It's back to reality for 'Fever' crew after crash course on the high seas

At the start of the summer, 10 wannabe TV stars set off on a round-Ireland sailing trip.

As the summer went on, they crashed into rocks off Tory Island, set off again with changed crew, ran into engine trouble and were towed into Killybegs port.

Then they set off again, threw up, used plenty of foul language and bitched about one another until, reduced to three, they arrived in Dublin Harbour for last night's grand finale.

"Awful rubbish," was the verdict of one passer-by, speaking for many who happened to tune into the reality TV show over the past two months. Nevertheless, Cabin Fever claimed 414,000 viewers for its Monday night "eviction" show each week. Last night, around 5,000 (somewhat less than the 30,000 predicted by the organisers), swapped the couch for the quayside to see the last two contestants walk the plank.

"I think it has been better than most reality TV shows," said Shane Cahir, from Tullamore, Co Offaly. "It was interesting to see how characters reacted on the boat. There were a good few tiffs," he remarked, before adding hastily it wasn't so much him as his "girlfriend" who was into the show.

"We are broke putting up fliers and doing radio campaigns," said Eimear Horgan, a member of the "campaign team" of contestant Elaine Power who won the public vote and the €100,000 prize last night.

Ms Power (33) is a supermarket manager who boasts as her qualities "leadership ability", a good sense of humour, and "all my own teeth".

A photo-shoot for the front cover of RTÉ Guide awaits, as well as a possible TV career.

She had earlier joked she planned to give part of the €100,000 prize money to charity and spend the rest on beauty accessories.

Elaine's "groupie", Ms Horgan, described her former boss as "a little bit loud but down to earth".

The other main category of spectator last night were fans of Dalkey "hunk" Andrew Fowler, who was a surprise evictee in the penultimate week. "Who doesn't fancy him?" asked Emma Loftus, another member of Elaine's campaign crew.

RTÉ will be hoping the show, made by Coco Productions, proves a better money-spinner than its last venture in reality TV, Popstars, which contributed to a subsidiary company's €2 million loss last year.