The Sunday Mail
Shamiso Yikoniko
Almost every year, the Big Brother Africa (BBA) craze hits most African nations, with much speculation on who will represent a specific country.
Zimbabwe is among the countries that get caught up in the obsession.
Traditionally, the organisers of the reality show conduct auditions for the aspiring BBA house-mates in March.
With the month of March having come to an end, most people are wondering when the auditions for the BBA house-mates will be held.
In Zimbabwe, when the BBA season is upon us, it is in the public knowledge that organisers of Big Brother call for applications and auditions are held at its traditional venue, the Harare International Conference Centre. Depending on the country, either one or two representatives are selected by the organisers according to what they deem to be the most suitable for Big Brother house-mates.
The much-anticipated BBA Season 9 has been postponed to later this year. The reality show has been moved to September, though specific dates have not been announced as yet.
Elizabeth Dziva, the publicist for MultiChoice Zimbabwe, confirmed the developments. “This year’s edition of the reality show will be held later on in September though the definite dates have not been communicated to us as yet,” said Dziva.
“This is due to the fact that the World Cup tournament will be held from June 12 to July 13.
“The dates for the auditions have also not been confirmed as yet.” Every year, the show has a theme which then becomes the criteria for choosing house-mates. Speculation has it that this year’s edition will be dubbed, “All Stars 2”.
This automatically means that the concept will focus on previous unsuccessful contestants and give them a second chance in the game.
On a Facebook fan page for BBA, the administrators have dropped some hints as to what to expect this season.
“It is scheduled to start on August 10, 2014 and will feature 28 participants from 14 different countries. The countries being Angola, Botswana, Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Malawi, Namibia, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Tanzania, South Africa, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe,” reads the post.
The post further highlighted that the house-mates will be chosen from Season 6 (Amplified) and Season 8 (The Chase).
The question to be asked would be: who will represent Zimbabwe this time around?
If the rumours prove to be true that the contestants will be selected from Season 6 and Season 8, names to be considered from Zimbabwe would be Roki, Maneta, Hakeem and Pokello.
Looking at its history, Big Brother is a reality franchise created by Jjohn de Mol and its original premise was to have a group of people living together in a large house, isolated from the outside world and continuously monitored by television cameras.
Each series lasts about three months with 12 to 16 contestants entering the house and to win the final cash prize, a contestant has to survive periodic evictions and be the last one standing.
Originally started back in 1997 in the Netherlands, it has grown both in stature and popularity, giving birth to over 15 spin-offs, mostly regionally.
Countries like Italy, Spain, Brazil, Germany, Serbia and Italy have taken up the idea, while regions like the UK and Africa have taken a unified approach. Each has taken up the ideals behind the original program, developed the ideas to give it more of an identity that suits their purpose.
Being selected as a BBA house-mate is presumably a dream come true for most of the participants.
However, how one conducts themselves and their supposed game plan during the reality show opens doors to success or failure.
It is important to note that the show is a reality show and so ratings are everything.
The success of the show is rated by the number of viewers who tune into the show, give feedback and most importantly, vote.
When talking about Big Brother, names such as Tapuwa Mhere, Bertha Zakeyo, Munyaradzi Chidzonga, Itai Makumbe, Kristal Culverwell, Vimbai Mutinhiri, Wendal Parson and Roki quickly come to mind.
The BBA might be a game but most Zimbabweans are concerned about the choice of contestants sent to represent the country over the years.
BBA’s popularity in Zimbabwe has grown and many are emotional and pleading with organisers to be mindful of the representatives they are going to send to the house.
It remains to be seen if MultiChoice will prove the rumours wrong or they will come out true!
