Low turn out for Big Brother auditions

MPHO TLALE
Staff Writer | Monday March 18, 2013 00:00

 

The auditions that took place on Friday and Saturday at President Hotel somewhat had a cold and dull atmosphere. The hopefuls, who had come to try their luck to be the next contestant to represent Botswana at the BBA competition that is billed to start on May 26, did not seem enthusiastic to try their luck.

The Friday auditions however had a promising turnout compared to the Saturday auditions.  Although the room hosting the hopefuls before they went to the actual audition room was not full to capacity, only a few empty chairs could be seen.

The auditions then went on until around 7pm when there were only around two or three people left before the MultiChoice team could call it quits for the day.

Saturday however had a different story.  Even less numbers turned up for the auditions.  Only four hopefuls were found waiting for their turn to audition.

The MultiChoice team also showed that there was close to no work to be done as they engaged in chitchat just to kill time.

In an interview with Showtime, one of the MultiChoice employees, who preferred anonymity, expressed disappointment at this year's poor turnout. She said that Saturday had proved to be the worst day as compared to Friday because they had anticipated more. The previous Big Brother auditions had been a hit with the youth coming in droves.

She further said, 'We actually thought that there would be more people today because yesterday was a working day as compared to Saturday where people are now at leisure to run their errands'. The source further revealed she and the team remained hopeful that people will turn-up as the day unfolded.

This year it is expected that 14 African countries including Botswana will take part in the eighth season of the competition.  In a recent interview, MultiChoice Public Relations Officer Tshepo Maphanyane revealed that they are looking for a candidate who is tolerant because staying in the Big Brother house means interacting with people from different backgrounds.

Maphanyane had also said that the chosen candidate would have to be someone with a certain level of maturity to be able to survive the living conditions in the house.

'There are certain rules and regulations that need to be followed in the house and we need a person who will be able to follow those guidelines.

We need a person who can maintain their cool even when provoked by housemates,' she added.