Big Brother Africa III

There are controversial reality TV shows. And then there is Endemol’s Big Brother Africa whose third season kicks off Sunday 24^th August. All the usual suspects will be there - Angola, Botswana, Ghana, Malawi, Namibia, Nigeria, Kenya, South Africa, Uganda, Tanzania, Zambia and Zimbabwe. The show will be shot on location in South Africa.

On the surface, the Big Brother game plan is as simple as can be. Lock up a group of disparate people in a house rigged with cameras and microphones (27 and 48 respectively to be precise) and then broadcast to the world their drinking, dancing, flirting, quarreling, cooking, showering, getting bored, sleeping, waking up – all the works. Slightly deeper it’s actually about human psychology which the viewers can see at work throughout the show as confinement and monotony take toll on the contestants. It plays on the contestants’ emotions and frustrates them to a point where their reactions are no longer what they would be in normal circumstances. To see or talk to no one except fellow housemates 24/7 for 3 months I think is the real test.

I’ve never bought the idea of contestants going in there to represent their countries. Represent their countries in what? Of what representation was Alex Holi of BBA1 and later Jeff of BBA2 to Kenya? Mwisho and Richard to Tanzania? Other than wrapping themselves in the national flag, contestants are there to have fun, promote themselves and have a shot at the grand prize. Gaetano of BBA1 for instance was thrust into the limelight courtesy of the show and is now doing well for himself. Others like Jeff promoted their books and their mushroom business, otherwise Kenya does not do her sit ups like that.

Ofunemama of Nigeria on the other hand…... of all the motherly hardworking good she may have done in the house throughout the show, the one thing people will always remember about her is finger gate - the seriously humiliating episode which biggie should have slotted in the late night uncensored show. That is if he had to air it at all. But then again it’s an unscripted show about nudity, sex, beer and romance and the contestants know what they’re getting themselves into. At least we learned something from that episode though. A girl does not drink until she’s comatose. If a girl misbehaves with a guy the big deal is on her……. not on the guy. Too bad.

The Middle East attempted their own version of Big Brother in 2004 with countries like Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Lebanon, Oman, Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Somalia, Syria and Tunisia participating. But due to religious protests it did not air past week one. I never got to watch it but I’m sure it was nowhere near as immodest as what we have in BBA and other BB versions across the globe.