16:59 - 22 January 2005
ThisisBristol
Bookmaker William Hill closed its book on Celebrity Big Brother claiming there was "overwhelming evidence" that "sensitive information" about the show was being leaked.
Hills said its suspicions had been aroused by betting for the last two evictions, where punters were still trying to place large sums despite odds as short as 1/14.
But the "final nail in the coffin" came when four or five unknown punters called asking about placing bets on a shock double eviction - shortly before model Caprice and actor Jeremy Edwards got the boot.
"There has never been a surprise double eviction before and this is highly unlikely to have been an inspired guess," Hills spokesman Rupert Adams said.
A spokeswoman for the Channel 4 show dismissed claims of a leak however, saying such sensitive information was kept strictly confidential and was only known to a few senior production executives.
Mr Adams said he believed someone had seen figures showing how the public were voting for a winner and was using them to predict which celebrity would be out next.
"We think somebody somewhere has got them and has been trying very hard to take us to the cleaners," Mr Adams said. "All our odds compilers say it defies all of the basic patterns they expect to see."
He said the number of people who called about bets on a double eviction, when none had ever asked previously, also suggested they must have somehow got inside information. The company did not know where the punters were calling from and none had accounts already, he added. The bets were not taken.
Mr Adams said he did not want to criticise Endemol, the makers of Big Brother, and did not imagine any of the "big players" within the programme was responsible for the leak. Nor did he think anyone from the company or Big Brother was trying to place bets themselves.
But he added: "They need to look at how many people are privy to the sensitive information."
Same story with a couple of pics BBC
