First Muslim on Australia's 'Big Brother' quits show before it starts

The first Muslim scheduled to take part in the Australian TV series "Big Brother" has quit the reality show before taping began, a series executive says.

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"Brother" executive producer Virginia Hodgson said the unidentified Muslim contestant withdrew from the televised competition for unspecified family reasons, the Melbourne Herald Sun reported in its Sunday edition.

"There isn't (a Muslim), there was," Hodgson said. "We had chosen as one of our housemates an Afghani Muslim guy.

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"He couldn't proceed for personal and family reasons. He was potentially a very interesting, different young man."

The former contestant was supposed to be part of an eclectic and potentially volatile mix of participants in the upcoming new season, Hodgson told the newspaper.

"I think it will be a challenge for them to find common ground," she said. "We have cast a wider net in terms of age, backgrounds and beliefs -- political, cultural, religious."