Secret Story (TV series)

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Secret Story is a French reality television programme following the format of the popular Big Brother series carrying on from the previous similar show, Loft Story. It is currently being shown on TF1, being presented by the same presenter of Loft Story, Benjamin Castaldi. The series started on 23 June 2007, when 15 people entered a purpose-built house on the outskirts of Paris.

Contents 1 Principle 2 Title sequence 3 Broadcasts 4 Contestants 4.1 Erwan 4.2 Frédéric 4.3 Gabriel 4.4 Julien 4.5 Laly 4.6 Maryline 4.7 Maxime 4.8 Nadège 4.9 Nicolas 4.10 Ophélie 4.11 Tatiana 4.12 The triplets 4.13 Xavier 5 Hidden Rooms 5.1 Secret Bedroom 5.2 Chamber of Secrets 5.3 Second Chamber of Secrets 6 The Secrets 6.1 Secrets revealed to the public in the daily shows 6.2 Chronology involving the Secrets 7 La Voix 8 Nominations and Evictions 9 Criticism and controversy 10 References 11 See also 12 External links

[edit] Principle

The principle is similar to that of Loft Story. The contestants are kept locked away for 10 weeks in a house, called "La Maison des Secrets" (the House of Secrets) measuring 1600m² styled on the UK Big Brother 8 house including a swimming pool, jacuzzi, a lounge (where the bath is), bathroom with showers, and separate bathrooms for each sex. All of the rooms are installed with cameras, (except the toilet due to a law imposed by the Conseil Supérieur de l'audiovisuel. The Voice speaks to the contestants at times, and acts like "Big Brother" in other countries. Each contestant has to conceal a secret. Everyone else has to try and discover it. If a contestant does, that contestant wins the jackpot of the contestant whose secret they have guessed. Each secret is worth €10,000. Each Tuesday, 2 contestants are nominated and put up against the public vote to be evicted on the Friday. The girls and boys nominate the opposite sex, alternating weekly.

The show was originally to last 12 weeks, with 12 candidates, but Angela Lorente, director of reality TV shows on TF1, said in an interview that there would be 14 contestants over 10 weeks.^[1] Eventually, 15 contestants, of which three are triplets competing as one, thus making 13 official contestants.

[edit] Title sequence

The theme tune is I Wanna Chat by Booty Full. The single will be released by TF1 on 20 August 2007.^[2] The title sequence shows all of the contestants. The evicted ones are shown, but their name aren't.

[edit] Broadcasts

The first live show was broadcast at 8:50pm on 23 June 2007. Each subsequent eviction show is now shown at around 10:20pm every Friday with a live audience. The daily shows showing highlights from the past 24 hours are broadcast between 6-7pm with repeats shown in the early hours following. Action can be seen live 22 hours a day on Canal 144, Canal 52 or on the official website. Each day, aroung 500,000 people connect to the live stream on the website (around 2.5 times more than the live Star Academy feed).

[edit] Contestants

There are 15 people, with the triplets competing as one, making 13 contestants. They are:

[edit] Erwan

Erwan, aged 20, lives in a hearth of young workers and studies first year social sciences. His secret is that he wants find his veritable body.^[3]

[edit] Frédéric

Frédéric, aged 38, is in contact with extraterrestrials.^[4]

[edit] Gabriel

Gabriel, aged 26, is an artist. He is single and is working for La Voix (The Voice).^[5]

[edit] Julien

Julien Colas, aged 26, is an escort boy. He is described as a 'young man of taste'.^[6]

[edit] Laly

Nelly Valade (Laly), aged 26, is described as being irritated easily and shouting a lot. Laly works for the police and is a stripper.^[7]

[edit] Maryline

Maryline, aged 26, is a naturist, measuring 6'1''. She is unmarried because she has no time to find a man.^[8]

[edit] Maxime

Maxime Leconte, aged 21, had been living in London for a few months prior the show. He is the son of Henri Leconte.^[9]

[edit] Nadège

Nadège Dabrowski, aged 20, is a model and has a height of 5'6''. She suffers from OCD.^[10]

[edit] Nicolas

Nicolas Guillermin, aged 24, is a Chippendales dancer. His secret is that he lost 50 kg before the show.^[11]

[edit] Ophélie

Ophélie Marie, aged 23, is a playmate. She is described as a young woman full of energy.^[12]

[edit] Tatiana

Tatiana Delarue (née Karima Hammoudi), aged 25, lives in Paris. Her mother died when she was young. Tatiana has been married to Xavier for a year.^[13]

[edit] The triplets

Marjorie, Cyrielle and Johanna Bluteau, aged 23, are triplets. This was their secret. If they kept it a secret for a week, they would win €10,000. However, housemate Tatiana discovered the secret before the week was over. They compete as Marjorie.^[14]

Triplets with a similar task were also seen in Big Brother 3 Bulgaria in 2006.

[edit] Xavier

Xavier Delarue, aged 29, has played professional basketball for ten years. He has been married to Tatiana for a year.^[15]. He threatened to leave the game on August 20 after hearing a message from former housemate Maryline.^[16].

[edit] Hidden Rooms

The house also compromises of several other hidden rooms, made available to the contestants at various points throughout the show.

[edit] Secret Bedroom

Johanna, Marjorie and Cyrielle are the triplets. They were to switch once a day for a week, taking turns, with one in the main house and two staying in a secret bedroom, located in the loft, accessed through a secret hatch in the Confessionnal (the equivalent of the Diary Room). However, Tatiana discovered their secret before the week was up and so they lost their chance to get the €10,000.

[edit] Chamber of Secrets

The Chambre des Vérités, translated as the "Chamber of Secrets" is a completely white room equipped with a lie detector, developed by the Israeli services. Each contestant will go into the Chamber of Secrets and be put in front of the Lie Detector and will have to answer questions from the other contestants either 'yes' or 'no'. If the light goes green, the contestant is telling the truth; red is a lie and orange means 'undeterminable'.

[edit] Second Chamber of Secrets

Two contestants, a boy and a girl, were chosen by the production team to allegedly leave the house altogether. Maryline and Xavier were the two and the other contestants were told that they had been evicted. However, in reality, they were in a secret bedroom, able to follow the other contestants with a TV and headphones, similar to the Big Brother bedsit, used in the Big Brother UK 2004 house. After they returned, the room was kept and used by Xavier and Tatiana on their anniversary, after their secret had been revealed. This second room might be the same one used by the triplets at the beginning, as one thought she recognised it. Another, however, said that it was too small to be the same room.

[edit] The Secrets

• One of the contestants wants a sex change.
• One of the contestants has lost 50 kilograms.
• One of the contestants is a playmate.
• One of the contestants works for the police and is a stripper.
• One of the contestants is the child of a celebrity.
• One of the contestants is in contact with extraterrestrials.
• One of the contestants is a naturist.
• One of the contestants is one third of identical triplets.
• Two of the contestants have been married for a year.
• One of the contestants is an escort.
• One of the contestants has OCD.
• One of the contestants is the accomplice of La Voix.

[edit] Secrets revealed to the public in the daily shows

• On Launch Night:
  • Erwan wants a sex change.^[17]
  • Johanna, Marjorie and Cyrielle are triplets.
  • Frédéric thinks he's in contact with extraterrestrials.
  • Gabriel is the accomplice of the producers.

• At the end of Week 1:
  • Tatiana and Xavier have been married for a year.

• At the end of Week 2:
  • Laly is a stripper and worked before the series in the police station in Mériadeck, Bordeaux.
  • Nadège has OCD.

• During the daily show of 10 July, it was revealed that Laly and Nicolas had disobeyed the 7th Commandment in revealing their secrets and were automatically put up for eviction.
  • Nicolas lost 50 kilograms^[18]

• At the end of Week 3 :
  • Maryline is a naturist.

• At the end of Week 4:
  • Ophélie is a playmate.

• At the end of Week 5:
  • Maxime is the son of Henri Leconte.
  • Julien is an escort.

[edit] Chronology involving the Secrets

• Day 1: Julien thinks that Erwan isn't a man; his belief is confirmed.
• Day 4: Maryline thinks that Marjorie has a twin sister; her belief is discounted.
• Day 5: Frédéric thinks that Julien is of noble ancestry (from the Count of Savoy); his belief is discounted.
• Day 6:
  • Laly thinks that Frédéric is an extraterrestrial, having misunderstood that one of the contestants is in contact with extraterrestrials, not an extraterrestrial themself; Although this has been revealed already, her belief is discounted due to her misunderstanding. Frédéric loses his chance at the prize fund for giving Laly too much information to lead her to her belief.
  • Tatiana thinks that Marjorie has two twin sisters; her belief is confirmed.
  • Xavier thinks that Maxime is Benjamin Castaldi's brother; his belief is discounted.
• Day 14: The triplets think that Maryline is a naturist; their belief is confirmed.
• Day 21: Maxime thinks that Xavier is a DJ; his belief is discounted.
• Day 25: Maryline thinks that Laly is a porn star; her proposition is discounted.
• Day 28: Erwan thinks that Laly works for the police. Laly confirms this, but states that it is only half of her secret. Erwan therefore wins just half of her jackpot.
• Day 29:
  • Maryline thinks she's discovered Tatiana's secret, that "they took her child away from her and she got him/her back". Tatiana discounts her belief the next day.
  • Julien thinks that Ophélie is a sports champion. Ophélie denies this, claiming that he was not precise enough to say 'snowboarding', but this doesn't matter anyway, as her secret is that she is a playmate.
• Day 30: Tatiana thinks that Gabriel is a prince of a monarchy in the Middle East or Maghreb and that he lives in a palace; her belief is discounted.
• Day 36: Tatiana suggests to Ophélie that she is a jumping champion, but of height, not length or width. Ophélie refutes this theory by saying that she's not any kind of jumping champion.
• Day 39: The Secret Alarm went off, but Maxime says that he was with Tatiana, who accidentally leant on the button.
• Day 40: Maxime says that he thinks Tatiana and Xavier are a couple.
• Day 41: The Triplets think that Tatiana is a Buddhist
• Day 41: Maxime confirms his earlier thoughts about Tatiana and Xavier; his belief is confirmed and he scoops their jackpot.
• Day 43: Tatiana thinks that Maxime is the son of a celebrity, furthered by Xavier, Maryline and Gabriel.
• Day 44: Tatiana confirms her earlier thoughts regarding Maxime; his belief is confirmed but she scoops just half the jackpot, for not discovering all of the secret.
• Day 45: Xavier and Erwan think that Maxime is the son of Henri Leconte.
• Day 46: Xavier and Erwan confirm their earlier thoughts about Maxime; their belief is confirmed and they share the remainder of Maxime's jackpot.

[edit] La Voix

La Voix ("The Voice") of Secret Story is that of French voice animator Dominique Duforest.^[19]

[edit] Nominations and Evictions

Each week, in turn, the boys or girls go to the Confessionnal to nominate two people of the opposite sex that they want to face the public vote. The following is a table of their nominations:

	Week 1	Week 2	Week 3	Week 4	Week 5	Week 6	Week 7	Week 8	Week 9	Week 10
The triplets (Cyrielle, Johanna et Marjorie)	Frédéric, Frédéric, Nicolas	Not eligible	No nominations	Not eligible	Xavier, Maxime Gabriel	Not eligible	Maxime, Xavier	Maxime, Xavier Maxime	Xavier, Tatiana	Winner
Xavier	Not eligible	The triplets, Nadège	No nominations	The triplets, Maryline	Not eligible	The triplets, Ophélie	Not eligible	The triplets, Maryline Maryline	Gabriel, The triplets	2nd place
Tatiana	Frédéric, Nicolas	Not eligible	No nominations	Not eligible	Julien, Gabriel Julien	Not eligible	Erwan, Maxime	The triplets, Maryline Maryline	Gabriel, The triplets	3rd place
Maxime	Not eligible	Nadège, The triplets	No nominations	The triplets, Laly	Not eligible	The triplets, Ophélie	Not eligible	The triplets, Maryline Maryline	Gabriel, The triplets	4th place
Gabriel	Not eligible	Nadège, The triplets	No nominations	The triplets, Laly	Not eligible	The triplets, Ophélie	Not eligible	Xavier, Maxime Maxime	Xavier, Xavier, Maxime	Evicted (Day 62)
Maryline	Julien, Xavier	Not eligible	No nominations	Not eligible	Maxime, Erwan Erwan	Not eligible	Erwan, Maxime	Xavier, Maxime Maxime	Evicted (Day 55)
Erwan	Not eligible	Maryline, Ophélie	No nominations	Maryline, Laly	Not eligible	The triplets, Ophélie	Not eligible	Evicted (Day 48)
Ophélie	Frédéric, Nicolas	Not eligible	No nominations	Not eligible	Xavier, Maxime Julien	Not eligible	Evicted (Day 41)
Julien	Not eligible	Nadège, Ophélie	No nominations	The triplets, Ophélie	Not eligible	Evicted (Day 34)
Laly	Julien, Maxime	Not eligible	No nominations	Not eligible	Evicted (Day 27)
Nicolas	Not eligible	The triplets, Ophélie	No nominations	Evicted (Day 20)
Nadège	Gabriel, Maxime	Not eligible	Evicted (Day 13)
Frédéric	Not eligible	Evicted (Day 6)
Notes	See note 1	See note 2	See note 3	See note 4	See note 5	See note 6	See note 7	See note 8	See note 9	See note 10
Against public vote	Frédéric, Nicolas	Nadège, The triplets	Laly, Nicolas	Laly, The triplets	Julien, Maxime	Ophélie, The triplets	Erwan, Maxime	Maryline, Maxime	Gabriel, The triplets, Xavier	The triplets, Maxime, Tatiana, Xavier
Evicted (% of public vote)	Frédéric 22% to save	Nadège 25% to save	Nicolas 49% to save	Laly 41% to save	Julien 30% to save	Ophélie 46% to save	Erwan 22% to save	Maryline 42% to save	Gabriel 26.25% to save	Maxime 14.5% to win	Tatiana 18.5% to win
										Xavier 25% to win	The triplets 43% to win

Note 1: Girls' vote. The triplets were allowed three nominations (one each); they nominated Frédéric twice.

Note 2: Boys' vote. The triplets were considered as one and thus could be nominated together.

Note 3: Girls' vote. Nicolas and Laly were put up for eviction by La Voix for revealing their secrets.

Note 4: Boys' vote. La Voix gave Erwan the opportunity to give one girl immunity. He chose Tatiana, thus she was unable to be nominated.

Note 5: Girls' vote. La Voix gave Tatiana the opportunity to give one boy immunity. She chose Xavier, but did so in the Confessionnal, so the others couldn't hear her. Those nominations against Xavier were discounted. Ophélie's first nomination counted as two votes against Xavier, but he was immune and so this was discounted. Maxime had 3, but the other boys were tied at two each, so the girls then went to a second round of voting to decide the second nominee.

Note 6: Boys' vote. It was unanimous against the triplets and Ophélie.

Note 7: Girls' vote.

Note 8: For the first time, all contestants could nominate and be nominated. This was due to be Week 7, after each sex had nominated three times, but due to the nominations in Week 3 being cancelled, this was moved to Week 8. As 4 housemates were equally nominated (the triplets, Maryline, Maxime and Xavier), there was two rounds of nominations to find the two housemates to face the public vote; Maryline and Maxime.

Note 9: Again, all contestants nominated and could be nominated. As a reward for his secret not having been exposed, Gabriel was given a double vote, which he used on Xavier.

Note 10: In the final week, there were no nominations. All the contestants faced the public vote and the chance of winning the €150,000 prize money.

[edit] Criticism and controversy

• The house is presented as very eco-friendly, but the contestants arrived in Hummers, renowned for having an extremely high carbon footprint.^{[citation needed]}
• The secrets themselves have been criticised, as some are far more serious and shocking than others. For example, the desire to have a sex change (Erwan) is much more serious than being triplets (Cyrielle, Johanna and Marjorie).^{[citation needed]}

[edit] References

[edit] See also

• Loft Story
• Big Brother (TV series)

[edit] External links

• (French) Official site

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