News.com
TWO men who were kicked off Australian reality TV show Big Brother for "turkey slapping" a woman say they have received death threats and been called rapists on the street.
Michael "Ashley" Cox, 20, and Michael "John" Bric, 22, grabbed national headlines and even earned criticism from Prime Minister John Howard when they were thrown off the show made at the Gold Coast's Dreamworld theme park in mid-2006.
Cox was accused of rubbing his crotch in housemate Camilla Severi's face while Bric held her down on July 1.
The alleged incident was streamed live on the show's website but not broadcast on Network Ten.
It earned the ire of Mr Howard who called for the show to be taken off the air.
Camilla went on to finish runner-up in Big Brother's sixth series behind winner Jamie Brooksby - and the phrase "turkey slap" was introduced into general parlance.
Police investigated but no charges were laid.
"It ruined my life," Cox told Zoo Weekly magazine.
"I was branded a rapist on national TV. The hardest part was having no support from anyone.
"The producers tried to bribe us by saying we might be able to go to the final.
"Then we got a phone call saying we weren't allowed."
Bric said he was angry with the show's producers but most disappointed by the reaction of his former housemates after the incident.
"The producers used and abused us, I'm still angry with them," he said.
"The biggest hurt was being snubbed by the other housemates."
Cox said: "Most (housemates) of them didn't back us up.
"Camilla could have saved us, but didn't. Jamie was a really good friend in the house and I was expecting him to stick up for me and he didn't."
Bric said he had "lost faith" in the Big Brother show.
"The show exploits young people. There's a permanent question mark over our names," he said.
"The other day a girl came up to me and said I was a predator.
"It's a stigma that's going to be attached to my life."
Australia-wide auditions for the 2007 Big Brother have already been completed.
