It can without a doubt be said that the 2008 series of Big Brother shot to an all time low in respect of ratings, on the grand finale night not even the lovely Davina McCall seemed that impressed with things. But let’s turn the clock back slightly to the midsection of the shows run and a strange series of events that transpired one warm June night.
During E4’s live streaming in the early hours of the morning, there was an interruption. Nothing was stated of this interruption, but online something strange happened. On Big Brother forums across the country a poster stated that had found something during the live streaming (that was not seen on television during the interruption), and posted a video they had captured on their website. In the video clip you could see the Big Brother diary room chair flipped on its side, across the walls and chair was a red fluid that appeared to be blood. Looking dead set into the camera a young woman mouthed the words help me, in a bedraggled and bloody state, she turns to the blank wall behind her and writes her message to the outside world, but before she is done apparently E4 took back the transmission and normal service in the house resumed.
Over the next few days websites ran rife with rumours and headlines “Anarchy In The Big Brother House!” and my favourite “E4 Covers Up Murder”; these were all in fairness, on fan sites and tacky blogs. As soon as it arrived the story disappeared, presumably not buried under the exciting stories from this year’s Big Brother.
Four weeks later and as the 2008 series concluded a short 4 second trailer aired showing several rooms in the Big Brother house before the message “Dead Set Coming Soon On E4”. Since then however all has been quiet until now. I should add before I continue, all the strange events, posting, blog headlines were all a careful orchestrated publicity stunt by Channel 4 company E4 in order to cause a bit of sensation, I can only assume the sudden die down was over concern with bullying accusations, and scar damage from previous series events.
It’s eviction night in the Big Brother house and while Davina (Davina McCall) stirs up the crowd outside the house, young Kelly (Jaime Winstone) runs (as a TV show runner does) frantically around making all the magic slot together. Behind the scenes Ex-Big Brother housemates Makosi, Bubble, Aisleye, Eugene and many others await filming of a special reunion show in the comfort of the green room. While all in and around the Big Brother house is joyous, outside things are dramatically different. The security in place around the shows set is not enough to keep the trouble out. And it’s only a matter of time before the security cordons are breached, and the terror is let in.
People are ripped apart, ribcages split open and internal organs are cherry picked and plucked for eating by an army of zombies that have taken over the outside world. And for Kelly who has seen her workmates massacred around her, there is only one option open to her; Kelly must enter the Big Brother house, the seemingly only secure place from this incoming terror. The Big Brother housemates believe that the arrival of Kelly is just an elaborate twist in the shows sick gameplan, instead of one being kicked out one is kicked in. While Kelly tries to convince the housemates of the terror that waits outside, they mock her believing it’s all a cover story, just a sick joke. But outside an army of Zombies, including Davina as you have never seen her before, are just dying to get in.
I make no secret of the fact that I love horror movies, so the news of E4’s new five part horror series (set over five consecutive nights) gave me a bit of a buzz. Written by Screenwipe presenter Charlie Brooker, this graphic story is his spin on the George Romero movie Dawn Of The Dead, with the shopping mall being replaced by the Big Brother house. When describing the show, he used the name Lucio Fulci, an Italian director of some of the most graphic horror movies of all time as a clear indication of where he was going with his story. And as if to pay tribute to the legendary director some of the shows deaths are plucked straight of the director’s movies, Zombie Flesh Eaters and The Beyond being the most notable inspirations.
Originally when Brooker presented the idea to Channel 4 as a new drama series it was swiftly rejected, but E4 (sibling company) were more than happy to offer the show a home, under the heading of entertainment. You should not be confused by the use of the term “entertainment”, if you’re expecting laughs and a spoof of Big Brother this is not for you, while humour does appear its running humour rather like that featured in Doctor Who, the heart of Dead Set is pure horror. I make no bones when I say this, Dead Set is the most graphic, horrific, and blood thirsty television show ever made for television, food should not be part of your viewing of this show, to quote Brooker “People will be puking their spaghetti Bolognaise into their laps!” While for me, I lap up gore, for the average viewer this may just push them to their very limits, this is pretty hairy stuff.
The characters in the series are all rather like the real Big Brother a pretty typical bunch, Veronica (Beth Cordingly) plays a 28 year old glamour model type from Redhill, Surrey. Not to cast aspirations on those from Redhill, but Veronica is the epitome of every 20 something female Redhill resident I have encountered, hungry for fame and dreaming that the streets of London (so near yet so far from Redhill) are paved with gold, if you asked Veronica where she lived she’d say London as if to create an air of mystery and desirability. Morvern Callar’s Katherine McDermott plays the drama queen Pippa, the sort of housemate that annoys yet divides viewing audiences with her ability to turn on the waterworks when things do not go her way. While Kevin Eldon (Hyperdrive) plays Joplin, a character with a certain likeness to Big Brother Series One contestant Nick (nicknamed Nasty Nick) the rest of the characters excluding Kelly to me were pretty much standard fare, although some are clear show leads, they just never registered on my Richter scale of being worth a mention. And then of course there is the lovely Davina, which that cheesy smile and throwaway attitude disappear as she turns into the Zombie quite literally from Hell.
Of the show itself, I cannot deny I was only privy to two of the five episiodes, so I cannot give an overall impression of the series as a whole. What I can say is that episode one started with a real bang, it was really impressive stuff but as the episode drew to a close I felt things were going a bit hollow. By episode two however, when things really should be stabilising, almost padding if you like, I was left with a thirst for more. The shows were like a rollercoaster ride with ups and downs, but mainly ups. Those that dislike the show Big Brother, there will be an awful lot of satisfaction from watching this. I cannot help but feel the show will suffer at the hands of critics (one of whom had he not have written the show would have been Brooker himself). One thing I can absolutely guarantee, E4 have scored a winner by agreeing to invest in this show, even taking into account its low budget costs this is going to be a really big thing, and for those not fortunate enough to have freeview to access E4 or not the type to purchase the DVD, this show will definitely find its way to Channel Four. If you miss it you can also guarantee that outrage will be rife by the time the third episode hits the screen, and you’ll have that nagging feeling that you wished you had been part of this from the offset.I’d like to thank E4 for unprecedented access to the show, I feel truly blessed.
At the time of writing the special features on the DVD are unknown. The show airs on E4 from the 27th – 31st of October (mark it on your calendar now), with the DVD available to buy from November 2nd.
© Words- The Hawk / ZANI
