O'Brien (Nineteen Eighty-Four) O'Brien (Nineteen Eighty-Four) O'Brien (known as O'Connor in the 1956 film adaptation of the novel) is a fictional character and the main antagonist in George Orwell's novel "Nineteen Eighty-Four". The protagonist Winston Smith, living in a dystopian society governed by the Party, feels strangely drawn to Inner Party member O'Brien. Orwell never reveals O'Brien's first name. O'Brien is a member of the Inner Party and, like Winston Smith, works in the Ministry of Truth. There, he holds an administrative position that is so distant that Winston has only a vague idea of its nature. Winston suspects that O'Brien secretly opposes
Big Brother (Nineteen Eighty-Four) to describe any prying or overly-controlling authority figure and attempts by government to increase surveillance. Big Brother and other Orwellian imagery are often referenced in the joke known as the Russian reversal. The magazine "Book" ranked Big Brother No. 59 on its 100 Best Characters in Fiction Since 1900 list. "Wizard" magazine rated him the 75th greatest villain of all time. The worldwide reality television show "Big Brother" is based on the novel's concept of people being under constant surveillance. In 2000, after the United States version of the CBS program "Big Brother" premiered, the Estate of George Orwell sued