Overview

Cash Mountain. Survive. Project X. In the mid-1990s, these three innovative television shows had hit a dead end before they had even made production. Rejected time and again by the networks, they seemed destined never to reach the screen. But thanks to the brilliance and determination of three men, not only did they get made, they became the biggest and most successful shows on earth: Who Wants To Be A Millionaire , Survivor and Big Brother. BILLION DOLLAR GAME is the compelling story of how Paul Smith, Charlie Parsons and, above all, John de Mol defied overwhelming odds to take the industry by storm, make personal fortunes and transform the map of popular culture. Peter Bazalgette, the man who brought Big Brother to the UK, charts the astonishing rise of reality TV from its humble beginnings on the Internet to the billion-dollar industry it is today.

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9780316729154

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Reviews

'Bazalgette writes as you would expect - with style, erudition and authority. His account is big and brainy, a hugely impressive appreciation of the technological, social and economic factors shaping our times. The businessman in Bazalgette clearly admires de Mol, the entertainer in him leavens the plot with laugh-out-loud anecdotes while the scholar gets down the fruit of his 160 interviews in details. He is authoritative on social change, the democratisation of content and the opportunity created by change on this scale . . . the book is a fine account of an extraordinary time in the history of television, a time when its activities transcended the small screen and became a part of everyone's conversation, young and old, believers and dissenters, powerful; and powerless' Richard Eyre, former ITV chief, BROADCAST MAGAZINE 'This book is breathtaking' NEW STATESMAN 'Bazalgette is plainly well qualified to write this book: in effect, a history of the origins and worldwide success of Big Brother. The book is always readable; it accounts of the shock and outrage that have accompanied Big Brother's various manifestations are particularly enjoyable' INDEPENDENT 'This is a rattling good business story as well as a tale from medialand' GUARDIAN

Bazalgette writes as you would expect - with style, erudition and authority. His account is big and brainy, a hugely impressive appreciation of the technological, social and economic factors shaping our times. The businessman in Bazalgette clearly admires de Mol, the entertainer in him leavens the plot with laugh-out-loud anecdotes while the scholar gets down the fruit of his 160 interviews in details. He is authoritative on social change, the democratisation of content and the opportunity created by change on this scale . . . the book is a fine account of an extraordinary time in the history of television, a time when its activities transcended the small screen and became a part of everyone s conversation, young and old, believers and dissenters, powerful; and powerless Richard Eyre, former ITV chief, BROADCAST MAGAZINE This book is breathtaking NEW STATESMAN Bazalgette is plainly well qualified to write this book: in effect, a history of the origins and worldwide success of Big Brother. The book is always readable; it accounts of the shock and outrage that have accompanied Big Brother s various manifestations are particularly enjoyable INDEPENDENT 'This is a rattling good business story as well as a tale from medialand GUARDIAN

Author Information

Peter Bazalgette has created formats such as Ready Steady Cook, Changing Rooms, Ground Force and Big Brother. He has been awarded a BAFTA fellowship and the gold medal by the Royal Television Society. A non-executive director of Channel 4, Peter Bazalgette is also chief creative officer at Endemol International and chairman of Endemol UK, Britain's leading independent producer.

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