Big Brother is the British version of the international reality television franchise "Big Brother" created by producer John de Mol in 1997. Originally broadcast yearly between 2000 and 2018, the show followed the premise of other versions of the format, in which a group of contestants, known as "housemates" live together in a specially constructed house that is isolated from the outside world. The housemates are continuously monitored during their stay in the house by live television cameras as well as personal audio microphones. Throughout the course of the competition, housemates are evicted from the house - voted-out of the competition. The last remaining housemate wins the competition and is awarded a cash prize. The series takes its name from the character in George Orwell's 1949 novel "Nineteen Eighty-Four".