UNITED KINGDOM: TV viewers place wagers on who will be voted out from controversial television reality show Celebrity Big Brother

Two reality TV contestants unknowingly at centre of international furore over racism and bullying face off in a public vote which British media is casting as a battle between beauty and beast . Two reality TV contestants at the centre of an international row over racism and bullying face off in a public vote on Friday (January 19). Bollywood actress Shilpa Shetty and Jade Goody have been shortlisted for eviction by fellow housemates on "Celebrity Big Brother". Goody is hot favourite to be kicked out by the public telephone ballot. Shetty's treatment at the hands of 25-year-old Goody, her mother and three other contestants in the Big Brother house has triggered a storm of protest in Britain and India. A major sponsor of the show has pulled out, two contestants have had commercial deals suspended or cancelled and Britain's media watchdog has received more than 30,000 complaints from viewers. Even senior politicians have weighed into the row. Because the house is cut off from the outside world the contestants are oblivious to the controversy. Either Shetty or Goody, who became famous in Britain only for her performance in an earlier Big Brother show, is in for a big surprise on Friday evening when they leave the show. Residents of London seemed to be leaning towards Goody's being ejected. "I'm gonna vote for Jade to go out. She's had her chance on Big Brother. She's had the experience. She don't nee to have it again. She don't need to go in there now, really. So I'm definitely voting her out. I'm gonna go phone them right now," said one woman. "Celebrity Big Brother" has prompted intense debate in Britain about whether Shetty's treatment constitutes racism, and to what extent the unseemly scenes that have reduced the 31-year-old to tears are a reflection of British society. Shetty, an A-list star, has been called a "dog". Some housemates have refused to learn her name and referred to her as "the Indian" and "Miss Poppadom".

ITN Source | January 19, 2007

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