24 Facts: Lost

1. Lost is one of the most expensive television shows filmed due to its large cast and the cost filming on location in Oahu, Hawaii.

2. Lost's two-part pilot episode was the most expensive in ABC's history. It's reported to have cost
between $10 - 14 million.

3. You gotta have faith! ABC bought the series before it even had a script. J.J. Abrams and Damon Lindelof had only turned in an outline and based on this, ABC picked up the show.

4. Dominic Monaghan (Charlie), Matthew Fox (Jack) and Jorge Garcia (Hurley) all originally auditioned for the role of Sawyer.

5. The character of Sawyer was originally meant to be an older, slick, suit-wearing city con artist from Buffalo, NY. However, when Josh Holloway forgot a line at his audition and subsequently kicked a chair in frustration and loudly swore, the writers liked the edge he brought to the Sawyer character and decided to write Sawyer as more of a Southern, darker drifter instead.

6. Originally, Michael Emerson was only cast for a few episodes in season two. The producers were so impressed with his performance that they cast him as a regular and rewrote the part of Henry Gale/Benjamin Linus to feature him more prominently.

7. It was a good decision. Emerson has been nominated for three Emmys, three Saturn Awards and one Golden Globe for this role, and he's walked away with one Emmy and one Saturn Award.

8. All together, Lost has received 18 Emmy nominations (won three), seven Golden Globe nominations (won one) and 38 Saturn Award nominations (won 10).

9. Both John Locke and his father, Anthony Cooper, are named after 17th- and 18th-century English philosophers; the real Anthony Cooper was educated as a boy by the real John Locke.

10. Parts of the plane were used as percussion instruments and can be heard on the soundtrack.

11. Vincent, the dog, is actually played by a female dog, whose name is Madison .

12. It's such a groundbreaking, freaky show, many find it difficult to box it into a genre. Wikipedia has listed the following options: Adventure, drama, fantasy, sci-fi, thriller.

13. JJ Abrams has an unhealthy but lucrative obsession with sci-fi. He's been involved in projects such as Star Trek, Alias, Cloverfield, Mission Impossible III and Fringe.

14. However, back in his early years he was a bit of a romantic. Abrams directed, wrote for and produced episodes of the teen drama Felicity in the late 90s.

15. During Charlie's heroin scenes, Dominic Monaghan is actually snorting brown sugar.

16. Evangeline Lilly and Dominic Monaghan started dating in real life.

17. It may be an interesting show, but it seems like there's nothing to do on the island after shoots - except drink. Michelle Rodriguez and Cynthia Watros, two of the "tailies", were written out of the show (ie. fired) after both were arrested for drunk driving in Hawaii where the show is filmed. The producers maintained that their arrests had nothing to do with their characters' demise. Daniel Dae Kim, who plays Jin, was also arrested for drunk driving in Hawaii but kept his job.

18. Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje came up with his own character's name, "Mr. Eko", while he and the writers were developing the character.

19. Evangeline Lilly was one of the last actors to be cast for the show, but the fact that she is a Canadian citizen gave the producers concern that she might not be able to obtain the appropriate U.S. employment visa that would grant her permission to stay in the country long enough to shoot the entire series.

20. Originally, Michael Keaton was cast as Jack. In the first draft of the script Jack was to be killed by the monster after they arrived at the cockpit. ABC told the producers that they shouldn't kill off the hero so soon in the series and the script was changed. After the change, Michael Keaton backed out of the role since he did not want to commit to a regular series.

21. The meaning of the numbers (4 8 15 16 23 42) has been the greatest cause for debate among Lost fans. They have popped up everywhere. They're the winning lottery numbers that made Hurley a millionaire. They add up to 108 – another number that proved fateful to the island.

22. It really is all about who you know in the TV business. Terry O'Quinn, who plays John Locke, was the only cast member who didn't have to audition because J.J. Abrams had previously worked with him on the second season of Alias in 2001.

23. The show has its own one-stop shop where fans can get just about every bit of info related to the show – Lostpedia. It's updated according to the US airdates so since South African TV fans are approximately 12 episodes behind, we suggest you tread very carefully when visiting.

24. The Lost finale (there are only 18 episodes in the final season) will be broadcast on 23 May on ABC in the US. The network is planning a 5-hour viewing event around the two-part episode that will include a 2-hour recap episode (for the nostalgia), a Jimmy Kimmel Live! Special called "Lost: After the Final Rose". Some fans believe the world might stop for those final hours of Lost.

Sources: IMDB, Lostpedia, Wikipedia and TV Guide.

Are you looking forward to the final season of Lost? What island mysteries are you hoping this season will finally give concrete answers to? Get talking in the comments below, but please: KEEP IT SPOILER-FREE!

Lost VI airs on M-Net Series (DStv Channel 110) at 8pm from Monday 19 April.