The house itself felt really large to me, especially the bedroom. The main kitchen/dining area also felt big and very open, and I honestly think taking the chairs away probably made it feel even bigger and more spacious, and the multiple seating areas add to that as well. But at the same time, without the backyard the house is basically just three big rooms: the kitchen/lounge, the bedroom and the bathroom.
The lack of a roof was at its worst in the bathroom IMO. The raised flooring mixed with how small and cramped that room is compared to the bedroom and main living space just makes it feel really off and unfinished.
The weirdest part for me was walking into the bedroom. That angle is never available on the show or the feeds since itās right next to the Diary Room, so actually seeing it in person felt strange. Ironically, the bedroom was the
only room that actually felt like a proper Big Brother room. The roof really does make such a huge difference. Iām not surprised Mia said it made them more aware of being on TV. The walls elsewhere are just too short to keep the immersion going. I honestly argue thatās why this cast came across more fake and OTT than previous years, because theyād basically be in actor mode any time they were in the lounge or kitchen.
And yeah, the BB voice plays throughout the whole house, but even if the audio is technically coming from the bathroom or bedroom, you can hear it everywhere anyway. I also really hate the couch placement in the lounge. IDK how Iād even fix it, but it just feels completely shoehorned in and shoved to close to the wall with the screen. I prefer when the couch is at the back of the room facing a proper camera run as the angles were so much better especially for close ups of nominees during live shows. We never really got those clean, straight-on couch shots like we did in the 2004 or 2012 house designs. Seeing it in person honestly just made the layout make even less sense to me.
This was my 5th or 6th time visiting the BB house at Dreamworld. My family first went in 2002, but I was a toddler so I donāt remember that at all lol. The main visits I actually remember were 2004, 2005, maybe 2006, and then 2013. The set as a whole feels a lot smaller compared to the OG house, probably because thereās no backyard included in the tour. I also didnāt see any camera runs or space behind the walls. IDK how others have spotted that, because when I did the VIP tour there was no taking anyone behind the set walls this time. Maybe the VIP tour really was a rip off LOL.
In the OG days I remember there being Channel 9 or Endemol staff around who actually knew the show pretty well. This time there were only three staff members ā one at the entrance and two near the Diary Room/bedroom hallway ā and they openly admitted they knew next to nothing about Big Brother. Back then the tours also used to end in a BBAU-themed shop in the spare/task rooms, and the camera run hallways were covered in housemate photos. Now thereās no shop at all, and the only housemates with photos up were the final fiveā¦ placed in the womenās toilet hallway across from the Exhibition Centre
One thing that did shock me was that the Diary Room chair isn't soft, its some sort of leather/rubber material similar to what steps and other things are in children play centres. IDK why but I expected it to be soft and way more comfortable that it actually is. And I thought it was a lot bigger IRL.
A fun experience even if it was no where near as exciting as what visiting the old was. The coolest thing was hearing the full 2001 theme play as I walked into the house. That did make me geek out a little bit. I also filmed a video of the entire house, so I'll upload that too.
but the fact they're still there fills me with fear we'll get another season in this set.
ā and āAJā)
ā
