BB5 - housemates psychoanalysed

iVillage's resident couples' counsellor Sue Quilliam muses on the events of the past week in the BB house

Michelle's evicted

Michelle wasn't the first BB housemate to return after being evicted - but she is the first ever to be evicted twice.

The first time, she simply wasn't liked; the housemates were suspicious, the public unimpressed. But once back from the bedsit, Michelle seemed to have grown up. She coped well with the Big Fight and was much less bitchy and manipulative.

Second time round, the reasons for Michelle's eviction are more complex. They certainly hinge round her negative reactions to the Chain Gang game: resentment of Jason, jealousy of Shell, and nagging of Stuart.

But the reason Michelle was voted out is not so much her behavior as the comparison with others. Quite simply, everyone else still in the House has more fans.

Michelle wasn't voted out before now because she wasn't bottom of the heap in the popularity stakes. Now, she is.

Please release me!

The Chain Gang Game was a blatant - and very successful - attempt by the BB psychologists to increase the pressure on contestants.

Human beings need a balance of interaction - some alone time, some company. But when you're with people 24/7 - with the added intimacy of mutual teeth brushing - the stress is huge.

Predictably, the couple who coped best were Dan and Nadia, whose jokey style defused the tension. Plus, there's no sexual attraction between them, and that made their pairing much easier to handle.

Stuart and Shell would have coped brilliantly if it hadn't have been for their mutual guilt at being locked together when Michelle didn't want them to be. They kept things safe by being very nice to each other but avoiding any intimacy - physical or emotional.

Jason and Michelle had the hardest time, not only because Michelle was so upset about not being paired with Stuart, but also because they are very different animals in the personal space department.

Jason loves his own space and felt incredibly pressured by being bound to Michelle. She, on the other hand, needs people - and found it frustrating when he held her back from joining in with group games.

Their mutual frustration made Michelle very vulnerable emotionally and - once the task was over - caused Jason to retreat into his shell.

Mystery man Dan

Dan's approach to the contest has never been clear. He began calmly, supporting the others and playing peacemaker. And on the surface, he seemed the most together contestant by far.

But his housemates have always been suspicious that he was just telling people what they wanted to hear. And they've all accused him of manipulating the group and of never revealing his hand.

Certainly he's never truly bonded with anyone. And although he's had emotional outbursts, there's always been a sense that he's never fully letting go and that these events may simply be an attempt to be interesting.

So is Dan's approach a game plan? Is he carefully judging the reactions of the group, trying to judge the reactions of the public, and then aiming to give everyone what they need? I suspect he is - and because of that, he won't win.

At the same time, I don't think Dan will worry about losing. He made it clear from the start that he was in the BB house for the experience, but Dan will leave as he arrived, an utter mystery.

The lone ranger

With Victor gone, Jason's truly alone - but he's brought this on himself. He and Jungle Cat buddy Victor played 'divide and rule' almost from the start, setting themselves up against the Lip Gloss Harem and then trying to seduce the other men into the group.

The problem was, it didn't work. Dan's too much of a fence-sitter. Stuart's too involved with Michelle. Ahmed eventually joined but was always a loose canon and got himself evicted.

All too soon, Jason and Victor were the only ones in the jungle, and when Victor's power games led to his eviction, The Cats became The Cat.

After that, although Jason at first tried to bond with the remaining housemates, the Chain Gang task tipped him over the edge. Since the task ended, he's actively distanced himself.

Jason is in for the long haul now, but he'll serve his time in solitary. And his loner ways will make sure he doesn't win.