The House

The House is the Irish edition of the Dutch reality television programme Big Brother.

Series 1
The first series of The House premiered on 16 March 2002 and explored the lives of twelve people, all from different backgrounds, and how they interact with one another. The series lasted 71 days, and ended on 25 May 2002 with a live finale.

The first nominations of the show took place on the second day in the house, a rarity in the future of the show. Siobhan became the first housemate to walk on Day 6, who had become upset over her nomination having been under the impression that she was liked within the house, when this wasn't the case. She was replaced by the show's first "intruder" Vanessa ten days later on Day 16. Big Brother exercised its powers on the housemates after consistent rule-breaking from housemates Callum, Harry and Shaun, placing them up for eviction alongside the housemates who received the most nominations. As well as this, two housemates were evicted on Day 35 with a further intruder, Bryony, entering the house shortly afterwards. Bryony was well-liked by the public but was the at the centre of intimidation by her housemates, which attracted criticism outside of the house. She was evicted after just two weeks in a "shocking" eviction against another well-liked housemate, Callum.

Callum Keane was crowned the winner of The House with 70% of the public vote on Day 71. As the first ever winner of the show, Callum received heavy media coverage prior to his exit and has been referred to as the "most liked" housemate, having received the highest amount of votes of any winner.

Series 2
The second series of The House premiered on 22 March 2003, after having been commissioned following the finale of the first series. It lasted 71 days, ending two months later on 30 May 2003.

Despite a good first week in terms of ratings, the series received mixed to negative reviews from critics, many who later branded the series as "one of the worst series' of the show". Several matters lead the series to this title, such as the housemates' bland reasons for nominating other housemates, plotting against Big Brother in an attempt to make all of the housemates face eviction, and the lack of dramatic events and tasks within the game. The ratings declined throughout the first five weeks, before receiving a short-lived surge in week 6 following the introductions of three new housemates and Luke's temporary escape from the house. In Week 8, Big Brother decided to punish Jack for his persistent rule breaking of discussing nominations by placing his housemates up for eviction, which also received media attention. The following week, the ratings dropped to an all-time low following bookies' favourite Luke's shock eviction, one week before the finale. The series was thus instead won by Brian Kearney.

Series 3
The third series of The House premiered on 19 March 2004, after having been commissioned following the finale of the first series. Like its predecessors, the series lasted 71 days, and ended on 28 May 2004.

The series was the first to feature the housemates entering the house live on television, a regular event now dubbed as "launch night". Twelve housemates entered the house; Una was the final housemate to enter, and before going in was told that she was the "chosen one". It was revealed that she was to be immune from eviction for the first week, and that more details would follow. On Day 3, she came face to face with six potential housemates and was asked by Big Brother to choose four of them to move in to the house as intruders. She chose Alison, Brendan, Grace and Kieran. On Day 5 in a special live broadcast, she was asked to nominate two of the intruders for eviction based on her first impressions of them. She nominated Kieran and Grace, and Grace was evicted three days later. On Day 30, Jason's girlfriend Jade entered the house as a new housemate. However, she became unlikable within the group and by the public, and was evicted after two weeks, having received the most public votes over five of her fellow housemates.

The series was complimented in the media, who believed it to be a "major step-up" from the "boring" second series, however received criticism due to the show's "premature ending", having three double evictions take place in the space of four weeks in order to "fit everything in". The series ended up being won by Anthony Walker, despite Kieran being a recurring favourite to win.

Series 4
The fourth series of The House premiered on 4 March 2005 and ended after 78 days on 20 May 2005.

Fourteen housemates entered the house on launch night, one of which were a set of twins, with a fifteenth housemate joining after the first eviction on Day 8. A further five intruders entered the house on Day 29, but weren't official housemates. Throughout the first week, the intruders were unable to access some of the privileges that the housemates had access to. On Day 34, the housemates made a decision live on four people to give housemate status. Nichola didn't receive the status, and was evicted immediately. The final intruder of the series, Hazel, entered the house on Day 43 as a replacement for James, who walked on Day 41.

The fourth series was well-received by the public, with critics praising the show's choice of unique and "drama-filled" housemates, also stating that there was never a dull moment within the series. However, the show received complaints of bullying towards housemate Cameron. Viewers mentioned that they found it at times "uncomfortable" to watch, especially during the week in which Cameron was nominated for eviction alongside one of his few friends in the house, Chan. Jeremy, Louise, Imogen and James received warnings for their intimidating behaviour towards Cameron, whereas Tommy was removed after pulling a prank on Cameron that went wrong. Cameron survived eviction seven times whilst in the house and received a total of 58 nominations from his fellow housemates. Despite this, he ended up winning the series over bookies' favourites, Susie & Zoe. The latter hold a record for being in the house for eleven weeks without receiving a single nomination.

Series 5
The fifth series of The House premiered on 17 March 2006. It was the first to seep out of its usual 70-day duration, a move that producers were initially worried about performing. The series lasted 93 days, and ended on 16 June 2006.

On launch night, eleven male housemates entered the house, followed shortly by Jennifer, the first female housemate, on Day 3. Four more females entered the house on Day 8 following the first eviction night, and the housemates were informed that only these housemates will be able to participate in the impending nominations. For the first two weeks, two housemates were evicted from the house instead of one. Following the dramatic first two weeks, the series went relatively quiet until Week 7 when five housemates moved into the "Almost House". On Day 47 in a special live broadcast, the housemates learned of the existence of the "almost housemates" and were asked to choose on of them to receive full housemate status based on first impressions alone. They chose Chris. The remaining almost housemates faced eviction, where the public voted for who they wanted to become a full housemate and move into the main house. Johnny and Monica received the least votes, and thus were evicted, with Rebecca and Stacey receiving full housemate status. On Day 81, Chris won a task that gave him immunity from the final round of nominations and ensured him a place in the final. Jennifer refused to nominate this week, and was automatically put up for eviction as punishment.

Throughout the series, the housemates were given tasks that would affect the amount of the prize fund. It peaked at £82,300 on week 6, but by the end of the series stood at £56,000. Despite the all-male launch, the series was won by Jennifer Edwards on Day 93 who received 45% of the public vote. This marks the first time that a female and an intruder has won the show. The twist was well-received, with critics saying that it was "refreshing to see the male housemates on their own for the first few days, without a female housemate to lust over."

Series 6
The sixth series of The House premiered on 16 March 2007. It ran for 85 days, ending after almost three months on 8 June 2007.

The series received mixed to positive reviews, with critics mentioning that it was "a bit of an anti-climax after a line of successful series', but didn't dampen its credibility". Fourteen housemates entered the house on launch night, which aired exactly five years after the premiere of the first series. In celebration of this, the housemates immediately underwent face-to-face nominations based on the first impressions of their housemates. After Crystal's eviction on Day 8, new housemate Alexa entered the house. On Day 12, she was asked to give three other housemates the privilege of nominating this week, and she chose Anthea, Paul and Tracey. Three new housemates entered on Day 35. After she continued to break the rules of discussing nominations despite several warnings, all housemates' nominations except Carole's became void, meaning only her nominations for Anthea and Jan counted. The housemates were unaware of this until Carole owned up to her mistake shortly after Jan was evicted. On the same night, Steven became the nineteenth housemate to enter. A twist took place on Week 9 where the housemates had to decide live on the housemate they wish to evict, out of the two that received the most votes to evict. Peggy received the most votes from her housemates and was evicted immediately.

The series was won by Paul Bryant on Day 85.

Series 12
The twelfth series of The House premiered on 13 March 2013. It ended after 77 days on 12 June 2014.

Twelve housemates entered the house on launch night, with a further three entering two days later; the three intruders turned out to have had relationships with the launch housemates. Aaron was the ex-boyfriend of Jasmine, James the ex-boyfriend of Danielle, and Kayla the ex-girlfriend of Caleb. On Day 30, Faye, Robert and Sam entered the house and became "Big Brother Royale", and later nominated one person for eviction each. Two weeks later, Andrew entered the house as a replacement for Eddie, who walked earlier in the week. He was given a secret mission; if he passed, he'd secure himself immunity and will be able to choose two housemates to nominate for eviction. Upon failing, he'd automatically face eviction. He passed, thus winning immunity. He was then told that only his nominations will count this week, unbeknownst to the other housemates. He nominated Aaron and Robert. The following week, the housemates were informed that, due to discussing nominations, the non-rulebreakers had to each nominate two of the five rulebreakers for eviction; Aaron and Faye received the most nominations and Faye was evicted. Week 9 was a double eviction, with all the housemates nominating one person each. In a further twist, anyone who received a nomination faced eviction.

The series was surrounded by controversy following Tilly's eviction from the house on Day 72. She was evicted to a negative reaction from the crowd, with one member of the audience attempting to grab her knee. Viewers complained about the harrowing moments and how nobody offered help to Tilly, who was clearly in distress. Later in an interview, Tilly stated that she still didn't know why she was booed, and that it led her to having a mental breakdown. The series ratings began to gradually decline mid-series, and was criticised for being "predictable", with the same housemates being up for eviction each week.

The series was won by Caleb Axton-Frow on Day 77.