.
either way i still love watching big brother & will continue to watch, but only can do it online because I’m not from australia :) Love from NZ xxx
I loved the very first episodes they showed heaps of stuff now because of the turkey slap insident they show us nothing now but they get to see it all and then give us the boring shit what is this world coming to
If there is really soo much going on, why are they doing so many stunts etc. They shouldn’t need to do the stunts.
Nothing to do with the ridiculous, Ever – changing time slot?
we need the up late show to show all the nitty gritty we are missing on the overproduced daily (when they decide to show it) shows.
Too much footage of nothing imo. What’s with the ‘too many storylines’ comment far out guys get with the program. Hard core viewers want more daily access, live streams, twitter updates and an after dark show. This year will be the death of it.
Regardless of whether you like him or not, we don’t see enough of some of these people to get the full picture (not just one side). Why did the EP try and fail to milk this whole bathtub secrets non-event? Instead, that should have been a one night deal then immediately move on to other Housemates that are giving soooo many storylines? Where’s the diversity in the editing if there’s really so much to choose from? The EP is better suited to politics with spin like this :)
If they are doing so much, why do we get an hour a week of lame amateur magician shows? How did Lawson even get all those props in there in the first place?
We aren’t connecting because we aren’t seeing anything! They repeat the same thing every night! Not to mention, all they do is show the ‘characters’ react to stunts. How about we see some of the housemates actually talk to each other!
Unfortunately the producers chose a whole heap of boring generics!
Unfortunately the producers chose a whole heap of boring generics!
If BB comes back next year… FIRE ALEX MAVROIDAKIS! Since Nine started BB it’s reeked of manipulation and fake drama and this year without a single use of live feed even through bloody Twitter is pathetic. The show isn’t authentic anymore. It’s done.
No way!! After watching close to all seasons of BBAU I would much prefer to sit down and watch any season of BBUS! BB16 wasn’t boring until Zach left the house! BBAU focuses too much on the trivial things and theres no actual game play to watch due to restrictions on talking about nominations. If there was a structure change in BBAU then there may be some hope for future seasons. I’m not saying change it to USA format but it does work and has people wanting more. Maybe even less episodes with the addition of live feeds or a similar programme to “Big Brother After Dark” is necessary to help with viewers feeling apart of the show. Even if they changed what the public vote for, make the public vote for nominations and the HGS vote to evict instead nominations. Big Brother was a great show but its dwindling from what it was originally about. If the producers (Alex) looked at BBUSA for some inspiration then maybe the show could bump up in the ratings.
Don’t get it, why did they send in another intruder? Really, she wasn’t needed. Leo was enough. You are complicating the whole season. Definitely she wasn’t needed. What a waste. The problem with this season, is that it is nothing but about hooking up. OK one or 2 couples liking each other is ok. But this season it is just about who is going with who, or who likes who. It seems like a dating game instead of Big Brother.
I haven’t connected with this season at all. There’s way too much fluff and the editing has reached RIDICULOUS proportions where even people who know nothing about TV production can clearly see that the show jumps around all over the place. Housemates are shown having conversations about content that the audience hasn’t seen and there’s absolutely zero authenticity. Cat and Lawsons conversions are constantly being edited to suit the “cheating” scandal that BB is desperately trying to set up in order to get ratings. I don’t for a second buy the story that “too much is going on”. Please! If so much was going on, we wouldn’t be stuck watching Lawson and Jason trying to get the pantry door opened by Big Brother. WTF? Chanel 9 is either trying to be too family friendly or the housemates are not doing anything worth broadcasting.
I’m sorry to hear that your BB sucks but I certainly don’t feel “happy” or privileged about this season of BBAU. To be honest that description above? It’s exactly how I’d describe this years BBAU. No fun, no drama – nothing. Just because ours is better then yours doesn’t mean it’s actually good.
Oh god. I think looking to BBUS format is what destroyed BBAU in the first place.
All the talk about getting older people and a different BBAU this year for auditions was crap, this years selection is sooo boring to watch and mixing the timeline up and showing it at different times just makes me want to switch off. And bringing in last years housemates is so annoying they had their time.
This may be the silliest article I’ve ever read. I’m another from the USA, and after sitting through the idiocy of our version I was so excited for your new season. Both the UK and Australian versions are generally so much better than the US. This season to me is just meh. There’s nobody that I’ve connected with, and the soo-called “drama” of this season has been pointless. They all have come off as petty whiners that are offended by the slightest remark. The lack of intelligence of Skye and Travis was charming for about two days. Now it just makes me “melon copy”. The Cat/Lawson scandal should have ended the day after their controversial night together. Yet it’s still a major plot point. Three full days of Sandra whining about the hotel task was 2 1/2 days too many. So much of EVERY episode is devoted to fluff, and repeating the pantry door segment is the kind of filler I’m used to up here in the US. Where are these 3-4 storylines per day? I’m only seeing one or two per week.
Unbelievable! BBAU is one of my favourite shows. They really f*#cked up this year. It is so simple to make BB entertaining, yet it seems so difficult for the professionals. The audience want:
1. Some form of live updates (even if it’s delayed by a few minutes, for all you scared little producers who are afraid of some nudity or language getting through). We are missing WAY too much footage!
2. A proper adult uncut version of the show, whether it be a daily up late show or one episode a week
3. A variety of ages, body types and personalities. This means some adult teens, persons from their 20’s, 30’s and mature aged.
4. Set a time slot and stick with it!
5. Make the episodes fit together, derrr!
This is why it feels like we have missed episode! there just cutting stuff out Bella Springis Brooke Dixon
This Alex Mavroid dickhead can go fuck himself
Totally agree about the family friendly shit….too much bullshit rather than getting to the good stuff. Also, yes, they’re trying to milk the fucking shit out of the Lawson and Cat situation because the Drew + Tully scenario last year turned out so well for ratings.
Channel 9 are also at fault big time for screwing things up with pathetic stunts. I’m sick and tired of it. Channel 9 need to give up broadcasting Big Brother altogether. Go to channel 7 or something
Rachel, you are absolutely spot on! Production and Channel 9 had two good runs and decent ratings…why change? My opinion? The current ownership group of Channel 9 could care less about the show. Remember that the contract with Endemol was signed by the previous ownership group. Seems that Channel 9 wants the show to wither on the vine and die. Sad.
Agreed so annoying. Just let us watch the housemates! Give us back extra videos online if not live feeds and let us know what’s happening instead of other news sites reporting gossip days before the show airs. Surely the internet traffic is worth keeping?
By starting it after the Block so late for the first few weeks most people didn’t bother to connect in the beginning and now it’s suffering. Put it on at dinnertime and let everyone zone out. Calm down all the double evictions and stunts and just let us enjoy watching the stories evolve. People are interesting. They are using the show as fodder to fill in other spots so you never know when it’s even on.
Are they for real, no the fault is the bad scheduling, editing and disrespect to the fans and format if the show.
how come other countries like the UK for example, can run 16 seasons and still grab enough ratings to keep going?! answer: probably less stunts, more stories that we actually see developing rather than just a bit here and a bit there. they provide online content too, this is what is missing. ONLINE CONTENT. i am surprised in this day and age this wouldn’t be provided…
I believe all the double evictions are to prepare for many more intruders to try to replace all the useless housemates they mis-casted in the first place. So prepare for many more stunts!
Yeah he does come across that nasty…… But there are tiny glimpses of an awesome sense of humour…… I think he is a clear case on how we are being ripped off getting to know him by the edit on him. He perhaps doesn’t have a so called “storyline” happening, so they don’t seem to know what to do with him. Where if we just saw more natural stuff it would probably be fascinating and funny. Def need live feed. And after dark. I really miss that. And feel like I don’t know these people either. I bet they are all actually very interesting inspiring people but we will never know. So sad.
I’m sad because I have always defended big brother to the ones that just don’t get the concept…I always found it to be an awesome experiment in humans…. But this year I am at a loss to defend it. I think 3 out of 4 producers were awesome and on to it. And one guy may be trying to live out his own private fantasies through producing this 2014 series!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!