Started watching episodes I hadnt seen from ages ago which was when the newbies (marc,sam,simon,harry) came in the house, seems like the originals viewed marc as this massive sideshow character who just came in and ruffled their feathers, if he had come in with the originals I think the original housemates would all have had a different take on him... possibly eventually with the same outcome at the point we're at now but still would have been an organic growth instead of the pantomime producers have orchestrated him to be.. thoughts?

Maybe...maybe not. It does raise a good point though. The newbies nearly always get cast by the wayside for the originals. Hell, even the viewers always find some sort of loyalty for the originals come the final night. No matter how good a newbie HM is they're always fighting a tough battle to stay in and/or win. It really begs the question of why bother putting them in in the first place? It feels like BB put them in to prolong/reinvigorate some entertainment then sit back and watch them be thrown to the wolves.

Just look at this year. As soon as they were able to be nommed Marc, Simon, Sam and Harry were almost always put up. No matter what else happened in that house. Marc might have been a big contender to win it had he been an original but now he's basically the only newbie left pissing against the wind.

Gaz22 you basically gave my original post life! All I had in my head you said it better, fairly new to these boards so it seems pretentious to give a long speel, but to me it seems like they saw mark could be controversial so "saved" him for when it was needed....seems like they do this often and i dont think its fair to contestants!

I think the producers held Marc back for the simple fact that he could have easily become Sallie Axl. Hence, all the gimmicks that have saved him for weeks.