Reality TV baddies the secret to ratings success as MKR, MasterChef, Big Brother and The Biggest Loser cast the contestants we love to hate My Kitchen Rules hosts Manu Feildel and Pete Evans. THE three golden rules of TV reality show success are casting, casting, and casting. Get the right mix of talent and you are set for a ratings bonanza. Reality show fans want to see drama, controversy and bitchiness. There has to be goodies and baddies - contestants to love and contestants to hate. My Kitchen Rules has delivered that in spades. Pete Evans and Manu Feildel are popular, but the Channel 7 cooking show has snagged massive ratings because of its contestants, not its hosts. Last year, the Spice Girls - Jessie Khan and Biswa Kamila - hooked viewers with their inflammatory comments about other contestants' dishes. "I just can't eat anymore, I'm going to puke," Khan said at one of her rival's dinner parties. The Indian community called them bad role models, there was racial abuse and even death threats on social media. Despite, or maybe because of that, ratings boomed to about 1.8 million viewers per episode. People couldn't wait to see them fail in the kitchen. When Khan and Kamila were eliminated, MKR introduced Gatecrashers Ashlee Pham and Sophia Pou who upped the nastiness. Pou's brutal put-downs included describing Lisa and Stefano's home restaurant decor as "like a piñata threw up." A dish by Dan and Steph drew "my dogs eat better than this." The controversy was music to Seven's ears and MKR hit two million viewers. In 2012, pompous Queenslanders Gary Rogers and Peter 'Dr Evil' Hamilton were cast as the villains and MKR triumphed. Contrast that with MasterChef Australia which had memorable goodies (Julie Goodwin and Poh Ling Yeow) and baddies (Chris Badenoch and Jonathan Daddia) to cheer or hiss in its early years, but has struggled to find interesting contestants in recent times. Little wonder that its ratings have dropped. The fifth season of MKR is out to replicate the recipe for success. Another 12 state-based teams (see sidebar) will hold pop-up restaurant dinner parties for their rivals as well as Evans and Feildel. Added ingredients include the MKR Food Truck, a red semi-trailer decked out with a state-of-the-art commercial kitchen, and a new jury system which sees teams judging rivals' meals. The winning team gets a $250,000 first prize. "My Kitchen Rules is really the first of the big reality TV shows to demonstrate that with constant refining of casting and storylines you can grow your audience solidly year after year," media analyst Steve Allen says. The key is having heroes and villains as well as carefully presented friction and confrontation which spills on to the plate. MKR isn't the only reality show working hard to get the mix of contestants right. Big Brother hit the jackpot last year with housemates Tully Smyth and Tim Dormer. When Smyth entered the Big Brother house she was a self-proclaimed lesbian with a partner, Tahlia Farrant. That didn't stop the 25-year-old social media strategist from making goo-goo eyes at housemate Anthony Drew and soon romance was on the cards. Viewers were dirty on Smyth for cheating and Ruby Rose was so incensed she took to Twitter to vent her feelings. As Smyth became increasingly needy, fans even worried about her mental health. Winner Dormer was one of the most annoying Big Brother contestants of all time - vain, manipulative and domineering. But many thought those attributes made the former music presenter the most compelling thing about the 10th season of Nine's reality show. Alisa and Lysandra Fraser helped Nine have one of its most successful seasons of The Block when they competed on last year's Sky High. No wonder they have been brought back for the upcoming Fans v Favourites. The Adelaide twins were as abrasive as coarse sandpaper, getting up the noses of competitors, but they still took home $395,000. The Biggest Loser is hoping that size matters. This year's Challenge Australia tackles obesity in a whole country town - Victoria's Ararat. Contestants include Mary Reid, 48, who is the heaviest female to take part in the Channel 10 weight loss show. Last year's Celebrity Apprentice Australia lived off the friction between swim stars Dawn Fraser and Stephanie Rice. The 2011 season got a shot in the arm from the bitchy antics of singer Deni Hines. Reality shows add to the drama by putting contestants in highly-pressured situations. That can come at a psychological cost which is amplified if competitors become the target of hateful social media campaigns. So why do ordinary Australians put themselves through reality show torture? The prize money is an obvious lure and shows like MasterChef also include cookbook deals. More and more contestants know that making their mark in a reality show can lead to other media opportunities and that stardom beckons. "A show as popular as My Kitchen Rules is the perfect opportunity for people that want the spotlight, but they have to have talent beyond mere competing if they want to stay in the public arena once the show has finished," Allen explains. I am sure we will see some of this year's My Kitchen Rules contestants try their hand at a media career. My Kitchen Rules, Channel 7, Monday and Tuesday, 7.30PM