Human zoo puts Channel 4 on top

Big Brother gave Channel 4 the largest audience in its 19-year history on Friday – making it Britain's most watched TV station for the first time ever.

Nearly 10 million viewers tuned in to watch 22-year-old IT operator Kate Lawler become the first woman to scoop the reality show's £70,000 cash prize at the end of her 64-day incarceration.

The audience peaked between 10.30 and 10.45pm, around the time of her emergence, stealing 9.9 million viewers – more than a million up on last year's climax. Overall, the programme drew 9.4m viewers, a 50.1 per cent share of the available audience, compared to 4.6m for the end of Midsomer Murders on ITV, 2.7m for the BBC1 news, and 2.4m for Newsnight on BBC2.

The huge audience for the Big Brother finale turned Friday into the most successful day in its history. The station's overall audience share for the day was 22.6 per cent, compared to 21.1 per cent for BBC1 and 20.2 per cent for ITV.

While many will doubtless view the mammoth ratings as further proof of the dumbing-down of viewer expectations and a victory for banality over substance, there was no hiding Channel 4's glee. The news has come as a welcome boost after a deeply demoralising month during which at least 50 people were made redundant following the closure of its film production arm, FilmFour.

A jubilant Channel 4 spokeswoman said yesterday: "We are obviously delighted by this news. Big Brother has done it again. It managed to keep the nation hooked right until the final moment."

As the shutters closed on the televised human zoo, there was no sign of an end to the media circus surrounding the series. Yesterday's tabloids were full of speculation that Jade Goody, the gaffe-prone 21-year-old dental nurse from Bermondsey, London, who came fourth despite widespread predictions that she would win, could as earn as much as £1m.

Meanwhile, former contestant Nick Bateman accused The Outside Organisation, the agency given first refusal to represent the housemates, of trying to arrange work for the four finalists without their knowledge. Mr Bateman, who with Stuart Hoskins from last year's show, formed his own agency to help reality TV contestants to re-adjust, said: "We asked Outside to pass on our details to the contestants as an alternative, and we don't believe they have."

Additional reporting by Buffy Reid

'Dumb Britain was the only winner here'

'Orchestrated' and 'manipulative'. Former 'Big Brother' inmate 'Nasty' Nick Bateman gives his verdict on the triumph of trash TV

The freak show finished on Friday night, with Big Brother very unwell. Kate, the first female winner in the world, picked up the modest prize of £70,000 in front of millions of surprised viewers, who were left checking their phone bills to see why their vote had been diverted to Kate instead of Alex.

Jade's survival a few weeks before, despite a huge hate campaign by almost every paper in the country, was almost as baffling. But then again, there was danger that if she went so would the ratings.

The irony was not lost on me that this time exactly two years ago, I was restlessly moving about in a hotel room, waiting for the morning.

I walked for an hour by the Thames, watching boats move through the water. I began to sense this could be big – I was dreading it. Six hours later I was face to face with nine complete strangers who instantly forgot they were actually in a game show.

Most of them spent their time drinking tea or gibbering inanely at other times like deranged monkeys. This was a game show and I started to play, much to the annoyance of the tabloids, who in retaliation for me not being a tabloid reader and being, in their eyes, posh, decided to be judge and jury and crown me Nasty.

When the series ended we were given media careers by default, and when we followed this path we were lambasted for doing so. Fruit machines and posters and book sales made Big Brother even richer; contestants began to felt short-changed and, at £30 a day for 24 hours of filming, who could blame us?

Big Brother gives you a tag that is hard to shake off. I know I can do more, but sometimes the industry is blind to its own hypocrisy and I will be judged on what I have done, not what I could be doing.

Big Brother is now very ill, especially since Conrad Green – the original producer – left to go to the BBC.

The tea makers of the first series, who now run the third series, totally forgot the rules of Big Brother. We got contestants that played to cameras and a Big Brother that played up to their egos by bending the game's own rules. Totally mindless tasks and even copious amounts of booze failed to be the catalyst they normally promise, and dumb Britain was the only winner.

The sad factor in this situation is that the housemates are no brighter than the average person in the street. Big Brother reflects society and watching it hurts us.

These new contestants will be exploited, with the inevitability of rain at Wimbledon, by agents who have more than a cosy relationship with Big Brother. As more old contestants seek legal advice, six now in total, as to the way they have been portrayed by Big Brother, time will tell if we will be subjected to any more of this orchestrated, manipulative viewing that the producers pass off as reality TV.

The truth is that the channel is all too happy with the increased revenues, which have saved it from another poor year. But at what price? The wrong kind of audience and a dumbing down of a good format – all for money.

Today? I am happy and have no regrets; you can only regret what you do not do, and not what you have done.