The Omicron variant continues to plague the two biggest reality shows in Quebec. After comedian Eddy King, five other competitors from Big Brother Celebrities — out of a total of 17 — caught COVID-19, which forced production to rearrange the home-studio to separate the sick from the rest of the healthy players, well-connected sources tell me.
Posted yesterday at 7:15 a.m.
The six cases of COVID-19 within the cast of Big Brother Celebrities de Noovo, however, did not prevent filming from continuing in a warehouse in Anjou, in the east of the island of Montreal, I am told. The five cripples would be Martin Vachon, Michelle Desrochers (my favorite), Lysanne Richard, Valérie Carpentier and Stéphanie Harvey.
On the side of Star Academy, the first Sunday gala was postponed for another week, because six academicians were declared positive for COVID-19 at the start of the week, which therefore brings to ten the number of competitors infected on a cohort which has 19. It’s starting to look like herd immunity.
According to my information, the director of the StarAc, Lara Fabian, would also have fallen ill, which her press officer, Junior Bombardier, however, neither confirmed nor denied. The popular talent show’s first Sunday gala is now scheduled for January 30 at 7 p.m. With the draconian measures that have been taken since the outbreak and the number of candidates who have already contracted COVID-19, “it is unlikely that this will require an additional postponement,” TVA said in a press release.
Déferlantes producers Jean-Philippe Dion and Benoit Clermont, as well as TVA management, refused interview requests on Wednesday. The week-long trip from Star Academy cost millions, revealed Jean-Philippe Dion, Monday evening, during his appearance on the special program of Tower by Patrick Huard.
Back to Big Brother Celebrities, the increase in cases has split the game into two factions: the covids, who have moved into the boss’s bedroom with adjacent bathroom, and the negatives, who are evolving in the rest of the house-studio. The two groups do not mix. You will see this clear division – and the application of the new health rules – in the episode of Big Brother Celebrities that Noovo will relay on Thursday at 6:30 p.m.
Obviously, an infected participant always has the possibility, like comedian Eddy King, of moving to the hotel and returning to health without suffering a penalty.
The five people with COVID-19, however, chose to confine themselves in front of the cameras, in their quarantine dormitory. They are all doing well.
According to the Noovo channel, the 17 headliners of Big Brother Celebrities have been adequately vaccinated and have, for the most part, caught COVID-19 “before filming began”.
Eddy King is sort of the patient zero of Big Brother Celebrities. The 39-year-old comedian was the first to show symptoms, including a high fever, days after appearing on Noovo’s star reality show.
According to his manager, François Simard, “Eddy followed all the directives” of the isolation protocol requested by the producers of Big Brother Celebrities. He has no idea where and how his client could have been infected. Honestly, we’ll never know for sure.
PHOTO FROM THE SHOW’S FACEBOOK PAGE
The director of Star Academy, Lara Fabian, with the two teachers, Guylaine Tremblay and Gregory Charles
Unlike the singers of Star Academy, who have been confined to the hotel for more than two weeks, the quarantine imposed on the players of Big Brother Celebrities was less military, let’s say. The competitors, however, underwent several tests before the host Marie-Mai opened the doors of the show to them. Only Stéphane Fallu had then received a positive result.
Star Academy and Big Brother Celebrities are huge machines that are already difficult to operate in normal times. Now imagine all the mess caused by the presence of COVID-19 on these sets.
It’s an endless puzzle. It’s a sword of Damocles that hangs permanently above the heads of the two production teams.
Moreover, it is almost a miracle that the diffusion of Big Brother Celebrities was not stopped by Omicron’s virulence. Noovo’s reality show now operates in two sealed bubbles. There are Martin Vachon, Michelle Desrochers, Valérie Carpentier, Lysanne Richard and Stéphanie Harvey who camp in the boss’ room recycled into a sanatorium. And there are the other 11, who escaped the attack of the virus.
Rest assured, the health of the competitors has been placed at the heart of the decisions, with good reason. We’re not going to send a member of the Comic Guys or the Avengers to the hospital for a veto, though.
Now, it seems obvious to me that the “disease” will promote the creation of alliances and undo others. This is an unprecedented medical turnaround, which fits perfectly into this unreal start to the year that we are experiencing. It seems that nothing would surprise me today… apart from a victory for Valérie Carpentier. That would be straight up science fiction.