Big Brother, also retrospectively known as Big Brother 1, was the first series of the British reality television series Big Brother. The show followed eleven contestants, known as housemates, who were isolated from the outside world for an extended period of time in a custom built House. Each week, one or more of the housemates were evicted by a public vote. The last remaining housemate, Craig Phillips, was declared the winner, winning a cash prize of £70,000.

The series lasted 64 days and was presented by Davina McCall. It launched on Channel 4 on 18 July 2000 and ended on 15 September 2000. Ten housemates entered on the first day, with one additional housemate being introduced in the sixth week. The series was watched by an average of 4.5 million viewers. It became the subject of intense press attention throughout its broadcast, and gained particular notoriety after one housemate, Nick Bateman, was ejected from the House for breaking the rules.

Development

The series first launched in Netherlands, with editions in countries such as Germany proving to be hits with the public. Following the success of the show, it was confirmed that editions for the United States and the United Kingdom were in the works. Andre Anten, who was one of the directors for the original show, said the show was "like live soap... you don't know what is going to happen and that is amazing." In March 2000, it was confirmed that the show had been picked up by Channel 4, and would air in July. Casting for the series began that same month, with applications being available on the official website. Applicants who were shortlisted during the casting process underwent psychological analysis and received a nominal fee for the process. It was reported that the show received over 40,000 applications, and the housemates selected to compete in the series were kept secret until they entered the House. The series featured a live feed, which provided 24-hour coverage of the housemates. To comply with broadcasting standards, the live feed was under an estimated ten-minute delay. Commissioning editor Liz Warner said of the feeds "There's a delay on the web feed, so there's an over-ride [...] We will observe the family viewing policy before the watershed, and make sure we stick to ITC guidelines all the time."

Davina McCall was announced as the host of the show in April 2000. When asked on her feelings when joining the show, McCall stated "It's a lottery whether you take a show on or not, but you have to ask yourself, 'Would I be interested in seeing the show?' I saw a copy of the show from Holland and I loved it - fascinating viewing." The housemates entered the House on 14 July 2000. The live feed launched that day, though the series did not premiere on television until 18 July 2000. The series featured five men and five women who entered the House on the first night, however, a female later entered the house to replace an ejected housemate. Among the group was Anna Nolan, a lesbian who had previously been a nun prior to entering the House. Housemate Andrew "Andy" Davidson admitted to appearing on a live sex show, while Caroline O'Shea had previously worked in a gay bar and sold sex toys. Craig Phillips owned his own building company, while Nick Bateman was a broker. Darren Ramsay was the only housemate this series to have a child.

The first series aired for a total of six days per week, with an episode airing every night excluding Saturday. The shows airing each week were all highlights from the previous day in the House. Two episodes of the series aired on Friday. During the first episode, viewers were shown the highlights from the previous day and McCall revealed the housemate who had been evicted from the House. Two hours following this, the second episode of the night aired which saw the evicted housemate exit the House and participate in an interview with McCall. One of the highlight episodes per week featured a team of psychologists discussing the events of the previous week from their viewpoint. Big Brother 1 lasted for a total of 64 days, officially ending on 15 September 2000. The series had a total of 52 episodes, the fewest episodes for any series thus far. The theme song for the series was produced by Elementfour, and was used for the series intro as well as promotional tools. The series saw the Little Brother segment air during select episodes.

House

For the first series, the House was located in Bow, London near the 3 Mills Studios. The House used was a one-storey house with two bedrooms, a kitchen and dining room, and one bathroom. Throughout the House, there were cameras and microphones spread throughout the rooms, making all areas of the House visible to the cameras. During their stay in the House, the housemates were required to wear microphones at all times, ensuring everything they said in the House was heard. Throughout the House there were two way mirrors lined against the walls, with a production team filming behind them. The bedrooms featured infrared imaging cameras, allowing the cameras to continue filming while the lights were off. The bedrooms in the house were divided amongst the men and women. The Diary Room was where housemates were required to share their thoughts on the events in the house, and were often given tasks. The backyard of the house featured a patio area where the housemates could sit outside. The backyard also featured a chicken coop, and the housemates were able to use the eggs from the chickens as food. The housemates were given a Jacuzzi in the garden several weeks into the series.

Format

Big Brother was a game show in which a group of contestants, referred to as housemates, lived in isolation from the outside world in a custom built "house", constantly under video surveillance. During their time in the House, the housemates were required to nominate two of their fellow contestants for potential eviction, and the two or more with the most votes would be nominated. This process was mandatory for all housemates, and failure to comply could result in ejection from the house. Despite this, should a housemate enter the House following the launch, they are immune from the first round of nominations they are present for. The public, through a vote conducted by phone, would vote to evict one of the nominated housemates from the House, and the housemate with the most votes from the viewers would be evicted from the House. When only three housemates remained, the public would vote for which of them should win the series, and the housemates with the most votes would become the winner. The housemates were competing for a £70,000 cash prize.

During their time in the House, housemates were given weekly tasks to perform. The housemates would wager a portion of their weekly shopping budget on the task, and would either win double their wagered fund or lose the wagered fund depending on their performance in the task. The housemates were required to work as a group to complete the task, with the format of the tasks varying based on the number of remaining housemates. Should the housemates run out of the food provided for them, an emergency ration was available to them. The housemates were forbidden from discussing nominations, and doing so could result in punishment. The format of the series was mainly seen as a social experiment, and required housemates to interact with others who may have differing ideals, beliefs, and prejudices. Housemates were also required to make visits to the Diary Room during their stay in the House, where they were able to share their thoughts and feelings on their fellow housemates and the game. While in the House, the housemates are free to leave at any time, however, will not be allowed to return to the House. Similarly, a housemate can be removed from the House by production should they repeatedly break the rules set for the housemates. Should a housemate choose to leave the House or be ejected, a replacement housemate will enter the House sometime after their departure. Upon entering the House, new housemates are exempt from the first round of nominations they are present for.

Housemates

Name	Age on entry	Hometown	Day entered	Day exited	Result
Craig Phillips	28	Liverpool	1	64	Winner
Anna Nolan	29	Dublin	1	64	Runner-up
Darren Ramsay	22	Catford, London	1	64	3rd Place
Melanie Hill	26	North London	1	57	Evicted
Claire Strutton	25	Gerrards Cross, Buckinghamshire	37	50	Evicted
Tom McDermott	31	Omagh, County Tyrone	1	43	Evicted
Nichola Holt	28	Bolton, Lancashire	1	36	Evicted
Nick Bateman	32	Kent	1	35	Ejected
Caroline O'Shea	37	Birmingham	1	29	Evicted
Andrew Davidson	23	Hemel Hempstead	1	22	Evicted
Sada Walkington	28	Edinburgh/Wakefield	1	15	Evicted

Ejections

Housemate	Day	Reason
Nick Bateman	35	Multiple nomination influences and cheating during voting.

Weekly summary

Week 1
	Entrances	On Day 1, Andrew, Anna, Caroline, Craig, Darren, Melanie, Nichola, Nick, Sada and Tom entered the house.
	Tasks	On Day 2, housemates were given their first weekly shopping task, which required them to make a clay bowl and mug using a potter's wheel. The housemates would fail the task if three or more objects cracked upon being fired. The housemates wagered 20% of their weekly shopping budget on the task. The housemates failed their shopping task.
Week 2
	Tasks	On Day 9, the housemates were given their second weekly shopping task, which required them to memorize ten facts about each housemate. The group was later quizzed about these facts later in the week. If the housemates as a group miss more than one question, their shopping budget will be decreased. The housemates wagered 40% of their weekly shopping budget on the task. The housemates passed their shopping task.
	Nominations	On Day 11, the housemates nominated for the first time. Caroline and Sada received the most nominations and faced the public vote.
	Exits	On Day 15, Sada was evicted from the house receiving 55% of the public vote to evict.
Week 3
	Tasks	On Day 16, the housemates were given their third weekly shopping task, in which they had to travel a total of 1,800 km on an exercise bike, thus theoretically traveling from Land's End to John O'Groats while passing through all of their hometowns. The housemates wagered 50% of their weekly shopping budget on the task. The housemates passed their shopping task. On Day 19, the group had to write and perform a play. Their reward was the right to watch a film of their choice. They chose to watch Happy Gilmore.
	Nominations	On Day 18, the housemates nominated for the second time. Andrew and Caroline received the most nominations and faced the public vote.
	Exits	On Day 22, Andrew was evicted from the house receiving 68% of the public vote to evict.
Week 4
	Tasks	On Day 23, the housemates were given their fourth weekly shopping task, which required the housemates to learn the Semaphore signaling system. The housemates worked in pairs and attempted to both communicate and transcribe messages using the code. They wagered 35% of their weekly shopping budget on the task. The housemates failed their shopping task. The same day, housemates were given a second task, in which they had to perform a good deed, which the housemates passed.
	Nominations	On Day 25, the housemates nominated for the third time. Caroline and Tom received the most nominations and faced the public vote.
	Exits	On Day 29, Caroline was evicted from the house receiving 62% of the public vote to evict.
Week 5
	Tasks	On Day 30, the housemates were given their fourth weekly shopping task, in which housemates were given an assault course and had to complete the course within eight minutes. They wagered 50% of their weekly shopping budget on the task. The housemates passed their shopping task. On Day 31, housemates had to write poems about one another, and then guess who wrote which poem as well as whom they wrote about. On Day 34, housemates were given the task of writing a song, with lyrics, and would perform it in 24 hours.
	Nominations	On Day 32, the housemates nominated for the fourth time. Craig and Nichola received the most nominations and faced the public vote.
	Exits	On Day 35, Nick was ejected from the house after he had attempted to influence nominations and was found with a pen and paper in his possessions. On Day 36, Nichola was evicted from the house receiving 72% of the public vote to evict.
Week 6
	Entrances	On Day 37, Claire entered the house.
	Tasks	On Day 37, housemates were given their fifth weekly shopping task, in which they had to go outside and find the face of a housemate outside every time an alarm went off; the housemates would later have to remember the order in which the faces appeared. The housemates wagered 50% of their weekly shopping budget on the task. The housemates passed their shopping task. On Day 41, the housemates were required to make outfits for their fellow housemates.
	Nominations	On Day 39, the housemates nominated for the fifth time. Anna, Craig, Darren and Tom received the most nominations and faced the public vote. Due to being a new housemate, Claire was exempt from the nomination process.
	Exits	On Day 43, Tom was evicted from the house receiving 30% of the public vote to evict.
Week 7
	Tasks	On Day 44, housemates were given their next weekly shopping task, which saw the housemates creating a life-sized sculpture of themselves with wire. Should the sculpture stand on its own for one consecutive minute, the housemates would pass the task. The housemates wagered 50% of their weekly shopping budget on the task. The housemates failed their shopping task. On Day 44, housemates were given three different samples of wine. If they would figure out which one was the most expensive. they would be given five bottles of wine. The housemates passed this task and were gifted with five bottles of wine.
	Nominations	On Day 46, the housemates nominated for the sixth time. Claire, Craig, Darren and Melanie received the most nominations and faced the public vote. However, the housemates were given the opportunity to recast their nominations when it was revealed that the housemates heard Darren cast his nominations. Claire and Craig received the most nominations in the second round, which means they faced the public vote.
	Exits	On Day 50, Claire was evicted from the house receiving 79% of the public vote to evict.
Week 8
	Tasks	On Day 51, the housemates were given their seventh weekly shopping task, which saw them attempting to learn various circus skills which they would perform for "Big Brother" later in the week. The housemates wagered 20% of their weekly shopping budget on the task. The housemates failed their shopping task. Later in the week, they were given another task, in which they had to impersonate one of their fellow housemates. Another task was given to the housemates in which they had to make a newspaper and fill it with headlines they believe had occurred outside of the house.
	Nominations	On Day 53, the housemates nominated for the seventh and final time this season. Craig, Darren and Melanie received the most nominations and faced the public vote.
	Exits	On Day 57, Melanie was evicted from the house receiving 69% of the public vote to evict.
Week 9
	Tasks	On Day 59, The housemates were given their final task, which was divided into three parts. The first part saw the housemates learning highway code, while the second tested their physical abilities. The third portion of the task required housemates to care for an official baby. Anna was the winner of the task, and won a party with the theme of her choice.
	Exits	On Day 64, Darren left the house in third place. It was then revealed that Craig was the winner, leaving Anna as the runner-up.

Nominations table

	Week 2	Week 3	Week 4	Week 5	Week 6	Week 7		Week 8	Week 9 Final		Nominations received
						Round 1	Round 2
Craig	Caroline, Sada	Caroline, Nichola	Caroline, Nichola	Nichola, Darren	Darren, Anna	Darren, Anna	Darren, Anna	Darren, Melanie	Winner (Day 64)		20
Anna	Andrew, Darren	Andrew, Tom	Craig, Tom	Craig, Tom	Craig, Tom	Claire, Craig	Claire, Craig	Craig, Darren	Runner-up (Day 64)		6
Darren	Sada, Caroline	Andrew, Melanie	Craig, Tom	Craig, Tom	Tom, Melanie	Melanie, Craig	Claire, Craig	Melanie, Anna	Third place (Day 64)		17
Melanie	Sada, Craig	Craig, Caroline	Caroline, Nichola	Nichola, Darren	Craig, Darren	Claire, Craig	Craig, Claire	Craig, Darren	Evicted (Day 57)		9
Claire	Not in House				Exempt	Darren, Melanie	Melanie, Darren	Evicted (Day 50)			5
Tom	Caroline, Sada	Darren, Caroline	Darren, Caroline	Anna, Nichola	Anna, Darren	Evicted (Day 43)					12
Nichola	Andrew, Tom	Andrew, Craig	Melanie, Tom	Craig, Tom	Evicted (Day 36)						9
Nick	Sada, Caroline	Caroline, Craig	Nichola, Caroline	Craig, Nichola	Ejected (Day 35)						0
Caroline	Darren, Andrew	Tom, Andrew	Tom Melanie	Evicted (Day 29)							14
Andrew	Sada, Caroline	Caroline, Nichola	Evicted (Day 22)								8
Sada	Darren, Andrew	Evicted (Day 15)									6
Against public vote	Caroline, Sada	Andrew, Caroline	Caroline, Tom	Craig, Nichola	Anna, Craig Darren, Tom	Claire, Craig, Darren, Melanie	Claire, Craig	Craig, Darren, Melanie	Anna, Craig, Darren
Ejected	none			Nick	none
Evicted	Sada 55% to evict	Andrew 68% to evict	Caroline 62% to evict	Nichola 72% to evict	Tom 30% to evict	None	Claire 79% to evict	Melanie 69% to evict	Darren 13% (out of 3)	Anna 49% (out of 2)
									Craig 51% to win