"I am Big Brother, and Big Brother sees it all." — Big Brother UK
Big Brother (person), considered as the most important element in the series, is the unseen voice that controls the housemates' lives inside the house.
The titular character is loosely based on a fictional character with the same name from George Orwell's novel, Nineteen Eighty-Four, where the reality series was inspired from.
Characteristics[]
Big Brother is a well-known and notorious character in the reality series, and he is the owner of the Big Brother House where the housemates live under his command. Big Brother is an unseen and omnipotent entity that watches the housemates' every move, and neither the contestants nor the viewers can see him physically. However, the housemates can privately converse with him and express their thoughts and emotions through a special room called the Diary Room.
In different versions of the series throughout the world, Big Brother is addressed in many terms, and often, in their country's national language. For instance, in the Philippines, the housemates sometimes call Big Brother Kuya, a Filipino honorific/kinship term used to refer to an elder male sibling or an older male friend. In Indian versions of the series, the contestants address him as Bigg Boss, while in Big Brother Nigeria, the housemates call him by the nickname Biggie. In other versions, they refer to Big Brother in their languages' translation of the term such as Grande Fratello in Italian, Gran Hermano in Spanish and HaAh HaGadol in Israel . In Vietnam, Big Brother is called Anh Hai. In Spain, the housemates call him Super while in Spanish USA & Mexico (both Celebrity), they call Big Brother Jefa (Boss, female voiced) and Jefe (Boss, male voiced) in Colombia (Celebrity). In Pakistan, Big Brother is referred to as Badshah.
Man of the House[]
Big Brother Australia Coming to Channel 7
Introductory promo of Big Brother Australia 12 narrated by Big Brother himself.
As the iconic figurehead of the international Big Brother franchise, Big Brother is known for his deep, paternal voice and commanding persona. He is a fundamental part of the show, with his rules dictating the everyday lives of the housemates. It is a major rule inside the house to follow Big Brother at all times, and any refusal to do so is considered a severe violation that could lead to punishment, most often ejection from the show.
Despite his authoritative presence, Big Brother's strictness towards the housemates may vary from season to season, with some iterations featuring a more lenient Big Brother and others featuring a more strict one. These changes are often caused by twists within the season, which could challenge the housemates in new ways and require a different approach from Big Brother. Overall, Big Brother's role in the show is crucial to the success of the Big Brother franchise, and his influence on the housemates and the audience cannot be overstated.
House Guardian[]
Another aspect that varies between different versions of Big Brother is his personality. In some versions, notably Big Brother Australia and Pinoy Big Brother, Big Brother is characterized as a wise authority figure with a right combination of humor, mischief, seriousness, and strictness, which is often seen throughout the series during Diary Room conversations, tasks, and during the twists he implements inside the house.
In the Philippine version for instance where it is notable for producing Teen seasons and casting teenagers, Big Brother's characterization in the show has evolved into an all-knowing and wise father figure who often shares a lot of wisdom and life advices towards his adolescent and adult houseguests. Apart from the Philippines, Big Brother is a house guardian in Argentina, Australia, Bulgaria, Chile, Colombia, Czech Republic, Greece, India, Israel, Mexico, Nigeria, Poland, Portugal, Serbia, Slovakia, South Africa, the UK and the USA (Spanish).
Lessened Prominence[]
In some versions, Big Brother is considered a less prominent character in the show or even non-existent at all. Big Brother (U.S), for example, is notable for lacking a prominent Big Brother figure, although a Big Brother voice can sometimes be heard in the show only when commanding houseguests to do specific actions such as going to the diary room, or turning on the lapel microphone if it's accidentally turned off by the houseguests. Since it's not a prominent character in the show, most of the duties done by the role are carried out by the producers themselves, often Allison Grodner, such as giving various announcements to the house. Instead, the persona became more known in the show simply as "production", rather than "Big Brother". As a result of the minimized appearance of the Big Brother character, the housemates themselves and even the host, Julie Chen have taken out some duties often performed by Big Brother in other versions, such as hosting the competitions and presiding the nominations and evictions.
Despite the Big Brother voice having less impact on the American version's narrative since the 2nd season, it has been revealed in a 2020 article that the majority of the houseguests have formed a connection with Big Brother throughout their time inside the house. Many fans who watch the show's live feeds have also been familiarized with Big Brother commanding his houseguests despite that such moments weren't usually included in the show's television broadcast.[1]
During the first two iterations of Big Brother UK, Big Brother was also not a prominent character on the show, instead, the role was carried out by various producers, lacking the mystery of a larger figure and presenting events as more adult and realistic. The producers usually talked with a very straight and serious tone, although sometimes made minor efforts at humor. When housemates violated the rules, they would either be called into the Diary Room and be told off or scolded by housemates from a loudspeaker.
Apart from the United States and Canada, Big Brother is less prominent in other countries such as Brazil, Spain, Albania, and Kosovo. These countries have a less intense surveillance culture compared to North America. This means that surveillance intensity varies across different locations, and not every place undergoes the same level of constant monitoring and control.
Playful Personality[]
For some instances, Big Brother can be a little bit playful, playing tricks and secret missions to the housemates. These playful tricks and secret missions set up by Big Brother really add to the excitement of an already intense game, leaving housemates and viewers alike wondering what surprise is just around the corner. This is what makes Big Brother unique. Each season brings new challenges and surprises to keep fans on the edge of their seats, wondering what devious twist Big Brother will unleash next. It's a wild ride of strategy, deception and pure, raw fun that keeps viewers coming back for more, season after season.
Big Brother's playful personality is most notably in Argentina, Australia, Belgium/Netherlands, Bulgaria, France, Germany, Greece, India, Israel, Nigeria, Philippines, Portugal, South Africa and the UK. In the Portuguese version, Big Brother laughs mischievously at the housemates, leaving them clueless, while in Australia, Big Brother really takes the secret missions to the next level.
Big Brother's Moments Around the World[]
Big Brother Australia[]
 Diary Room best bits- Chad, Sophie and Daniel - Big Brother Australia Best bits of Big Brother's banters with Chad, Sophie and Daniel in Big Brother Australia 2020. |
 Housemates take a gamble - House Task - Big Brother Australia Big Brother gives Big Brother Australia 2021 housemates irresistible rewards. But, there's some tricky catch. |
 Household luxuries go through the grinder - Meet Chippie - Big Brother Australia Big Brother reminds Big Brother Australia 2021 housemates that he is the real boss of his house. |
Pinoy Big Brother[]
 Day 155- Teen Housemates, first time makausap si Kuya - PBB Kumunity Pinoy Big Brother: Kumunity Season 10 Teen Housemates react to hearing Big Brother's voice as Big Brother talks to them for the first time inside the Confession Room. |
 PBB Balikbahay- Franki, sinubukan ang iba't ibang Pinoy food! Big Brother pranks unsuspecting Pinoy Big Brother: Otso's Batch 4 housemates with various exotic foods for their house party. Franki Russell became his main victim. |
 PBB Balikbahay- Celebrity Edition 2 Housemates, nag "Bora" beach party! (Part 2) A bothered Big Brother controlled intoxicated Baron Geisler's worsening actions during a house party in Pinoy Big Brother: Celebrity Edition 2. |
Big Brother Naija[]
 Biggie’s final message to his titans – BBTitans - S1 Big Brother gives heartfelt messages for Big Brother Titans 1 finalists during the season finale. |
 Day 49- Erica is disqualified - Big Brother- Lockdown - Africa Magic Big Brother evicts and disqualifies Erica Nlewedim as punishment for violating Big Brother Rule Book in Big Brother Nigeria 5. |
 Biggie makes a special appearance - Big Brother Naija- Reunion - Africa Magic Big Brother makes a special appearance in Big Brother Nigeria 3's Reunion Special and talks to the housemates. |
Big Brother UK[]
 Big Brother Has Had Enough - BBUK2018 Big Brother gets irritated with the Big Brother 19 (UK) housemates and leaves the house and vents out while the microphone is on. |
 Nikki Grahame’s Last Ever Diary Room - Big Brother UK Big Brother and Nikki Grahame had their final chat in Big Brother 19 (UK). |
Big Brother US[]
 BB11 Chima Simone disrespects Big Brother Chima Simone violates several rules, disrespected Big Brother and didn't follow his commands in Big Brother 11 (US). |
 BB production being funny A fan-made livefeed compilation of Big Brother talking to houseguests in Big Brother U.S. seasons. |
Trivia[]
- Big Brother's identity is highly confidential, and has remained a mystery among its viewers. Nevertheless, some versions have publicly revealed the man behind the iconic voice.
- In the first seven seasons of Big Brother Australia, Big Brother was voiced primarily by the show’s executive producer Peter Abbot. In 2008 Leon Murray (who was one of the show’s diary room producers) took over the roll. He later returned as the voice of Big Brother in the revival four years later. After much speculation voice actor Chris Coucouvinis was revealed to be the voice of Big Brother in the show’s second revival, from 2020-2023.
- The American Big Brother in Big Brother U.S. have been voiced by Don Wollman.
- In the Spanish version, there have been three individuals serving as the voice of Big Brother, known as the 'Súper'. Initially, Roberto Ontiveros filled this role until the seventh edition. Pepa Álvaro then took over from the eighth to the twelfth edition. Since the 12+1 edition, Floren Abad has been the Spanish Big Brother.
- Big Brother in Big Brother U.S. is rarely heard at all on the main show but can often be heard in the live feeds.
- Big Brother in Big Brother UK and Big Brother Australia (pre 2020) has been voiced by several voices of both genders.
- Initially, the Portuguese version was voiced by several voices. However, since the 2020 reboot, the Portuguese Big Brother has been voiced by the same person who voiced 'The Voice' on Secret Story Portugal . However, the identity of this person has not been officially disclosed by TVI.
- Between 2020 and 2023 the Australian voice of Big Brother was given a robotic voice filter in post production.
Iconic Moments[]
- In Pinoy Big Brother, Nene Tamayo was the first housemate to stand up for the Housemates and refused to follow Big Brother's unjust commands during Pinoy Big Brother 1, unbeknownst to her, Big Brother's unjust commands were part of a situational challenge to test their character. She ended up becoming the very first Big Winner and became known for standing up to her beliefs.
- Throughout the Weeks 13 and 14 of Pinoy Big Brother: Double Up, Big Brother seemed to be sick as his usual voice sounded congested, most of the housemates noticed it, but Big Brother still continued to guide his housemates for their New Year's Concert Task. Throughout the week, the housemates became overly worried about Big Brother's condition. On Day 92, while talking with Marielle Sorino in the Diary Room for the week's nominations, Big Brother suddenly passed out, unaware of the situation, Marielle thought it was a technical error. She was then told through the Diary Room's TV Screen to return to the house. Big Brother was admitted to the hospital, leaving the upset housemates without knowing what to do for a day. On Day 93, Big Brother was replaced by his villainous younger brother called Big Utol, who made evil tricks on the housemates while Big Brother was gone.
- During the celebration of the 10th anniversary of Pinoy Big Brother, Big Brother revealed himself behind a silhouetted booth and gave his heartwarming message for the viewers and the housemates.
- In Big Brother 11 (US), Chima Simone made several violations and even refused to follow Big Brother's commands when she was told to come to the Diary Room. It eventually led to the point where producer Allison Grodner speaking up to the loudspeaker to force Chima to come to the Diary Room, where she was expelled.
- On Day 48 of Big Brother 19 (UK), Big Brother began the day behaving uncharacteristically agitated, tired and annoyed. They would be very short with housemates, including telling Brooke Berry that "if you have something to say, Brooke, spit it out." Following an incident where Brooke, Sîan Hamshaw and Cian Carrigan were caught sleeping, two producers could be heard talking to each other, insulting the housemates for not being able to follow simple rules. One female voice could be heard saying, "do you think we should sod this off?", with a male voice agreeing. The Diary Room door was left open, and Big Brother would not respond to any housemates. Former housemates, Kim Woodburn, Josie Gibson, and Nikki Grahame then took over the responsibilities of Big Brother for the rest of the day. Kim Woodburn scolded housemates for being unhygienic and ordered them to clean. Later, Josie Gibson paired the housemates that knew each other the least and had them go on a 'date'. Finally, Nikki Grahame used this opportunity to enter the house and gossip with the housemates before leaving later that night. Big Brother returned upon Nikki's departure and resumed standard practice.
- In the last week of Big Brother: Duplo Impacto, Big Brother revealed himself to the finalists of the edition from the balcony of the house, speaking with them for a few seconds, all while remaining unseen by the cameras. The moment was surprising, as it had never happened before, marking an unprecedented event in the history of the format in Portugal. It was the first time in 11 years that "The Voice" had revealed himself.
- In Portugal, during the Christmas Eve of 2022, Big Brother entered the house disguised as Santa Claus, bringing gifts to the edition's finalists.
- On the finale of Big Brother Poland 3 (Big Brother Bitwa), Big Brother revealed himself to the finalists in person, leaving them shocked and amazed.
- ↑ Grant, Tamara (4 March 2020). ‘Big Brother’ Casting Director Robyn Kass Reveals the Man Behind the Show’s Iconic Voice (in English). cheatsheet.com.