Big Brother and Celebrity Big Brother to end after 18 years, Channel 5 announces

'It’s time for this game to end'

Channel 5 has announced that Big Brother and Celebrity Big Brother are both coming to an end.

After months of rumours, the broadcaster confirmed that the new series, which begins tonight (14 September), will be its last.

“It’s time for this game to end,” the channel tweeted.

The seminal reality TV show aired on Channel 4 from 2000 to 2010 before moving to Channel 5. The first edition of the show quickly built momentum thanks to the antics of Craig Phillips and Nick Batemen (dubbed “Nasty Nick” by the tabloids) and peaked with an audience of 9.5 million during the final.

Last year’s series final on Channel 5 was watched by just 1.1 million people.

“The forthcoming series of Big Brother will be the last – of either celebrity or civilian versions – on Channel 5,” a statement from the channel reads.

“We’d like to thank Endemol and all of the production team who have worked tirelessly to make the show a success.”

The most recent versions of Big Brother have been hosted by Emma Willis and narrated by Marcus Bentley. Rylan Clark-Neal hosts Channel 5’s spin-off show Bit on the Side.

“We’d also like to thank our brilliant presenters – Emma on Big Brother and Rylan from Bit on the Side – for their consummate professionalism, Marcus, the voice of Big Brother and all of the housemates who have created so many memorable moments.

“Most importantly, we’d like to thank fans of the show for their support over the last seven years. We look forward to giving the final series a brilliant send-off.”

Ben Frow, director of programming at Channel 5, previously told an audience at the Edinburgh TV Festival: “I plan for a year without Big Brother.

“I never say never because the world is constantly changing, and I think it would be irresponsible to not keep all options open, but at the moment I’m planning for a year without Big Brother.”

The core Big Brother series saw members of the public being placed in a house and isolated from the outside world for an extended period of time. The first series was hosted by Davina McCall and saw 11 housemates stuck together for 64 days, attracting an average audience of 4.5 million.

The series' popularity lasted for several years, viewers slowly dropping off towards the end of the show’s run on Channel 4. Channel 5 picked up the series in 2011 but failed to bring viewers back, an average 1.6 million people tuning into the 12th series.

The first series of Celebrity Big Brother aired in 2001, featuring such famous faces as Jack Dee, Chris Eubank and Vanessa Feltz, the spin-off proving as popular as the core series on Channel 4. Following the move to Channel 5, the celebrity edition proved far more popular and a new series broadcast twice every year.

Earlier this month, Celebrity Big Brother made headlines after Roxanne Platt, a former Emmerdale star, quit the house after claiming eventual winner Ryan Thomas “punched” her “repeatedly, unprovoked, and completely deliberately” during a play-fight. Pallett later stated she had “overreacted” to the incident, with Thomas forgiving her during his winners speech.