Admittedly, I haven’t been watching Big Brother much this year. Despite a promising start, the series just hasn’t caught my attention. I do know that BB isn’t performing to previous standards though and from what I’m reading in the papers, viewers are switching off in droves.

So naturally, on the night that Charley was destined to leave - an eviction so certain the bookies were paying out in advance - Big Bro has sent in the Big Guns.

That’s right, if the series looks like it’s bombing, send in the freaks.

The people who walked in tonight (I won’t pretend to know their names - yet) were the seriously wacked-out fame seekers. Worse than deal-seeking Shabnam? Oh yes people, much much worse.

As we saw from previous ‘halfway housemates’ Kinga and Orlaith (remember those oddities?), you get unabashed attention-seeking - walking into the house in your pants or wearing a spotty top that highlights the most underwhelming pair of breasts on British TV at the moment. Surely it’s only a matter of time before one of them has ‘relations’ with a wine bottle in the garden while the nation collectively falls asleep in front of the telly.

I’ve heard two schools of thought around various watercoolers: one that this series is better because it’s more low key, the other that it’s simply dull. In this climate, you have to feel for the producers - trying to attract a different audience with a more evenly paced Big Brother isn’t working, and for the last couple of years the format appears to be just crumbling.

How are you finding this year’s BB? What are the high and low points and what could the producers improve upon?