Pinoy Big Brother House Rules

Life in the Pinoy Big Brother house is about going back to basics. Housemates will have to adhere to rules & principles set by Big Brother in their attempt to last 100 days inside the Big Brother House.

Pinoy Big Brother Principles
1. The lifestyle in the house is “back to basics.”
2. Housemates will have no information about or from the outside world.
3. Housemates will be cut-off completely from friends, families and loved ones.
4. Complete strangers come together to live as Housemates and to create a unique family unit.
5. The nomination process evicts people from the house.
6. Everything that happens in the house and garden is filmed. This is 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

Rules Around the House
The Big Brother House is specially designed and equipped for the 12 Housemates. At the beginning of the show, Housemates will enter through the main entrance of the House. When they walk through those gates again is totally dependent on them.

While in the House, Housemates must abide by the following Big Brother rules:

Furniture
Furniture and soft furnishings within the confines of the Big Brother House should not be moved. These include:
* Sofas
* Beds
* Kitchen table
* Confessional room chair
* Bedroom pillows

Bathrooms
There are 2 bathrooms inside the Big Brother House. Each bathroom will contain a sink, shower-area and toilet. For safety reasons, the door of the bathroom cannot be locked. Housemates will have to post a given sign on the door of the bathroom to indicate if it is being used.

Housemates will also be given one hour only of HOT water before bedtime.

Kitchen & Dining Area
The kitchen and dining area are combined and include a sink, hotplate, fridge, oven and a table with chairs. Every day, the Housemates must decide on the daily main meal. There will be one and only one menu for this meal. If a Housemate is a vegetarian, s/he must still eat the same meal. They may only remove the meat.

Confession Room
The Confession Room is the only room in the House where Housemates can communicate with Big Brother and vice versa. This is the venue where Housemates can voice out their personal feelings and observations about fellow Housemates. This is also where they can inform Big Brother of a voluntary exit, joint calls and emergencies. Big Brother can also speak to Housemates about House issues, while they are in the Confession Room.

A Housemate can even be summoned to the Confession Room if Big Brother feels there is a pressing issue that needs to be discussed. Failure to appear in the Confession Room when requested by Big Brother could result in disqualification.

All nominations for evictions should be made in the Confession Room.

To enter the Confession Room, Housemates must press an electronic buzzer. The door will then automatically open if no one else is in the room. Although Housemates can make joint calls to Big Brother, Housemates cannot enter the Confession Room if someone else is inside. A light will indicate if the room is occupied.

In summary, a Housemate may enter the Confession Room for the following reasons:
* Nomination
* Voluntary exit
* To share personal feelings & thoughts
* Emergencies
* Big Brother requested to talk to a Housemate
* Private counseling from a psychologist

Storage Room
Tools and dry goods that the Housemates can use are located here. There is also a supply of staples and vegetables inside the storage room, which the Housemates will have access to for only fifteen minutes a day (betweek 10:00-10:15 AM). The door to the room is electronically locked and only Big Brother can open the door for the Housemates.

For tasks, there may also be one-off deliveries to the storage room. Housemates should not use this opportunity to collect extra food.

Garden
There is landscaping and a swimming pool in the garden. Housemates are expected to water and maintain these plants. They should also keep the pool clean.

Roof
Housemates are not allowed to climb onto the roof of the House or to any other structure that confines the House. Housemates who disregard this rule may be disqualified and asked to leave by Big Brother.

Cameras
Cameras and microphones make sure that there is no privacy in the Big Brother House. There are cameras located all around the House and the garden, including the bathrooms. All rooms are fully illuminated at all times, except for the bedrooms where lights can be switched off at night. Big Brother reserves the right to broadcast anything, although discretion will also be used. Footage from the bathroom may be broadcast if the room is being used for purposes other than that which it was intended (ex. 2 Housemates are gossiping inside the bathroom).

When asked, Housemates are expected to clean the one-way mirrors that span the house. Cleaning materials will be provided to the Housemates.

Microphones
Housemates must wear their radio-mics at all times. Any attempt to cover the mics or to communicate through writing secret messages or mouthing words to the cameras is prohibited. Big Brother may disqualify a Housemate who breaks this microphone rule. The only times when they may remove their mics are when they are asleep or are in the swimming pool or shower. When removed, Housemates must place their mics at designated areas.

Housemates are also responsible for changing the batteries of their mics every 8 hours. New batteries will be placed in the Confession Room. This is where the Housemates must change their batteries. When communicating with Big Brother, Housemates must first remove the batteries from their mics.

Leaving the House
Housemates leave the House in one of three ways:
* They are nominated
* They decide to quit the House of their own free will
* Big Brother disqualifies them and asks them to leave

Once a Housemate leaves, there is absolutely NO returning to the House.

New Housemates
A new Housemate may be called in to replace any person who leaves voluntarily or who has been disqualified by Big Brother. This replacement can be a former Housemate who had previously been evicted. If and when this happens, the following rules apply:

* Housemates cannot ask the new Housemate any questions about the outside world, and the new Housemate cannot report any news about the outside world.
* Housemates must help the new Housemate adjust to life in the House.
* If the new Housemate wins, s/he will not receive the full prize money. The cash prize will be computed based on her/his stay in the House.
* The new Housemate will be exempt from the next nomination round.

Forced Exit
Another way to leave the House is through the voting-out procedure, which is as follows:
* Once a week, every week, all Housemates will be called into the Confession Room one-by-one.
* Housemates are given 3 points to use for nominations. While in the room, Housemates nominate the 2 people they believe should leave the House. They assign 1 point to one of the people they nominate, and the remaining 2 points to the other nominee. A Housemate cannot assign all 3 points to 1 person.
* Housemates must give a reason for the nomination of each of their nominees.
* Housemates cannot nominate themselves.
* Housemates may not plot or scheme against a fellow Housemate. Doing so is against the rules of the Big Brother House.
* Housemates may not throw dice, draw straws or use any kind of game to select the eviction nominees.
* If a Housemate refuses to make a nomination, s/he must leave the house. Such action will be considered as a voluntary exit, not an eviction.
* The two (or more) Housemates with the highest points will be up for eviction.

Big Brother reserves the right to declare a nomination round invalid.

The results of the nominations will be announced to the Housemates a few hours after the nomination round. The announcement to the viewers will be made public the next day. Viewers then vote in the Housemate they want to stay in the House.

Safety Protocol/Emergencies
Housemates must abide by the rules of Big Brother for their own safety. In addition, Housemates must undergo a fire and first-aid training before they enter the House. They will also be given a written plan for emergencies, so that they may familiarize themselves with such procedures.

In the event of an emergency, Big Brother will communicate to Housemates via the public address system. Housemates are expected to follow all directives from Big Brother. Failure to do so may result in disqualification.

Violence
Any Housemate who becomes violent will be removed from the House immediately.

Accident & Illness
In case of an accident, Housemates may use the first-aid kit located in the living room. Housemates may also go to the Confession Room to report if additional medical help is needed.

If a doctor, nurse or dentist is needed for minor treatments, they will enter the House and treat the patient in the Confession Room. If a Housemate needs hospital treatment, Big Brother will judge whether the Housemate may return to the House. If a hospital visit is necessary, a member of the production team will accompany the Housemate to ensure there is minimal contact with the outside world.

A psychologist will also be available for counseling, either on request of the Housemate or if Big Brother feels it is necessary. Counseling sessions will not be filmed nor will Big Brother listen in to the conversation. Although the psychologist will maintain client confidentiality, s/he will let Big Brother know if the Housemates have any pressing issues or vulnerabilities that need to be addressed. Support will also be provided for Housemates once they leave the House.

Fire
There will be fire extinguishers in the House, which may be used by Housemates to extinguish small fires. In case of a serious fire hazard, Housemates are instructed to go into the garden and Big Brother will advise further.

Uninvited Guests
Big Brother is the only contact Housemates may have with the outside world. Big Brother will never come to the House unannounced. It may be possible, though, for people to try to reach and enter the House. If there are uninvited guests around the House, Big Brother will ask Housemates to go to the Confession or Storage room immediately. Should parachutists land in the Big Brother garden, Housemates should follow the instructions of Big Brother and they should keep the garden door locked.

from the Pinoy Big Brother Website