The former landlord of a village pub in Northamptonshire duped a pair of fame-hungry Big Brother contestants into being followed by a camera crew as part of a bogus reality TV show he had dreamt up.
Mario Marconi and Lisa Appleton, who were on the Channel Four show in 2008, were tricked into filming ‘Lisa and Mario: Their Journey’ by serial fraudster and fantasist Selva Carmichael - who used to run the Fox and Hounds in Whittlebury.
The couple were never paid a penny for their work despite being filmed for 18 hours a day and the show was never aired.
It has also emerged that Carmichael - who calls himself ‘The Silver Fox’ - also targeted X Factor singer Chico by posing as his manager.
His TV production company, the World Screen Group, was used as a front to lure in celebrities and investors and take their money to fund his luxury lifestyle.
They paid him in the hope of sharing in his profits and appearing on his shows, but it was all an elaborate ruse.
Carmichael is now being sued by one investor for more than £42,000.
Meanwhile it has emerged that Carmichael, who run the pub five years ago, was jailed earlier this year for a £500,000 con involving Santander Bank and is currently serving a three-and-a-half year prison sentence.
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