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- guardian.co.uk, Saturday May 26 2001 01.29 BST
A stripper, a company director and two gay men were among 10 volunteers revealed by Channel 4 as contestants in the latest incarnation of Big Brother yesterday, confident that its voyeuristic series would beat ITV's Survivor in the battle of the reality shows.
As ITV executives pored over figures that showed a drop in ratings for their slick £10m show, Channel 4 was banking on bonking to stir the interest of viewers.
Producers have ensured a more amorous mood in the Big Brother house, replacing last year's minimalist feel with an alpine log cabin design. There is even a separate room to which contestants can repair, should the need arise for privacy from the other housemates. There is no escape from the cameras, though.
The participants' self-awareness is likely to make a difference: last year they had no idea of how well known they would become; this year the 10 cannot fail to realise that they will be transformed from obscurity into nationwide conversation topics almost overnight.
Yesterday the chosen 10 were taken from their families to the Big Brother house in east London.
Amma, 23, the table dancer, said she wanted "to show Britain that not all strippers are the Jerry Springer stereotype".
Three are in their 30s, with the rest in their 20s. The oldest is Dean, 37, an internet entrepreneur from the West Midlands.
Security staff checked their baggage to ensure they were not smuggling in anything they were not allowed. One man had mascara and most had brought alcohol but no one had any prohibited goods.
Interest in Big Brother has soared: more than 50,000 people requested an application form, and 5,000 sent in videos of themselves.
"We were looking for a mix of interesting, positive and enthusiastic personalities," said Conrad Green, the executive producer.
Devotees will have more opportunities to watch this year: there is 24-hour website coverage and a live feed for 18 hours a day on the digital channel E4, where viewers will be able to select camera angles. Channel 4 hopes the show will start with around 3m viewers and build - last year's final episode drew 9.5m, a 50% share of the available audience.
Figures released yesterday showed that ITV's Survivor was struggling. Thursday night's episode, when hungry participants ate maggots, was seen by 5.2m (28%) - beaten by the Weakest Link on BBC1 with 6m (34%). Survivor was down from 6.6m on Monday.
More worryingly, the tabloids were beginning to scale back their coverage. Double-page spreads on the contestants - which have been a daily staple - have been relegated to further back in the papers.
Observers questioned ITV's strategy of promoting Survivor with massive advance publicity. Other hits such as Popstars, the Weakest Link and the first series of Big Brother were "discovered" by viewers.
One TV executive said: "You can't beat people over the head and tell them it's a hit - they have to find out for themselves."
