It might not be much fun to watch anymore but there are still some fascinating things going on in the house. H's Lord of the Flies analogy was probably a good one. There's more going on here though than just a childish spat between an actress and a bunch of overgrown schoolyard bullies.

The most spectacular change is that one that has befallen Jade whose deconstruction will have repercussions beyond the show and has certainly contributed in a major way to the whole thing falling apart.

The whole spiraling complaints thing was as much to do with power of the Internet as anything that happened in the show. Big Brother creates strong opinions on forums across the web and this can easily swell the number of complaints enormously now that it's so easy to make your views known on line.

Television news loves stories about television so pretty soon the number of complaints became a news story and that story subsequently generated more talk on the bulletin boards and generated still more complaints, with some people doubtless complaining from the clips they'd seen on the news rather than the actual programme itself. If some unscrupulous publicists have added grist to the mill to keep the whole thing bubbling it wouldn't be much of a surprise.

The term feeding frenzy has scarcely been more apt.

One benefit of this was that we got a much more serious BBLB than we've had for years and it was ten times better a show for it. Poor Dermot had the virtually impossible task of playing devil's advocate to his guests while trying to hold the company line. I don't think he quite pulled it off but it was a valiant attempt while Dom Joly was surprisingly serious for a change and made some interesting points as did Narinder Kaur who made far more sense here than she ever did when she was actually in house. It seems she's grown up a bit. First time winner Craig Phillips was also good value and none too complementary about Jade. I would have liked this to be probed further.

Jade's decline has been nothing less than spectacular. Possibly because her mother was in the house or possibly because she was more aware of the cameras than she seems to be now, I quite liked her when she arrived. It appeared from her words and actions that she had a good heart and was prepared to rush to the defence of others, the prime example being her confrontation of Ken Russell over the cracker incident.

I think many of us really felt for Jade when Jackiey was whisked away in such a sudden, dramatic and shoeless fashion, but that sympathy has quickly vanished as slowly but surely her venomous nature has come to the fore.

Maybe this would have happened eventually anyway but I'm certain that events were accelerated when Leo quit resulting in Carole's premature eviction. I don't there's a chance on this earth that things would have been allowed to get to this stage if The Malone were in there to keep a lid on things and Jade's alliance with Danielle, and Jo certainly wouldn't be as strong were someone to have the bottle to confront them with their own behaviour.

Without in any way shape or form defending the bullying that has gone on in there, I have to say that were I in that house, Shilpa would be getting right on my nerves. She has from day one adopted a superior attitude and I as far as I can tell from the footage I've seen been less than accommodating to the views and feelings of her housemates.

She has an unfortunate way of reacting to hearing something she disagrees with and adopts an incredibly whiny tone and a facial expression that could curdle milk. This is an attitude she has adopted with everyone, even allies Dirk and Jermaine. Indeed I've come to the conclusion that Jermaine has the patience of a saint. Unfortunately for Shilpa not all of her housemates are so angelic.

Bear in mind though that Shilpa is fully aware of that some of her roommates are fazed by her culture. Don't be fooled into thinking that at least some of her actions haven't been designed to create a reaction.

The Witches don't seem to be blessed with that much intelligence whereas Shilpa is a very smart cookie indeed. Playing the victim and at the same time exposing the nastiness of those around her could prove to be a very sharp game plan and as the controversy goes global, as the politicians get involved and the quality press gets as interested as the trashy mags, so the cash registers for both makers Endemol and indeed Miss Shetty will be ringing for all they are worth.

The bitchiness against Shilpa seems to be completely out of control. We are used to seeing bitchy behaviour in the house because that's part and parcel of the game, but it's always in the past seemed to be part of a game plan and allowed us to have fun painting housemates as villains. This isn't the same or least it doesn't feel the same while watching it. There is genuine animosity in there, genuine nastiness and when Jade says she wants to head butt Shilpa, it genuinely outrages some of us on the outside because we think she really means it. The rant during the row over the stock cube showed us all just how ugly Jade is in the inside.

Reputations are being seriously damaged in there and this could a major problem for Jade, Jo and Danielle because reputation is a major part of what they are as celebrities. Will it really be commercially viable to have your business associated with those branded in some quarters as bullies and racists?

It will be interesting to see the reaction that Jade gets in the weeks and months after leaving the house. There has always been a section of society that has been resentful about her fame and fortune and the manner in which she achieved it and any crumb of grudging respect she managed to earn from that quarter has been eroded badly by the events of the last week. More than that though, those that helped put her where she is, those who were on her side will be reassessing her in the light of this. She seems remarkably resilient though, and a public fall from grace may not shake her too much.

Sadly, I don't think the same can be said for Danielle and Jo. I can't say I'd relish being Teddy Sheringham with the sort of sledging he must be getting on the football pitch. I have to wonder what impact the pubic reaction to what's gone on will have on Jo, already suffering panic attacks. I can't see her being flavour of the month when she gets out and would imagine that both women will be mortified when they emerge to find themselves tarred with the racist brush.

Part of the game of Big Brother is that no contact with the outside world is allowed and The Witches have no idea just what a storm has blown up over their actions. I actually think they should be told but then that just might calm things down and that wouldn't help the ratings would it?

Are you enjoying watching it though? I can't say that I am.

If a British reality show is allowed to go so far that it results in effigies being burnt on the streets of India, something isn't right.

Channel 4's claim that there had been no overt racial abuse seems like a cop out and is more likely to accelerate rather than quell the deluge of complaints. To state that "Shilpa has not voiced any concerns of racial abuse" at six o'clock then screen a show at nine o'clock where she quite clearly says it is racist would seem to suggest that the left hand doesn't know what the right is doing.