Pinoy Big Brother

Pinoy Big Brother, more popularly known by its abbreviated title PBB, is the Philippine version of the Big Brother reality game show franchise. The word Pinoy in the title is a colloquial term for the Filipino people. The show first aired on August 21, 2005 on Abs-CBN, Studio 23, and its international channel, TFC in various countries worldwide. The uncut 24/7 version of the series can also be seen on the internet through paid-online streaming video subscription via TFCNow, and through cable network SkyCable. The original hosts of the show were Willie Revillame, Toni Gonzaga, and Mariel Rodriguez. Gonzaga is the only host to be in the show since the beginning. Currently, she hosts the show with Bianca Gonzalez and Robi Domingo. Other essential elements of the Big Brother franchise are present, such as weekly and daily challenges, the confession room, and the voice known only as “Big Brother,” sometimes referred to as “Kuya” . Pinoy Big Brother uses their tagline “Teleserye ng Totoong Buhay” or the “Real Life Soap Opera”.

 

 

It follows the same premise as its many foreign counterparts around the world wherein a number of Filipinos volunteered to live inside a house for a certain number of days. The elimination process in the show is the reverse of the original Dutch format. At the start of the elimination process, the “housemates” vote for which two fellow housemates they should eliminate. Once these nominations are chosen, the viewer votes come into play. For a week viewers are asked to vote, via SMS or voice messaging through PLDT’s hotline , for whoever they wanted to stay longer in the house. The housemate with the fewest viewer votes is eliminated. In the final week, the one with the most viewer votes will win the grand prize package, usually includes house and lot, a car, a business franchise, home appliances, and a holiday, and is given the title the Big Winner. 

 

The show has also aired two special versions. One of which is the Celebrity version of the show, which housed commercial models, actors and actresses, radio and TV show hosts, musicians, sports and fashion personalities, and even politicians in a certain number of days. Celebrity housemates play for charity, aside from themselves. Prizes given away from edition to edition can vary, but basically, the cash prize an edition’s winner can receive is the same as the prize for that winner’s chosen charity organization. The other one is the Teen version. The adolescents chosen for this particular version are aged 13 to 19 years old, and are from different cities in the Philippines. Other factors are disregarded; in-school and out-of-school youths, natural-born Filipinos and adolescents with a mixture of Filipino and foreign blood, those with intact and broken families, and even teenage single parents may be eligible as long as one passes the age requirement and has a background worth exploring during the edition’s run. 

Pinoy Big Brother also shows an activeness on YouTube, Instagram, Twitter and Facebook. The biggest online audience Pinoy Big Brother has on Facebook, where the audience exceeds 8 million followers.