Evicted
Cases unlock in order, like levels. This is case 61 of 100.
Studios of the reality show Evicted, in Salford, Manchester, Saturday, 9:20 pm. Live, during the final, Danny Rourke, 29, the favourite to win, collapsed on stage during the eviction announcement.
The doctors say poisoning: his heart raced and then failed. He is in hospital in a critical condition. The last thing he drank was the 8:55 pm tea, in the diary room.
The house has forty cameras, but the diary room camera was off from 8:50 pm to 9:00 pm. At that time, three people could reach the kitchen and the diary room.
The studios' wardrobe room, clothing rails, mirrors ringed with bulbs and a muted monitor replaying Danny's collapse.
Suspects
Chantelle PriceFinalist contestant, 26
Gemma AshworthExecutive producer of the show, 44
Imran SiddiquiHouse cook, 52
The real case
The British TV phone-in voting scandal
United Kingdom, 2007
This case is a work of fiction. The characters, names, places and events in the game do not portray real people. The account below is a factual summary, based on public sources, of the case that served as inspiration.
In 2007, investigations showed that several British television programs had deceived the public in phone-in votes and competitions: paid calls were accepted after voting had closed, winners were chosen by the production team and, in some cases, contestants favored by producers were kept on air against the real result.
ITV was fined 5.68 million pounds by the regulator Ofcom, and GMTV 2 million; shows were canceled and executives left the broadcasters. The episode changed the transparency rules for TV voting in the United Kingdom.
The game borrows the production team that rigs the count to keep whoever brings in viewers. The poisoning, the characters and the outcome are fiction.
Sources
Case glossary
Words from this case you might not know.
- diary room
- In reality shows, a private room where contestants speak alone to the camera or to producers.