Back by popular demand, Greek television is taking the reality game show phenomenon further, offering the average Joe more chances than ever to grab fifteen minutes of fame - and a respectable amount of cash.

It was Antenna television's popular presenter Andreas Mikroutsikos and a cast of 12 unknowns that pioneered the reality game show craze in Greece one year ago, with what many local critics have praised as being a most morally upstanding Big Brother, in comparison to other countries' versions that displayed high levels of nudity, sex and violence.

This season Mikoutsikos and Big Brother I as well as presenter Miltos Makridis and Mega Channel's Barhave moved aside to make room for Fame Story, Popstars, The Farm, Gym Show and Couple of the Year. Over 12,000 applications were lodged for farm, gym and fame hopefuls, while over 35,000 calls for information were registered.

The popstars
Big Brother I produced Prodromos and Dora, who exhibited their good voices during the listless hours in their televised house and subsequently signed up with Antenna's record label Heaven to release an album each and tour as far as the US and Canada. Mega's Bar, in turn, produced a CD-single for musicians Lorenzo and Yorgos, while poster-boy Dimitris Raptis did a fun cover of the romantic Italian hit "Ti Amo".

This season Antenna is running Fame Story, in which we follow the trials and tribulations of a group of 16 young performers who enter the Star Academy and undergo training in voice, movement, drama, music and styling. Cameras follow them around 24 hours a day, they can communicate with friends and family via the telephone and are allowed weekly visits. Each week we watch them rehearse for a live show, complete a recording (CDs will be produced for sale) following which, they are judged by a panel of experts and two are selected to go to the audience vote.

Promoted as the most expensive game show yet, Fame Story, presented by journalist/ lyricist Natalia Yermanou (daughter of late legendary journalist/ writer Freddy Yermanos ), may come in handy. As Greece lacks professional performing arts schools, this televised academy offers classes in voice, dance and drama all under the same roof. Still the show is less reminiscent of the movie Fame (shot in a New York performing arts school) and more of a soap-opera filled with bickering about cleanliness and laughing during drama activities.

The show, however, prefers to promote its activities with the triptych "effort, values, success", rather than "fame, money and...fame" and as such the final award may not be monetary, as in previous reality game shows, but will offer three recording contracts to the three best performers. The same show in Spain produced the country's Eurovision Song Contest representative last year.

In the meantime, Mega Channel is holding auditions for their Popstars show, which will kick off in 2003. Popstars will choose about six young women over the age of 18 with the idea of transforming them into a real pop group ala Spice Girls. Viewers will be in on the entire process of creating the group from initial auditions through to rehearsals, concerts and recordings. Mega, Freemantle Productions and Warner Music, together with voice trainers, designers and choreographers, aspire to transform the girls-next-door into stars with their eyes set on international fame.

The farmers
Mega has left behind the comforts of last season's Bar and travelled, with presenter Grigoris Arnaoutoglou, back in time to offer viewers an idea of what life was like in Greece before WW II. The 14 players - the eldest at 59 years of age - have settled into The Farm located in the picturesque countryside between the villages of Vassilika and Tsapourna on the isle of Evia.

Despite the demanding conditions of the show - there's no electricity (apart from a generator from which film crew will be connected), no running water, no telephones and no weekly food delivery - around 5,000 people sent in applications. Players have to fetch their water in a pail from the nearby well, grind flour and bake their bread, they grow their own vegetables and as for the other food groups well, there are six chickens and a number of piglets on the farm.

Each week two players are selected to enter a battle of strength, skill and knowledge and the winner stays. The 150,000-euro prize goes to the ultimate winner. Viewers will not be voting in this game. "This is a risk we are taking," says Mega's programme manager Petros Boutos. In fact, Boutos sees The Farm as "more of a documentary than a reality game show", since there are no hidden cameras, players know exactly when the film crew is filming and cameras go home at night and return at sunrise.

The gym freaks
Star channel has chosen to go with The Gym Show. Christos Ferentinos started with 12 (out of over 3,000 applicants) players - aged 18 through 35. They're viewed in their digs in Haidari, while concurrently fixated on creating better bodies. They're working out at the specially-fitted-with-cameras gym, located at a casual 70 metres away, with an aerobic and a weights instructor.

Viewers are lured to enjoy 12 weeks of pure adrenaline, as players are occupied with various activities - such as water aerobics, soccer, volleyball and basketball. Nonetheless, players do not flaunt gym-freak perfect bodies but come in all shapes and sizes hoping to become fitter (if not richer - final prize being the 150,000 euro). A group of doctors, psychologists and physiotherapists are also on board, alongside some 50 extras, who visit the gym for a more than public workout.

The lovers
In line with Alter channel's more tabloid approach to news and lifestyle comes the reality game show entitled Couple of the Year with hostess Sia Liaropoulou. In this real-life dating show couples are matched with film crews following them around on their romantic candle-lit dinner dates, loud clubbing experiences, or extreme sporting dates, all for the viewers pleasure. Ideally they meet the love of their life and win the big bag of money at the end.

And as if this were not enough, Antenna has also signed rights to produce Survivor and Fear Factor.