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To quote the Other Wiki, recommended characters are "fan characters 'recommended' by fans of the series." In BFDI's eleven-year history, thousands of recommended characters have made their rounds on the show, mostly without speaking rôles but prominent enough to be noticed by even the most casual viewers.

But how does that translate to the years of RLBFDI, when there was no YouTube, Google, Reddit or Patreon? On this page, you can see how these people from all over the planet appeared in a show that was set in the middle of the world map.

Real-Life BFB
Main infoProduction info

Yearly overviewShow timelines (Timeline of RLBFDIRLBFDIA • RLIDFBRLBFB before and after the split • RLTPOTExtra scouting) • General timelines (pre- and post-1950)

Differences from Pencil 2.OAestheticsMethodology (NamesNationalitiesHeightsAgesColours • AccessoriesTeam portraits) • Beyond the 64

TL;DR: InfoTimeline of the final project (part 1part 2part 3)

The (slightly un)official RLBFB yearbook! (Alternate takes)

Season 1: RLBFDI[]

Episodes 9–11[]

If you're a fan of BFDI, you'll know that Bomby was the first recommended character to appear on the show after being recommended by jaysillyboy in 2010. This mimics the fact that the person whom Bomby is modelled after was the first non-contestant/host to appear on RLBFDI back in 1962.

Extra from RLBFDI episodes 9–11 (1962)
Human name (1962) Object name (2010) Description Credited
Kaboumogo, Bombi (Bomby) Bomby Bombi Kaboumogo was an expatriate from Upper Volta and a part of a short-lived international labour programme. In this scheme, people from newly independent African nations were encouraged to work elsewhere in Africa (many of which were still colonies) to promote a spirit of unity among the continent's peoples. In the summer of 1962, Bomby was a 15-year-old unpaid intern to the production crew, who had always wanted to be a stunt double. He was so popular behind the scenes that he was allowed to get a rôle in the show, first appearing as an unknown character in RLBFDI 9 and getting a speaking role in episode 11. Also a future contestant on RLBFDIA, RLIDFB, RLBFB and RLTPOT. 4:35 (ep. 11)

Episodes 12–13[]

It was soon realized that more extras were needed to make the series more lively. At that time, the system for finding extras was not as robust and systematic as it was later. In fact, the extras for episodes 12 and 13 were simply people who happened to be in Nairobi a month before filming began. In those episodes, you could count the number on your fingers and toes, and I've decided to list them by name here, as that will not be possible in future episodes.

Extras from RLBFDI episode 12 (1962)
Human name (1962) Object name (2010) Description[1]
Nonexisty Nonexisty Does not exist.
Anastasiades, Dominik Ole Marker [Orange] Brother of Marc (see below).
Anastasiades, Marc Marker [Purple] Future contestant on RLBFB and RLTPOT.
Angola, Pascualina "Lina" Basketball Future contestant on RLBFB and RLTPOT.
Domino, Simon "Simon D." Domino
Hoareau, Anne-Marie Seashell First Seychellois to appear on RLBFDI.
Jefferson, Carter Quarter Older cousin of Nick (see below).
Labelle, Thomasina (Tommie) Lightbulb
Malo, Marcia Marshmallow First Puerto Rican to appear on RLBFDI.
Pape, Roy Paper
Pape, Sydney Sheet of Paper
Pembe, John Trinity "J.T." Triangle Father of Penelope and Nathalia.
Reiserov, Washington Dollar
Taylor, Alex "Allie" Football
Watterson, Kendall "Ken" Gumball
Zavala, Candace Candle
Extras from RLBFDI 13 (scouted 1962; episode released 1963)
Human name (1962) Object name (2010–11) Description Credited
Dierschl, Peter Batteries Twins; not the same as RLTPOT-hopeful Petra, though they are Austrian too. 0:22–0:29
Dierschl, Piera
Monteiro, Renata Remote Future contestant on RLBFB and RLTPOT.
Bethel, Elizabeth Ann "Liz" Bottle Future contestant on RLBFB and RLTPOT Bethel, here known by her first name. 0:30–0:34
Cortes, Francisco "Chico" Scissors Future RLTPOT hopeful.
Kennedy, Elizabeth "Betsy" American Flag
Falk, Nanna Snowflake One of the many descendents of Simon. 1:46–1:49
Thomsen, Torben Niels "T.N.T." TNT 2:55–2:58
Kabua, Rose Rose First Ugandan to appear on RLBFDI, scouted shortly after its independence. 3:02–3:10
Dee, Richard "Dick" Dice [sic] 3:23–3:25
Leigh, Terence Treeyee Future contestant on RLBFB and RLTPOT Terry; here known by his full forename.
Fuentes, Joaquín Fork Not the only person with that first name to appear in RLBFDI; also the first Mexican to appear in the series. 4:06–4:16
Taylor, Alex "Allie" Football Appeared in RLBFDI 12 as well (see above). 4:33
Blaine, Jamie "James" Balloon First Scotsman to appear on RLBFDI. Also future contestant on RLBFB Blaine; here known by an extension of his forename. 5:22–5:24
Schweppe, Candy Candy 5:27–5:30
Henning, Wanda Wandy 6:11–6:14
Ball, Ira Ball Not related to the Ball family; he comes by way of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. 6:19–6:27
Conniff, Dirk Knife 6:52–6:57
Iola, Karen Crayon 7:01–7:05
Pambou, Pénélope-Grace "Penny" Pencil Grip First Congolese (from the Republic of the Congo) to appear on RLBFDI. 7:05–7:08
Hua, Chi-Fei Marcella Peanut Butter First Chinese to appear on RLBFDI. 7:13–7:17
Stevens, Job[2] Phone
Carver, Phinehas Peanut First Liberian to appear on RLBFDI. 7:21–7:31
Illić, Klara Nutcracker First Yugoslavian to appear on RLBFDI.
Le Page, Claude Cloudy First Frenchman to appear on RLBFDI. Also a future contestant on RLBFB and RLTPOT. 7:52–7:56

Episodes 14–25[]

  • For a two-week period ending a month before filming began, as many crew members as possible were sent on a global field trip every month via two routes. Their aim was to hold auditions for potential RLBFDI extras from around the world. This tradition has continued for the other seasons, albeit in many different forms.
    • Introduction to sponsorship: Once a contestant was selected to appear as an extra in RLBFDI, they were sponsored by a loyal viewer under a pseudonym with hopes of becoming a part of the show—sponsors of those that made it to a certain level of fame were paid rather well.[3] As of 1973, this tradition has continued every season.
  • Some time after the final recommended character was accepted into the show, the extras were transported to Africa, where they learned the rules of the game. Before filming for RLBFDI 17 began in April 1963, it was revealed that thirty of them had had a chance of joining the show.
  • Many extras left Kenya after their filming was over (unless they appeared more than once), but they were instructed to come back by the end of October 1963 to watch the final Cake at Stake in person.

Here is the general schedule for scouting recommended characters.

Recommended character-scouting schedule for RLBFDI (1962–1963)
Day Route 1 Route 2
Day 1 Nairobi, Kenya Colony

Represented country:

  • Kenya Colony

Day 2 Rest of Kenya

Represented country:

  • Kenya Colony

West Asia

Represented countries:

  • Bahrain
  • Iraq
  • Jordan
  • Kuwait
  • Lebanon
  • Muscat and Oman
  • Qatar
  • Saudi Arabia
  • South Arabia
  • Syria
  • Trucial States
  • Yemen

Day 3 North Africa

Represented countries:

  • Algeria
  • Ethiopia
  • French Somaliland
  • Libya
  • Mauritania
  • Morocco
  • Somalia
  • Sudan
  • Tunisia
  • United Arab Republic

South-West Asia (Iran, Afghanistan and Pakistan)

Represented countries:

  • Afghanistan
  • Iran
  • Pakistan

Day 4 India (and other South Asia)

Represented countries:

  • Bhutan
  • Ceylon
  • India
  • Maldive Islands
  • Nepal
  • Sikkim

South-East Asia

Represented countries:

  • British North Borneo (to RLBFDI 23)
  • Brunei
  • Burma [essentially banned]
  • Cambodia
  • Indonesia
  • Laos
  • Malaya (to RLBFDI 23); Malaysia (from RLBFDI 24)
  • Sarawak (to RLBFDI 23)
  • Singapore (to RLBFDI 23)
  • Thailand
  • Vietnam, North [limited]
  • Vietnam, South

Day 5 East Asia (and the Pacific)

Represented countries:

  • China
  • Guam
  • Hong Kong
  • Japan
  • Korea, North [essentially banned]
  • Korea, South
  • Mongolia [limited]
  • Pacific Islands Trust Territory
  • Philippines
  • Ryukyu Islands

Australasia and Oceania

Represented countries:

  • Australia
    • Nauru
    • Papua and New Guinea
  • British Solomon Islands
  • Fiji Islands
  • Gilbert and Ellice Islands
  • New Hebrides
  • New Zealand
    • Cook Islands
    • Niue
    • Tokelau Islands
  • Tonga Islands
  • Western Samoa

Day 6 South America (Hispanophone)

Represented countries:

  • Argentina
  • Bolivia
  • Chile
  • Colombia
  • Ecuador
  • Paraguay
  • Peru
  • Uruguay
  • Venezuela

Brazil

Represented country:

  • Brazil

Day 7 West Indies

Represented countries:

  • Bahama Islands
  • Barbados
  • Bermuda
  • British Honduras
  • British Guiana
  • British Virgin Islands
  • Cayman Islands
  • Cuba [limited]
  • Dominica
  • Dominican Republic
  • French Guiana
  • Grenada
  • Guadeloupe
  • Haiti
  • Jamaica
  • Martinique
  • Montserrat
  • Netherlands Antilles
  • Puerto Rico
  • St. Christopher-Nevis-Anguilla
  • St. Lucia
  • St. Vincent
  • Surinam
  • Trinidad and Tobago
  • Turks and Caicos Islands
  • U.S. Virgin Islands

Mexico and Central America

Represented countries:

  • Costa Rica
  • El Salvador
  • Guatemala
  • Honduras
  • Mexico
  • Nicaragua
  • Panama

Day 8 Southern United States

Represented country:

  • United States
    • Panama Canal Zone

Western United States

Represented country:

  • United States
    • American Samoa

Day 9 Eastern/Northern United States

Represented country:

  • United States

Canada

Represented countries:

  • Canada
  • St. Pierre and Miquelon

Day 10 Britain and Ireland

Represented countries:

  • Great Britain
    • Channel Islands
    • Gibraltar
    • Isle of Man
    • Malta
  • Ireland

Northern Europe

Represented countries:

  • Denmark
    • Faroe Islands
    • Greenland
  • Finland
  • Iceland
  • Norway
  • Sweden

Day 11 Western Europe (Francophone)

Represented countries:

  • Andorra
  • Belgium (French-speaking)
  • France
    • French Polynesia
    • New Caledonia
  • Luxembourg
  • Monaco
  • Switzerland (French-speaking)

Central and Eastern Europe

Represented countries:

  • Albania [essentially banned]
  • Austria
  • Belgium (Dutch-speaking)
  • Bulgaria [limited]
  • Czechoslovakia [limited]
  • Germany, East [limited]
  • Germany, West
  • Hungary [limited]
  • Liechtenstein
  • Netherlands
  • Poland [limited]
  • Rumania [limited]
  • Soviet Union [limited]
  • Switzerland (German-speaking)
  • Yugoslavia

Day 12 Iberian Europe and colonies

Represented countries:

  • Portugal
    • Cape Verde
    • Macao
    • Portuguese Angola
    • Portuguese Guinea
    • Portuguese Mozambique
    • Portuguese Timor
  • Spain
    • Ifni
    • Spanish Guinea
    • Spanish Sahara

Italy and the Mediterranean

Represented countries:

  • Cyprus
  • Israel
  • Italy
  • Greece
  • San Marino
  • Switzerland (Italian-speaking)
  • Turkey

Day 13 Francophone Africa

Represented countries:

  • Burundi
  • Cameroon
  • Chad
  • Central African Republic
  • Comoro Islands
  • Congo-Brazzaville
  • Congo-Léopoldville
  • Dahomey
  • Gabon
  • Ivory Coast
  • Madagascar
  • Mali
  • Niger
  • Réunion
  • Rwanda
  • Senegal
  • Togo
  • Upper Volta

Anglophone Africa

Represented countries:

  • Basutoland
  • Bechuanaland
  • Gambia Colony
  • Ghana
  • Liberia
  • Mauritius
  • Nigeria
  • Rhodesia and Nyasaland
  • Seychelles
  • Sierra Leone
  • Swaziland

Day 14 Uganda, Tanganyika and Zanzibar

Represented countries:

  • Tanganyika
  • Uganda
  • Zanzibar

South Africa (and South West Africa)

Represented countries:

  • South Africa
    • South West Africa


Extra-scouting schedules for individual episodes[]

This section indicates where each audition took place and who (if relevant to the competition) got in.

For RLBFDI 14 (1962)
Date Route 1 Route 2
Mon. 26 Nov. Nairobi, Kenya Colony
Tue. 27 Nov. Mombasa, Kenya Colony[4] Beirut, Lebanon
Wed. 28 Nov. Algiers, Algeria
Characters first scouted here:
  • Khaled Saad
Tehran, Iran
Thu. 29 Nov. Calcutta, India
Characters first scouted here:
  • Abigail Man (stage name of today's Abbie)[5]
Bangkok, Thailand
Fri. 30 Nov. Tokyo, Japan Brisbane, Australia
Sat. 1 Dec. Cuzco, Peru Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Sun. 2 Dec. San Juan, Puerto Rico Monterrey, Mexico
Characters first scouted here:
  • Briselda "Selda" Varela (stage name of today's Briselda)[6]
Mon. 3 Dec. Richmond, Virginia, U.S.
Characters first scouted here:
  • Frederic "Freddy" Collins Jr.[7]
  • Nicholas "Nick" Jefferson
Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Characters first scouted here:
  • Antonio "Tony" Ortega (stage name of today's Toni)[8]
  • Margaret "Peggy" Tan
  • Tomas Jung Hoon Woo
Tue. 4 Dec. Boston, Massachusetts, U.S.
Characters first scouted here:
  • Hanako Arbutus "Mechanised Flora" Harvey[9]
Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Characters first scouted here:
  • Paula MacPherson
Wed. 5 Dec. London, England Oslo, Norway
Characters first scouted here:
  • Astrid Bergjord
Thu. 6 Dec. Paris, France Munich, West Germany
Characters first scouted here:
  • Bahiya Saleh (real name of today's Belle)
  • Gabriel Weiland
Fri. 7 Dec. Madrid, Spain Rome, Italy
Sat. 8 Dec. Léopoldville, Congo Lusaka, Northern Rhodesia
Sun. 9 Dec. Dar es Salaam, Tanganyika Durban, South Africa
Mon. 10 Dec. Return to Kenya


For RLBFDI 15 (1962–1963)
Date Route 1 Route 2
Thu. 27 Dec. Nairobi, Kenya Colony
Fri. 28 Dec. Nakuru, Kenya Colony Aden, South Arabia
Sat. 29 Dec. Casablanca, Morocco Karachi, Pakistan
Sun. 30 Dec. Nagpur, India Phnom Penh, Cambodia
Mon. 31 Dec. Manila, Philippines Adelaide, Australia
Tue. 1 Jan. Lima, Peru
Characters first scouted here:
  • Dora Marquez
São Paulo, Brazil
Wed. 2 Jan. Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic Acapulco, Mexico
Thu. 3 Jan. Atlanta, Georgia, U.S. San Francisco, California, U.S.
Fri. 4 Jan. Kansas City, Missouri, U.S.
Characters first scouted here:
  • David Justdavid
Montreal, Quebec, Canada
Characters first scouted here:
  • Barbara Baker
Sat. 5 Jan. London, England
Characters first scouted here:
  • Louise "Lulu" Madikizela
Helsinki, Finland
Sun. 6 Jan. Geneva, Switzerland Amsterdam, Netherlands
Mon. 7 Jan. Lisbon, Portugal
Characters first scouted here:
  • Eduardo "Eddie" Machava
Athens, Greece
Tue. 8 Jan. Lomé, Togo Bulawayo, Southern Rhodesia
Wed. 9 Jan. Zanzibar City, Zanzibar Johannesburg, South Africa
Thu. 10 Jan. Return to Kenya


For RLBFDI 16 (1963)
Date Route 1 Route 2
Sun. 27 Jan. Nairobi, Kenya Colony
Mon. 28 Jan. Meru, Kenya Colony Damascus, Syria
Tue. 29 Jan. Oran, Algeria Esfahan, Iran
Wed. 30 Jan. Bombay, India Singapore
Thu. 31 Jan. Seoul, South Korea Melbourne, Australia
Characters first scouted here:
  • Cornelia "Naily" Carpenter
Fri. 1 Feb. Buenos Aires, Argentina
Characters first scouted here:
  • Pedro Quispe (Lego Brick)
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Sat. 2 Feb. Kingston, Jamaica Mexico City, Mexico
Sun. 3 Feb. New Orleans, Louisiana, U.S. Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Mon. 4 Feb. New York City, New York, U.S.
Characters first scouted here:
  • Jacob "Jake" McRae
Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Tue. 5 Feb. Birmingham, England
Characters first scouted here:
  • Frances "Fannie" Hateford
Bergen, Norway
Wed. 6 Feb. Marseille, France Antwerp, Belgium
Characters first scouted here:
  • Jan Franciscus de Vries (real name of today's Frankie)[10]
  • Rafael Kregelin (Waffle)
Thu. 7 Feb. Madrid, Spain Rome, Italy
Fri. 8 Feb. Ouagadougou, Upper Volta Port Harcourt, Nigeria
Sat. 9 Feb. Arusha, Tanganyika Pretoria, South Africa
Sun. 10 Feb. Return to Kenya

.

For RLBFDI 17 (1963)
Date Route 1 Route 2
Sun. 24 Feb. Nairobi, Kenya Colony
Mon. 25 Feb. Kisumu, Kenya Colony[11] Jeddah, Saudi Arabia
Tue. 26 Feb. Cairo, U.A.R.
Characters first scouted here:
  • Sana Salama
Kabul, Afghanistan
Wed. 27 Feb. Poona, India Djakarta, Indonesia
Thu. 28 Feb. Tokyo, Japan Sydney, Australia
Fri. 1 Mar. Santiago, Chile Brasília, Brazil
Sat. 2 Mar. Paramaribo, Surinam Tegucigalpa, Honduras
Sun. 3 Mar. Jacksonville, Florida, U.S. Salt Lake City, Utah, U.S.
Mon. 4 Mar. St. Louis, Missouri, U.S.
Characters first scouted here:
  • Cameron "Cam" Daguerre
Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
Tue. 5 Mar. Belfast, Northern Ireland
Characters first scouted here:
  • Leo Raymond "Ray" Denning (stage name of today's Leo)[12]
Stockholm, Sweden
Wed. 6 Mar. Paris, France Zürich, Switzerland
Thu. 7 Mar. Barcelona, Spain Milan, Italy
Fri. 8 Mar. Brazzaville, Congo Freetown, Sierra Leone
Sat. 9 Mar. Dodoma, Tanganyika
Characters first scouted here:
  • Ruby Jiwe
Pretoria, South Africa
Characters first scouted here:
  • Donald Adura
Sun. 10 Mar. Return to Kenya


For RLBFDI 18 (1963)
Date Route 1 Route 2
Sat. 30 Mar. Nairobi, Kenya Colony
Sun. 31 Mar. Eldoret, Kenya Colony Baghdad, Iraq
Mon. 1 Apr. Rabat, Morocco Lahore, Pakistan
Tue. 2 Apr. Bombay, India Djakarta, Indonesia
Wed. 3 Apr. Hong Kong Melbourne, Australia
Thu. 4 Apr. La Paz, Bolivia Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Fri. 5 Apr. Kingston, Jamaica Ciudad Juárez, Mexico
Sat. 6 Apr. Atlanta, Georgia, U.S. Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Sun. 7 Apr. New York City, New York, U.S. Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
Mon. 8 Apr. Glasgow, Scotland Copenhagen, Denmark
Tue. 9 Apr. Monaco Vienna, Austria
Characters first scouted here:
  • Petra Dierschl
Wed. 10 Apr. Porto, Portugal Naples, Italy
Thu. 11 Apr. Abidjan, Ivory Coast Accra, Ghana
Fri. 12 Apr. Dar es Salaam, Tanganyika Port Elizabeth, South Africa
Sat. 13 Apr. Return to Kenya

.

For RLBFDI 19 (1963)
Date Route 1 Route 2
Fri. 26 Apr. Nairobi, Kenya Colony
Sat. 27 Apr. Marsabit, Kenya Colony Muscat, Muscat and Oman
Sun. 28 Apr. Tunis, Tunisia Mashhad, Iran
Mon. 29 Apr. Delhi, India Bangkok, Thailand
Tue. 30 Apr. Naha, Ryukyu Islands
Characters first scouted here:
  • Chizuko Summer (middle name of Earthwind "Erdie" Summer)
Auckland, New Zealand
Wed. 1 May Caracas, Venezuela Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Thu. 2 May Nassau, Bahama Islands Mexico City, Mexico
Fri. 3 May Charlotte, North Carolina, U.S. Las Vegas, Nevada, U.S.
Sat. 4 May Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S. Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Sun. 5 May London, England Malmö, Sweden
Mon. 6 May Luxembourg City, Luxembourg Hamburg, West Germany
Tue. 7 May Tenerife, Canary Islands, Spain Athens, Greece
Wed. 8 May Conakry, Guinea Monrovia, Liberia
Thu. 9 May Zanzibar City, Zanzibar Durban, South Africa
Fri. 10 May Return to Kenya

.

For RLBFDI 20 (1963)
Date Route 1 Route 2
Mon. 27 May Nairobi, Kenya Colony
Tue. 28 May Garissa, Kenya Colony Doha, Qatar
Wed. 29 May Asmara, Ethiopia Kabul, Afghanistan
Thu. 30 May Katmandu, Nepal Saigon, South Vietnam
Fri. 31 May Guam Perth, Australia
Sat. 1 June Viña del Mar, Chile São Paulo, Brazil
Sun. 2 June Charlotte Amalie, Virgin Islands Guadalajara, Mexico
Mon. 3 June Dallas, Texas, U.S. San Francisco, California, U.S.
Tue. 4 June New York, U.S. Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
Wed. 5 June Dublin, Ireland Helsinki, Finland
Thu. 6 June Paris, France West Berlin, Germany
Fri. 7 June Madrid, Spain Venice, Italy
Characters first scouted here:
  • Katja Horvat
Sat. 8 June Bamako, Mali Lagos, Nigeria
Characters first scouted here:
  • Vortex (stage name of Bilal)[13]
Sun. 9 June Kampala, Uganda Johannesburg, South Africa
Mon. 10 June Return to Kenya

.

For RLBFDI 21 (1963)
Date Route 1 Route 2
Fri. 28 June Nairobi, Kenya Colony
Sat. 29 June Mombasa, Kenya Colony Abu Dhabi, Trucial States
Sun. 30 June Tripoli, Libya Tehran, Iran
Mon. 1 July Delhi, India Pattaya, Thailand
Tue. 2 July Hong Kong Sydney, Australia
Wed. 3 July Bogotá, Colombia Salvador, Brazil
Thu. 4 July Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic San José, Costa Rica
Fri. 5 July New Orleans, Louisiana, U.S. Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Sat. 6 July Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
Characters first scouted here:
  • Steven Juststeven (Steven)
Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
Sun. 7 July Edinburgh, Scotland Gothenburg, Sweden
Mon. 8 July Brussels, Belgium The Hague, Netherlands
Tue. 9 July Barcelona, Spain Istanbul, Turkey
Wed. 10 July Dakar, Senegal Accra, Ghana
Thu. 11 July Dar es Salaam, Tanganyika Cape Town, South Africa
Fri. 12 July Return to Kenya

.

For RLBFDI 22 (1963)
Date Route 1 Route 2
Sat. 27 July Nairobi, Kenya Colony
Sun. 28 July Malindi, Kenya Colony Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
Mon. 29 July Tunis, Tunisia Karachi, Pakistan
Tue. 30 July Madras, India Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Wed. 31 July Manila, Philippines Canberra, Australia
Thu. 1 Aug. Quito, Ecuador Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Fri. 2 Aug. Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago Tijuana, Mexico
Sat. 3 Aug. Nashville, Tennessee, U.S. Phoenix, Arizona, U.S.
Sun. 4 Aug. Boston, Massachusetts, U.S. Montreal, Quebec, Canada
Mon. 5 Aug. Manchester, England Oslo, Norway
Tue. 6 Aug. Cannes, France Munich, West Germany
Wed. 7 Aug. Madrid, Spain Athens, Greece
Thu. 8 Aug. Fort-Lamy, Chad Ibadan, Nigeria
Fri. 9 Aug. Kampala, Uganda Bloemfontein, South Africa
Sat. 10 Aug. Return to Kenya

.

For RLBFDI 23 (1963)
Date Route 1 Route 2
Tue. 27 Aug. Nairobi, Kenya Colony
Wed. 28 Aug. Nakuru, Kenya Colony Basra, Iraq
Thu. 29 Aug. Alexandria, U.A.R. Tehran, Iran
Fri. 30 Aug. Bangalore, India Jogjakarta, Indonesia
Sat. 31 Aug. Osaka, Japan Auckland, New Zealand
Sun. 1 Sept. Caracas, Venezuela São Paulo, Brazil
Mon. 2 Sept. Willemstad, Netherlands Antilles Mexico City, Mexico
Tue. 3 Sept. Houston, Texas, U.S. Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Wed. 4 Sept. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Characters first scouted here:
  • Bertha McRae (Birthday Cake)
Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Thu. 5 Sept. London, England Stockholm, Sweden
Fri. 6 Sept. Paris, France Amsterdam, Netherlands
Sat. 7 Sept. Lisbon, Portugal Venice, Italy
Sun. 8 Sept. Dakar, Senegal Lagos, Nigeria
Mon. 9 Sept. Zanzibar City, Zanzibar Johannseburg, South Africa
Tue. 10 Sept. Return to Kenya

.

For RLBFDI 24 (1963)
Date Route 1 Route 2
Fri. 27 Sept. Nairobi, Kenya Colony
Sat. 28 Sept. Eldoret, Kenya Colony Dubai, Trucial States
Sun. 29 Sept. Addis Abeba, Ethiopia Esfahan, Iran
Mon. 30 Sept. Colombo, Ceylon Saigon, South Vietnam
Tue. 1 Oct. Hong Kong Gold Coast, Australia
Wed. 2 Oct. Lima, Peru Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Thu. 3 Oct. Montego Bay, Jamaica Panama City, Panama
Fri. 4 Oct. Dallas, Texas, U.S. Seattle, Washington, U.S.
Sat. 5 Oct. Chicago, Illinois, U.S. Calgary, Alberta, Canada
Sun. 6 Oct. Brighton, England Gothenburg, Sweden
Mon. 7 Oct. Nice, France Vienna, Austria
Tue. 8 Oct. Seville, Spain Athens, Greece
Wed. 9 Oct. Douala, Cameroon Monrovia, Liberia
Thu. 10 Oct. Kampala, Uganda Pretoria, South Africa
Fri. 11 Oct. Return to Kenya


For RLBFDI 25 (1963)
Date Route 1 Route 2
Sun. 27 Oct. Nairobi, Kenya Colony
Mon. 28 Oct. Kisumu, Kenya Colony Amman, Jordan
Tue. 29 Oct. Khartoum, Sudan Kabul, Afghanistan
Wed. 30 Oct. Calcutta, India Singapore, Malaysia
Thu. 31 Oct. Tokyo, Japan Sydney, Australia
Fri. 1 Nov. Medellín, Colombia São Paulo, Brazil
Sat. 2 Nov. Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago Mexico City, Mexico
Sun. 3 Nov. Miami, Florida, U.S. [first integrated auditions in the region] Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Mon. 4 Nov. New York City, New York, U.S. Quebec City, Quebec, Canada
Tue. 5 Nov. London, England Copenhagen, Denmark
Wed. 6 Nov. Brussels, Belgium Hamburg, West Germany
Thu. 7 Nov. Madrid, Spain Jerusalem, Israel
Fri. 8 Nov. Cotonou, Dahomey Lagos, Nigeria
Sat. 9 Nov. Dar es Salaam, Tanganyika East London, South Africa
Sun. 10 Nov. Return to Kenya

Season 2: RLBFDIA[]

When RLBFDIA came out, recommended characters were not sought out in the same way as in the previous season, although many parallels seemed pretty obvious... at least in RLBFDIA 1: the first guest star, Boombox (a literal boombox) appeared by himself, just like Bomby in RLBFDI 9 or 11. Viewers noticed that the number of recommended characters was much lower than before, however, and here's why.

While the search began exactly one month before the start of filming for each episode (as before), the "monthly" global talent searches lasted for only one week (not one) and were supervised by only one crew member. Also, instead of rotating casting locations (i.e. a new city in each episode), auditions were only held in one location for each day per episode, with the venues becoming more obscure as the days went on.[14] While this practice may seem efficient, it was also very Western-centric, as the crew spent more time looking for potential extras in the U.S. and west of the Iron Curtain than in other countries. There was just too little time to look for extras (and have them get to the RLBFDIA set in Kenya) from most countries in Africa, Asia etc.

Here is an example of what a particular schedule looked like:

Recommended character-scouting schedule for RLBFDIA (1964–65)
Day Single route
Day 1 Nairobi, Kenya (auditions for locals)
Day 2 Nairobi, Kenya (auditions for the rest of Africa)
Characters first scouted here:
  • Nona Machava (5 July 1964)
Day 3 Liverpool, England (auditions for Britain and Ireland)
Day 4 Saarbrücken, West Germany (auditions for Continental Europe)
Characters first scouted here:
  • Antonella d'Arezzo (7 July 1964, Tune)
  • Rafael Kregelin (13 October 1964, Waffle, re-scout)
Day 5 David City, Nebraska, U.S. (auditions for the United States)
Characters first scouted here:
  • Jacqueline "Jackie" Valentine (24 July 1964, Get Well Card for Jacknjellify)
Day 6 Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan, Canada (auditions for Canada)
Day 7 Graham Land, Antarctica (auditions for the rest of the world)
Characters first scouted here:
  • Pedro Quispe (21 June 1964, Lego Brick, re-scout)
Day 8 Return to Kenya

Season 3: RLIDFB[]

Sponsored characters were not present in RLIDFB, at least not in the first episode of it. A system was proposed in which characters were sponsored in the same way that the votes were sent in, but because the second episode has yet to come out (as of 1973), we do not know how effective this system turned out to be.

Season 4a RLBFB[]

In early 1969, it was planned that the same system that was used to sponsor characters in RLBFDIA would be used in RLBFDI's fourth season. But due to the worldwide demand for civil rights through protests (the symbol of the late 1960s), a change had to be made to the series and the showrunners reintroduced the same audition process as in RLBFDI. They had even kept much of the same schedules. However, a fair quota system was also introduced, highlighting people who came from less affluent nations and excluding all people from South Africa and totalitarian countries from eligibility.

Here is the general schedule for scouting recommended characters for this and the next season.

Recommended character-scouting schedule for RLBFB and RLTPOT (1969–present)
Day Route 1 Route 2
Day 1 Nairobi, Kenya

Represented country:

  • Kenya
Day 2 Rest of Kenya

Represented country:

  • Kenya

West Asia

Represented countries:

  • Bahrain
  • Iraq
  • Jordan
  • Kuwait
  • Lebanon
  • Muscat and Oman (to RLBFB 12); Oman (from RLBFB 13)
  • Qatar
  • Saudi Arabia
  • Syria
  • Trucial States (to RLBFB 16); United Arab Emirates (from RLBFB 17)
  • Yemen, North
  • Yemen, South

Day 3 North Africa

Represented countries:

  • Algeria
  • Ethiopia
  • French Territory of the Afars and Issas
  • Libya
  • Mauritania
  • Morocco
  • Somalia
  • Sudan
  • Tunisia
  • United Arab Republic (to RLBFB 15); Egypt (to RLBFB 16)

South-West Asia (Iran, Afghanistan and Pakistan)

Represented countries:

  • Afghanistan
  • Iran
  • Pakistan

Day 4 India (and other South Asia)

Represented countries:

  • Bangladesh (from RLBFB 17)
  • Bhutan
  • Ceylon (to RLBFB 20); Sri Lanka (from RLBFB 21)
  • India
  • Maldives
  • Nepal
  • Sikkim

South-East Asia

Represented countries:

  • Brunei
  • Cambodia
  • Indonesia
  • Laos
  • Malaysia
  • Singapore
  • Thailand
  • Vietnam, North [limited]
  • Vietnam, South

Day 5 East Asia (and the Pacific)

Represented countries:

  • China
  • Guam
  • Hong Kong
  • Japan
    • Ryukyu Islands (to Japan after RLBFB 21)
  • Korea, South
  • Mongolia [limited]
  • Pacific Islands Trust Territory
  • Philippines

Australasia and Oceania

Represented countries:

  • Australia
    • Papua and New Guinea
  • British Solomon Islands
  • Fiji Islands (to RLBFB 12); Fiji (from RLBFB 13)
  • Gilbert and Ellice Islands
  • Nauru
  • New Hebrides
  • New Zealand
    • Cook Islands
    • Niue
    • Tokelau Islands
  • Tonga Islands (to RLBFB 12); Tonga (from RLBFB 13)
  • Western Samoa

Day 6 South America (Hispanophone)

Represented countries:

  • Argentina
  • Bolivia
  • Chile
  • Colombia
  • Ecuador
  • Paraguay
  • Peru
  • Uruguay
  • Venezuela

Brazil

Represented country:

  • Brazil

Day 7 West Indies

Represented countries:

  • Bahama Islands (to July 1973); Bahamas (since then)
  • Barbados
  • Bermuda
  • British Honduras (to June 1973); Belize (since then)
  • British Virgin Islands
  • Cayman Islands
  • Cuba [limited]
  • Dominica
  • Dominican Republic
  • French Guiana
  • Grenada
  • Guadeloupe
  • Guyana
  • Haiti
  • Jamaica
  • Martinique
  • Montserrat
  • Netherlands Antilles
  • Puerto Rico
  • St. Christopher-Nevis-Anguilla
  • St. Lucia
  • St. Vincent
  • Surinam
  • Trinidad and Tobago
  • Turks and Caicos Islands
  • U.S. Virgin Islands

Mexico and Central America

Represented countries:

  • Costa Rica
  • El Salvador
  • Guatemala
  • Honduras
  • Mexico
  • Nicaragua
  • Panama

Day 8 Southern United States

Represented country:

  • United States
    • Panama Canal Zone

Western United States

Represented country:

  • United States
    • American Samoa

Day 9 Eastern/Northern United States

Represented country:

  • United States

Canada

Represented countries:

  • Canada
  • St. Pierre and Miquelon

Day 10 Britain and Ireland

Represented countries:

  • Great Britain
    • Channel Islands
    • Gibraltar
    • Isle of Man
  • Ireland

Northern Europe

Represented countries:

  • Denmark
    • Faroe Islands
    • Greenland
  • Finland
  • Iceland
  • Norway
  • Sweden

Day 11 Western Europe (Francophone)

Represented countries:

  • Andorra
  • Belgium (French-speaking)
  • France
    • French Polynesia
    • New Caledonia
  • Luxembourg
  • Monaco
  • Switzerland (French-speaking)

Central and Eastern Europe

Represented countries:

  • Austria
  • Belgium (Dutch-speaking)
  • Bulgaria [limited]
  • Czechoslovakia [limited]
  • Germany, East [limited]
  • Germany, West
  • Hungary [limited]
  • Liechtenstein
  • Netherlands
  • Poland [limited]
  • Romania [limited]
  • Soviet Union [limited]
  • Switzerland (German-speaking)
  • Yugoslavia

Day 12 Iberian Europe and colonies

Represented countries:

  • Portugal [limited]
    • Cape Verde
    • Macao
    • Portuguese Angola
    • Portuguese Guinea
    • Portuguese Mozambique
    • Portuguese Timor
  • Spain [limited]
    • Spanish Sahara

Italy and the Mediterranean

Represented countries:

  • Cyprus
  • Israel
  • Italy
  • Greece
  • Malta
  • San Marino
  • Switzerland (Italian-speaking)
  • Turkey

Day 13 Francophone Africa

Represented countries:

  • Burundi
  • Cameroon
  • Chad
  • Central African Republic
  • Comoro Islands
  • Congo-Brazzaville
  • Congo-Kinshasa
  • Dahomey
  • Gabon
  • Ivory Coast
  • Madagascar
  • Mali
  • Niger
  • Réunion
  • Rwanda
  • Senegal
  • Togo
  • Upper Volta

Anglophone Africa

Represented countries:

  • Botswana
  • The Gambia
  • Ghana
  • Lesotho
  • Liberia
  • Malawi
  • Mauritius
  • Nigeria
  • Seychelles
  • Sierra Leone
  • Southern Rhodesia [limited]
  • Swaziland
  • Zambia

Day 14 Uganda and Tanzania

Represented countries:

  • Tanzania
  • Uganda

Early return to Kenya


Extra-scouting schedules for individual episodes[]

This section indicates where each audition took place and who (if relevant to the competition) got in.

For RLBFB 2 (1969)
Date Route 1 Route 2
Sun. 21 Sept. Nairobi, Kenya
Mon. 22 Sept. Lodwar, Kenya Beirut, Lebanon
Tue. 23 Sept. Algiers, Algeria Tehran, Iran
Wed. 24 Sept. Delhi, India Vientiane, Laos
Thu. 25 Sept. Kyoto, Japan
Characters first scouted here:
  • Umeko Fujiwara
Sydney, Australia
Fri. 26 Sept. Maracaibo, Venezuela São Paulo, Brazil
Sat. 27 Sept. Kingston, Jamaica
Characters first scouted here:
  • Devon Ductworth
Mexico City, Mexico
Sun. 28 Sept. Miami, Florida, U.S.
Characters first scouted here:
  • José Abcde Rojas
Las Vegas, Nevada, U.S.
Mon. 29 Sept. Boston, Massachusetts, U.S. Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
Tue. 30 Sept. Glasgow, Scotland Malmö, Sweden
Wed. 1 Oct. Toulouse, France Prague, Czechoslovakia
Thu. 2 Oct. Porto, Portugal Milan, Italy
Fri. 3 Oct. Lomé, Togo Gaborone, Botswana
Sat. 4 Oct. Entebbe, Uganda Early return to Kenya
Sun. 5 Oct. Return to Kenya
For RLBFB 4 (1969)
Date Route 1 Route 2
Mon. 27 Oct. Nairobi, Kenya
Tue. 28 Oct. Kitale, Kenya Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
Wed. 29 Oct. Sfax, Tunisia Esfahan, Iran
Thu. 30 Oct. Bombay, India Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Fri. 31 Oct. Quezon City, Philippines Auckland, New Zealand
Characters first scouted here:
  • Venera Semyonov
Sat. 1 Nov. Buenos Aires, Argentina Manaus, Brazil
Sun. 2 Nov. Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic Chihuahua, Mexico
Mon. 3 Nov. Memphis, Tennessee, U.S.
Characters first scouted here:
  • Leslie Winton
Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Characters first scouted here:
  • Michelle "Mikie" Boomer
Tue. 4 Nov. New York City, New York, U.S. Montreal, Quebec, Canada
Wed. 5 Nov. Nottingham, England
Characters first scouted here:
  • Hypatia "Paddy" Allen
Stockholm, Sweden
Thu. 6 Nov. Geneva, Switzerland West Berlin, Germany
Fri. 7 Nov. Madrid, Spain Istanbul, Turkey
Sat. 8 Nov. Conakry, Guinea Accra, Ghana
Sun. 9 Nov. Zanzibar City, Tanzania Early return to Kenya
Mon. 10 Nov. Return to Kenya
For RLBFB 6 (1969)
Date Route 1 Route 2
Sun. 30 Nov. Nairobi, Kenya
Mon. 1 Dec. Eldoret, Kenya
Characters first scouted here:
  • Alelsatan (again)[15]
Abu Dhabi, Trucial States
Tue. 2 Dec. Cairo, U.A.R. Lahore, Pakistan
Wed. 3 Dec. Katmandu, Nepal Bangkok, Thailand
Thu. 4 Dec. Hong Kong Canberra, Australia
Fri. 5 Dec. Caracas, Venezuela Goiânia, Brazil
Sat. 6 Dec. Miami, Florida, U.S. Monterrey, Mexico
Sun. 7 Dec. Charlotte, North Carolina, U.S. Sacramento, California, U.S.
Mon. 8 Dec. Chicago, Illinois, U.S. Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
Tue. 9 Dec. London, England
Characters first scouted here:
  • Catherine "C.R.T." Monitor (CRT)[16]
Trondheim, Norway
Wed. 10 Dec. Lyon, France Amsterdam, Netherlands
Characters first scouted here:
  • Belinda Roosendaal
Thu. 11 Dec. Madrid, Spain Athens, Greece
Fri. 12 Dec. Dakar, Senegal Monrovia, Liberia
Sat. 13 Dec. Kampala, Uganda Early return to Kenya
Sun. 14 Dec. Return to Kenya
For RLBFB 7 (1969–1970)
Date Route 1 Route 2
Mon. 22 Dec. Nairobi, Kenya
Tue. 23 Dec. Nakuru, Kenya Amman, Jordan
Wed. 24 Dec. Rabat, Morocco Tehran, Iran
Thu. 25 Dec. Madras, India Djakarta, Indonesia
Fri. 26 Dec. Tokyo, Japan Adelaide, Australia
Sat. 27 Dec. Bogotá, Venezuela Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Sun. 28 Dec. San Juan, Puerto Rico Mexico City, Mexico
Mon. 29 Dec. New Orleans, Louisiana, U.S. San Diego, California, U.S.
Tue. 30 Dec. New York City, New York, U.S. Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
Wed. 31 Dec. Cardiff, Wales Aarhus, Denmark
Thu. 1 Jan. Brussels, Belgium Zürich, Switzerland
Fri. 2 Jan. Barcelona, Spain Sanremo, Italy
Sat. 3 Jan. Abidjan, Ivory Coast Accra, Ghana
Sun. 4 Jan. Dar es Salaam, Tanzania Early return to Kenya
Mon. 5 Jan. Return to Kenya
For RLBFB 9 (1970)
Date Route 1 Route 2
Thu. 29 Jan. Nairobi, Kenya
Fri. 30 Jan. Mombasa, Kenya Baghdad, Iraq
Sat. 31 Jan. Algiers, Algeria Karachi, Pakistan
Sun. 1 Feb. Delhi, India Singapore
Mon. 2 Feb. Hong Kong Brisbane, Australia
Tue. 3 Feb. Santiago, Chile Salvador, Brazil
Wed. 4 Feb. Bridgetown, Barbados Tijuana, Mexico
Thu. 5 Feb. Miami, Florida, U.S. Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S.
Fri. 6 Feb. Cleveland, Ohio, U.S. Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Sat. 7 Feb. Cambridge, England Uppsala, Sweden
Sun. 8 Feb. Paris, France Munich, West Germany
Mon. 9 Feb. Lisbon, Portugal Naples, Italy
Tue. 10 Feb. Douala, Cameroon Freetown, Sierra Leone
Wed. 11 Feb. Entebbe, Uganda Early return to Kenya
Thu. 12 Feb. Return to Kenya
For RLBFB 10 (1970)
Date Route 1 Route 2
Sun. 22 Feb. Nairobi, Kenya
Mon. 23 Feb. Marsabit, Kenya Damascus, Syria
Tue. 24 Feb. Cairo, U.A.R. Kabul, Afghanistan
Wed. 25 Feb. Calcutta, India Bangkok, Thailand
Thu. 26 Feb. Davao, Philippines
Characters first scouted here:
  • Consuelo "Connie" Cascara
Sydney, Australia
Fri. 27 Feb. Lima, Peru São Paulo, Brazil
Sat. 28 Feb. Nassau, Bahama Islands Cancun, Mexico
Sun. 1 Mar. Atlanta, Georgia, U.S. Denver, Colorado, U.S.
Mon. 2 Mar. Washington, D.C., U.S.
Characters first scouted here:
  • Ian T. R. Wilson
St. John's, Newfoundland, Canada
Tue. 3 Mar. Bristol, England Reykjavik, Iceland
Wed. 4 Mar. Namur, Belgium The Hague, Netherlands
Thu. 5 Mar. Madrid, Spain Jerusalem, Israel
Fri. 6 Mar. Niamey, Niger Lusaka, Zambia
Sat. 7 Mar. Entebbe, Uganda Early return to Kenya
Sun. 8 Mar. Return to Kenya
For RLBFB 12 (1970)
Date Route 1 Route 2
Fri. 17 Apr. Nairobi, Kenya
Sat. 18 Apr. Wajir, Kenya Abu Dhabi, Trucial States
Sun. 19 Apr. Tunis, Tunisia Kerman, Iran
Mon. 20 Apr. Bangalore, India Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Tue. 21 Apr. Saipan, Pacific Islands Trust Territory Perth, Australia
Wed. 22 Apr. Montevideo, Uruguay Porto Velho, Brazil
Thu. 23 Apr. Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Fri. 24 Apr. Washington, D.C., U.S. Seattle, Washington, U.S.
Sat. 25 Apr. Chicago, Illinois, U.S. Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Sun. 26 Apr. Dublin, Ireland Gothenburg, Sweden
Mon. 27 Apr. Caen, France Vienna, Austria
Tue. 28 Apr. Palma, Spain Rome, Italy
Wed. 29 Apr. Saint-Dénis, Réunion Kumasi, Ghana
Thu. 30 Apr. Zanzibar City, Tanzania Early return to Kenya
Fri. 1 May Return to Kenya


For RLBFB 13/14 (1971)
Date Route 1 Route 2
Fri. 7 May Nairobi, Kenya
Characters first scouted here:
  • Nonexisty (again)
Sat. 8 May Garissa, Kenya Erbil, Iraq
Sun. 9 May Casablanca, Morocco Karachi, Pakistan
Mon. 10 May Poona, India Chiang Mai, Thailand
Tue. 11 May Seoul, South Korea Suva, Fiji
Wed. 12 May Buenos Aires, Argentina
Characters first scouted here:
  • Amelia, Carlos and Mauricio Wirmer
Recife, Brazil
Thu. 13 May Basse-Terre, Guadeloupe San José, Costa Rica
Fri. 14 May Orlando, Florida, U.S. Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Sat. 15 May Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Characters first scouted here:
  • Daniel "Danny" Roosevelt (again)
Montreal, Quebec, Canada
Sun. 16 May Southampton, England Copenhagen, Denmark
Mon. 17 May Nantes, France Frankfurt, West Germany
Tue. 18 May Madrid, Spain Venice, Italy
Wed. 19 May Libreville, Gabon Lagos, Nigeria
Thu. 20 May Dar es Salaam, Tanzania Early return to Kenya
Fri. 21 May Return to Kenya
For RLBFB 15 (1971)
Date Route 1 Route 2
Mon. 12 July Nairobi, Kenya
Tue. 13 July Malindi, Kenya Muscat, Oman
Wed. 14 July Tangier, Morocco Tabriz, Iran
Characters first scouted here:
  • Jamshid Taggyzadeh (full name of today's Jessie)
Thu. 15 July Hyderabad, India
Characters first scouted here:
  • Duradrishti Vijaya Hsarma
Bangkok, Thailand
Fri. 16 July Taipei, Republic of China
Characters first scouted here:
  • Heika Arisaka
  • Kazimierz "Kazzy" Chu Chi-Ching
Melbourne, Australia
Characters first scouted here:
  • Robert "Rob" Spade
Sat. 17 July Caracas, Venezuela
Characters first scouted here:
  • Gualberto Trujillo
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Sun. 18 July Kingston, Jamaica Guadalajara, Mexico
Mon. 19 July St. Louis, Missouri, U.S. Portland, Oregon, U.S.
Tue. 20 July Buffalo, New York, U.S.
Characters first scouted here:
  • Bertha McRae (again)
  • Angelo Marino
Quebec City, Quebec, Canada
Wed. 21 July Norwich, England Turku, Finland
Characters first scouted here:
  • Solveig Lampström
  • Luukas Valkaisualainen
Thu. 22 July Paris, France
Characters first scouted here:
  • Saint-Maur "Santo" Ravelomanantsoa
Hanover, West Germany
Fri. 23 July Lisbon, Portugal Rome, Italy
Sat. 24 July Tambacounda, Senegal
Characters first scouted here:
  • Seynabou Ba
Zomba, Malawi
Sun. 25 July Dodoma, Tanzania Early return to Kenya
Mon. 26 July Return to Kenya
For RLBFB 16 (1971)
Date Route 1 Route 2
Tue. 2 Nov. Nairobi, Kenya
Wed. 3 Nov. Mombasa, Kenya Kuwait City, Kuwait
Thu. 4 Nov. Luxor, Egypt Herat, Afghanistan
Fri. 5 Nov. Colombo, Ceylon Singapore
Sat. 6 Nov. Sapporo, Japan Cairns, Australia
Sun. 7 Nov. Cali, Colombia Curitiba, Brazil
Mon. 8 Nov. Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago Panama City, Panama
Tue. 9 Nov. Atlanta, Georgia, U.S. San Francisco, California, U.S.
Wed. 10 Nov. New York City, New York, U.S. Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
Thu. 11 Nov. London, England Luleå, Sweden
Fri. 12 Nov. Luxembourg City, Luxembourg Zagreb, Yugoslavia
Sat. 13 Nov. Málaga, Spain Florence, Italy
Sun. 14 Nov. Kinshasa, Zaire Lagos, Nigeria
Mon. 15 Nov. Pembe, Tanzania Early return to Kenya
Tue. 16 Nov. Return to Kenya

Seasons 4b and 5: RLBFB and RLTPOT[]

The audition schedules were changed yet again for post-split RLBFB, in which the search ended one week (not one month) before the beginning of filming. One reason for this might be that many extras appeared in more than one episode, such as "Four and X Put Together". RLTPOT used the exact same process as this, except that apparently not as many characters were sponsored. Fewer extras appeared in RLTPOT 1 than in RLBFDI 13.[17]

Extras from RLTPOT 1 (scouted 1972; episode released 1973)
Human name (1972) Object name (2020–21) Description[18]
Abdul, Philippe "Phil" Falafel
Arisaka, Heika Mochi Appeared in RLBFB 15.
Bergjord, Gunnlaug Genderfluid Book Distant relative of Astrid (see above), also appeared in RLBFB 24.
Dam, Christine "Stine" Steamy Also appeared in RLBFB 23 with a speaking part (among other episodes).
Hollis, Wanda Wand Also appeared in RLBFB 24 (among other episodes).
Lincoln, Blas Blue Shiny Coiny Distant relative of Columbus, also appeared in RLBFB 24.
Porter, Paul "Paulie" Portable Music Player Also appeared in RLBFB 23 with a speaking part (among other episodes).
Roosevelt, Daniel "Danny" Dime Appeared in RLBFB 13 (among other episodes); was discovered in February or March 1963 to appear in RLBFDI 17.
Wirmer, Amelia Compass Triplets, related to Compass (from P2O); also appeared in RLBFB 13 (among other episodes).
Wirmer, Carlos
Wirmer, Mauricio

Extra-scouting schedules for individual episodes[]

This section indicates where each audition took place and who got in. Note that non-participants (and the handful of RLTPOT 1 extras) are included here for completeness; their object names are put in brackets so you know who they are.

Also, the casting locations have stopped rotating for each episode. Due to budget cuts, auditions could only take place at one location per stop on each route. A lot of thought had gone into where the final location should be, but it had to be cosmopolitan and accessible enough so that as many potential extras as possible could travel to the audition spot.

Recommended character-scouting schedule for later RLBFB and RLTPOT (1972–present)
Day Route 1 Route 2
Day 1 Nairobi, Kenya

(City of Nairobi, auditions in English and Swahili)

Day 2 Nairobi, Kenya

(the rest of Kenya, auditions in English and Swahili)

Beirut, Lebanon (West Asia, auditions in Arabic and English)
Contestants first scouted here:
  • Calliopus "Clip" Hagopian (6 July 1972, Clip)
Day 3 Cairo, Egypt

(North Africa, auditions in Arabic, French and English; commentary in Amharic)

Tehran, Iran

(South-West Asia, auditions in Persian and English)

Day 4 Calcutta, India

(India and other South Asia, auditions in English and Hindi)

Singapore

(South-East Asia, auditions in English)

Day 5 Tokyo, Japan

(East Asia and the Pacific, auditions in Japanese and English; commentary in Chinese and Korean)

Sydney, Australia

(Australasia and Oceania, auditions in English)

Day 6 Caracas, Venezuela

(Spanish-speaking South America, auditions in Spanish)

Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

(Brazil, auditions in Portuguese)

Day 7 Miami, Florida, U.S.

(West Indies, auditions in English, Spanish and French)

Mexico City, Mexico

(Mexico and Central America, auditions in Spanish)

Day 8 Houston, Texas, U.S.

(Southern U.S., auditions in English)

Los Angeles, California (Western U.S., auditions in English)
Characters first scouted here:
  • Blas Lincoln (7 September 1972)
Day 9 New York, New York, U.S. (odd episodes)

Chicago, Illinois, U.S. (even episodes)

(Northern/Midwestern U.S., auditions in English)
Characters first scouted here:
  • Rusty Coyne (8 September 1972, Rusty Coin)
Toronto, Ontario, Canada (Canada, auditions in English and French)
Characters first scouted here:
  • Céline Cote (11 May 1972, Slingshot)
Day 10 London, England (Britain and Ireland, auditions in English)
Characters first scouted here:
  • Paul "Paulie" Porter (14 July 1972)
  • Wanda Hollis (9 September 1972)
Malmö, Sweden (Northern Europe, auditions in English and Swedish; commentary in Danish, Finnish and Norwegian)
Characters first scouted here:
  • Patrik Nylund (non-stage name of today's Pat)[19]
  • Christine "Stine" Dam (14 July 1972)
  • Gunnlaug Bergjord (9 September 1972)
Day 11 Paris, France (French-speaking Europe, auditions in French)
Characters first scouted here:
  • Philippe "Phil" Abdul (17 November 1972)
Vienna, Austria

(Central and Eastern Europe, auditions in German and English; commentary in Dutch, Serbo-Croatian and optionally Russian)

Day 12 Madrid, Spain (odd episodes)

Lisbon, Portugal (even episodes) (Iberian Europe, auditions in Spanish or Portuguese; limited number of applicants)

Rome, Italy

(Italy and Mediterranean Europe, auditions in Italian and English; commentary in Hebrew, Greek and Turkish)

Day 13 Dakar, Senegal

(Francophone Africa, auditions in French)

Lagos, Nigeria

(Anglophone Africa, auditions in English)

Day 14 Zanzibar City, Tanzania

(Uganda and Tanzania, auditions in English and Swahili)

Early return to Kenya
Day 15 Return to Kenya

Notes[]

  1. All appeared from 6:58–7:07 except for Nonexisty, who first appeared 5:15.
  2. That's one for a reference.
  3. Possibly similar to the sponsorship system used by the National Spelling Bee in the U.S., but it's not newspapers; it's people (usually children).
  4. Roboty (then called Robot) would have been discovered on this date but was in fact added later.
  5. Formerly called Pie Man in BFDI.
  6. Formerly called Bracelet in BFDI.
  7. A special case: As he was very much underage (not even one year old), he couldn't go on the show, but a body double of Frederic was used instead with the word "Junior!" floating over him.
  8. Formerly called Taco Guy in BFDI. For all you Suite Life fans, she pulled a Bailey.
  9. Formerly called Mechanical Flower in BFDI.
  10. Previously called French Fries in BFDI.
  11. Alelsatan would have been discovered on this date but was in fact added later.
  12. Previously called Bolty in BFDI.
  13. Another special case: Bilal couldn't physically make it to the RLBFDI set, so his likeness was replaced with an actual black hole named Vortex.
  14. Part of this was because of budget cuts.
  15. Should have been scouted on this date but was not.
  16. Previously known as CRT Monitor in early BFB. "Monitor" is an old stage name; their surname was revealed to be "Turing" in December 1972.
  17. Not including Happy Flower and Sad Cake (who are just Flower and Cake, respectively), or Mangosteen, Plus and Flip Phone (who are recommended objects).
  18. All of these appeared near the end of the episode, starting 25:22.
  19. Should have been scouted 23 June 1972 but wasn't for whatever reason.

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