Saturday, June 02, 2007

On hating Big Brother

Big Brother and the publicity machine that surrounds it, really really really really depresses me. There are words to describe the programme, such as: asinine, banal, contemptible, dire, empty-headed, fatuous, gormless, hollow, inane, juvenile, kitsch, lame, meretricious, narcissistic, otiose, prurient, questionable, raucous, sleazy, tawdry, uncouth, vacuous, witless, xanthic, yawn-making, zombie-pleasing. OK, I was stretching it a bit towards the end there. And it's not really all that yellow, and it's not as if yellow is a bad thing.

I made the novice's mistake of picking up a tabloid and flicking through its Big Brother coverage pages a couple of days ago, and the residual annoyance lingers on.

There was a little piece on each of the contestants and clearly the twins were causing some rush of blood-flow from the brain, hence they had a little segment of their own, in which they "confessed" to expecting never to pay for their own drinks, being willing to share a man, because he'd never know, hee hee aren't we naughty?, and titter, simper, they don't vote because they don't, bat eyelashes, pout, know much about politics.

Aieeeeeeeeee. Excrutiating. That was a good word I missed from my list.

Underneath their Aveline Boswell-exteriors, they may be as shrewd and canny as a crate of ferrets being next-day delivered to Watership Down.

Even if they are, I loathe the buying into of this misogynistic, sexual objectification crap. I hate the papers and I hate this "phenomenon" that is the voyeuristic watching of a bunch of kvetching, talent-free imbeciles, sitting around in a house.

I have lots of ire. Lots.

7 comments:

surly girl said...

oh. i fucking love big brother, me. but those twins must die.

Jen said...

No, I'm with you Hippernicus, it's all utter tripe...

Lovely bf insisted on watching the beginning but, God, those twins! And, um, the others.

Waste of skin, the lot of 'em! But, just you see... in moments of weakness, I'll be bloomin glued. Heaven help us all.

Mephitis said...

Hello Surly & Jen,

I think Big Brother is a bit like Marmite. :D

Cat said...

Oh, I am a shameless consumer of reality television, and Big Brother is my most favourite of all. That said, this series is thrilling me less than most.

If you want something really mindless, check out Big Blogger. (I'm in it, so I'm allowed to say that.)

Mephitis said...

Well, according to ratings thingies, it's the "upmarket and trendy" that BB appeals to.

I think I know where that leaves me. :D

Good luck with Big Blogger.

Anonymous said...

I'm avoiding it, and my blood pressure is much better for it. Also I make my friends who are watching it feel bad for being so vacuous and sheep-like - hahah! Even better! *(smug laughter)* Abster xx

Anonymous said...

I'm with you on this one, read the other day that more people watch 'Springwatch'. There is a very obvious joke about watching animals copulating - involving the word dumb, but somehow I can't be bothered to crack it.

On a serious note I do wonder when Channel 4 is going to get it's first law case regarding exploitation of a mentally ill contestant - because several of them appear have been borderline.