Meet the 16 brand new Big Brother housemates
Big Brother returned to UK screens tonight after a 5 year absence, and we were introduced to a new generation of housemates!
Sixteen housemates arrived at the brand new Big Brother house before a live studio audience as they prepare to compete for a £100,000 cash prize, with new hosts AJ Odudu and Will Best introducing them to the public.
Let’s meet the new housemates!
Name: Jenkin
Age: 25
From: Bridgend
Occupation: Barman
What made you apply to be a Big Brother housemate?
I was bored and I thought I’d do something different, give it a whirl.
What part of the experience are you most looking forward to?
I think meeting new people. I’m looking forward to it but I’m also dreading it as well because I’m like, ‘Oh, how is this gonna go…’ but it will be fine.
How would your friends and family describe you?
Loud and messy and irritating probably.
Name: Farida
Age: 50
From: Wolverhampton
Occupation: Make-Up Artist
What made you apply to be a Big Brother housemate?
I’m very proud of who I am and I feel like Asian women and Asian culture is underrepresented on TV. A lot of people think that wearing a headscarf might stop you from having opportunities, whereas for me, it’s been completely the opposite. I embrace it with confidence and it’s actually given me lots of opportunities. I want to let people know that us Muslims, we really aren’t suppressed. I’m far from suppressed – I used to be a holiday rep!
What part of the experience are you most looking forward to?
I’m looking forward to everything honestly, I’m just going to embrace it. I believe in living for the moment and I want to remember that I’m one of thousands of applicants who made it inside the house.
How would your friends and family describe you?
Bubbly, fun – I’m the party! I’m a bit of a crazy one. I’m very sociable. I’m what you’d call the black sheep of the family.
Name: Tom
Age: 21
From: Somerset
Occupation: Butcher
What made you apply to be a Big Brother housemate?
It’s just a bit of fun really, isn’t it? Something a bit different from day to day life.
What part of the experience are you most looking forward to?
Just getting to sit there and chat shit with people all day.
How would your friends and family describe you?
Quite loud and chatty. I like to think I’m quite funny but I don’t know if they agree.
Name: Hallie
Age: 18
From: London
Occupation: Youth Worker
What made you apply to be a Big Brother housemate?
Just the whole experience. I feel like Big Brother is the biggest social experiment and I want to be a part of it. It’s about getting my face out there and just having fun, enjoying life. I’m only 18 so I didn’t grow up watching it but as I got older, I would watch clips on YouTube and stuff, so I’ve been a fan. And yeah, just for fun, really?
What part of the experience are you most looking forward to?
The tasks and all the different personalities. I can imagine it’s all extroverted people and big personalities. Just the whole experience.
How would your friends and family describe you?
I’m a bit of a diva and I speak my mind but I’m also a very lovely person. I’m a girl’s girl, for sure. I’m honest, fun and, yeah, just brilliant.
Name: Trish
Age: 33
From: Luton
Occupation: Mum
What made you apply to be a Big Brother housemate?
I always wanted to apply back in the day, my friends would always be like ‘I think you’d be good in there, you’re quite mouthy’! When I saw it was coming back I thought it was the universe telling me something so I just went for it. Also because I want to humanise refugees and immigrants, especially in this political climate. I want people to see that behind the stats and figures, there are real humans. We are important simply because we exist, not only when we participate in capitalism. We matter because we are alive and breathing – no human is illegal!
What part of the experience are you most looking forward to?
I’m looking forward to the challenges in the game and the team work. I’m really competitive, even at things where I know I may not be great. I just look forward to participating and giving it my best.
How would your friends and family describe you?
Responsibly crazy. Definitely opinionated. Really funny, and I guess argumentative and reliable.
Name: Yinrun
Age: 25
From: Harrogate
Occupation: Customer Support Agent
What made you apply to be a Big Brother housemate?
Because I think this is such a fun game show. I I think it’s another adventure for me. I’m a pretty adventurous person.
What part of the experience are you most looking forward to?
I’m most excited about being surrounded by so many people from different walks of life. I don’t think I will ever live in a house again with so many different kinds of people. I’m from China and I think it will help me be more immersed in British culture.
How would your friends and family describe you?
My boyfriend would describe me in three words – quirky but lovable. My friends in China think I am like the crazy mother because I always take care of them. I’m very playful.
Name: Jordan
Age: 25
From: Scunthorpe
Occupation: Lawyer
What made you apply to be a Big Brother housemate?
Well, I love the show. I was quite disillusioned with life so I suppose boredom made me apply to some extent. I honestly applied on a whim. I’m interested in the social experiments side of Big Brother. I don’t really like the idea of living with people but I thought I might as well give it a try. And I wanted to challenge myself.
What part of the experience are you most looking forward to?
Being fed and watered, not having to pay bills and having that decked out house in which to live.
How would your friends and family describe you?
Flippant, sarcastic. They always say to me that they never know if I’m joking or not, so I suppose I could be difficult to read to some extent.
Name: Zak
Age: 28
From: Manchester
Occupation: Model
What made you apply to be a Big Brother housemate?
I feel like it’s one of those shows where you can get your personality across and I’ve got one of those personalities I feel the world needs to see. My friends and family have always told me I should do TV and I never really wanted to do a dating show. I want to do a show where I could just be myself and get my personality out there and have a laugh with people.
What part of the experience are you most looking forward to?
Doing the tasks, having fun and getting to know loads of strangers. I’m excited to meet everyone and see what everyone’s about. I don’t really know what to expect so I’m just excited to find out what’s going to happen.
How would your friends and family describe you?
Cheeky, funny, and caring.
Name: Chanelle
Age: 29
From: Llanelli
Occupation: Dental Therapist
What made you apply to be a Big Brother housemate?
Well, I only applied as a joke. Now that I’m going in, I’m doing it for myself, for the experience and to make friends for life. Something that was a joke has now materialised into real life!
What part of the experience are you most looking forward to?
Meeting people from all walks of life. I’m assuming everyone’s gonna have a story so they’re probably going to be really interesting. I’m quite attentive and I love finding things out. Also the tasks and just testing myself. It’s the unknown which is quite exciting.
How would your friends and family describe you?
Fun, bubbly, quite resilient. Humble and grounded with a lot of energy.
Name: Dylan
Age: 39
From: Coventry
Occupation: DJ
What made you apply to be a Big Brother housemate?
I saw one of the ads on TV and I thought, I’ve had so many people over the years say to me that I should be a reality TV show because I’m a character. So when I saw it, I thought, you know what, I’ll give it a go and now here I am!
What part of the experience are you most looking forward to?
I always like meeting new people and having new hurdles to jump as an amputee. It’s going to be an interesting journey to see if I can do whatever we’re asked without having any problems with staying on my leg for a certain amount of time and doing all the tasks. I’m excited for the challenge.
How would your friends and family describe you?
A loud, positive and musical person. I like music a lot, I’m always singing, rapping or playing music.
Name: Noky
Age: 26
From: Derby
Occupation: Banker
What made you apply to be a Big Brother housemate?
I love challenges. I’ve had so many amazing times in my life, like going to Miss Universe as Miss Great Britain. I like to do something different and I think this is the next challenge I want to conquer. I want to show people what pageant girls are really like and disprove a lot of stereotypes around them. I also show what it’s like being a woman who’s worked in male- dominated fields. I want to show that women are capable of doing anything they want.
What part of the experience are you most looking forward to?
I’m definitely looking forward to the tasks, I am so competitive. Anything that I can get my competitive spirit out with, that’s my cup of tea. Obviously getting to know different housemates, I can literally chat to anyone from anywhere, even if they don’t talk back! I’m really excited to meet everyone and see who I get on with. I know that there’ll definitely be people that I don’t get on with but that’s part of the fun of it as well!
How would your friends and family describe you?
They would definitely say that I am very opinionated, I’ve got something to say about literally everything. They’ll say that I can be very spontaneous. I think they can expect the unexpected with me at any point. Maybe slightly delusional as well? When I want something, I’ll set my mind on it, even if it sounds really stupid, I know I can achieve it. So yeah, delusional too.
Name: Matty
Age:24
From: Isle of Man
Occupation: Doctor
What made you apply to be a Big Brother Housemate?
I want to experience everything before I die, and I just thought why not do something mad like this? I used to watch Big Brother when I was like, 9 or 10 past my bedtime with my mom. I grew up in such a small place on the Isle of Man where I didn’t really see many people who felt like me. I remember watching Big Brother and I could see myself in all these characters from a cross section of society, and I thought like, oh, maybe I would fit in there. So I just always wanted to apply.
What part of the experience are you most looking forward to?
Having lots of fun, dancing lots and meeting all the other housemates.
How would your friends and family describe you?
They would say I’m quite like a lucky person or someone who really wants to experience life to its fullest and do everything that it has to offer. Someone who is kind and fun and doesn’t take life too seriously.
Name: Paul
Age: 23
From: Liverpool
Occupation: Security Officer
What made you apply to be a Big Brother housemate?
I just always watched it with my mum and everyone said I should apply, so I did and now I’m here.
What part of the experience are you most looking forward to?
Just being in there because I’ve always wanted to go in. Just the experience as a whole.
How would your friends and family describe you?
Extroverted to say the least. A bit nuts but also the agony aunt, like I’ll sit and speak with them but I’ll also take the piss out of them.
Name: Henry
Age: 25
From: Cotswolds
Occupation: Food Writer
What made you apply to be a Big Brother Housemate?
I’ve been a fan of the show, particularly in its later years. I think it’s a very unique opportunity that not many people get to do. I don’t think I really had my moment of craziness growing up. I know a lot of people went to do a gap year after uni but I went down quite a normal road and I thought, if not now, then when?
What part of the experience are you most looking forward to?
I am actually really looking forward to learning lots of life skills, like learning how to cook, clean, or do the washing. I’m 25 but I’m not an adult. These are some big things they don’t teach you at school that I need to learn. And also just getting to know loads of different people from very different backgrounds that I might not get to meet in my everyday life.
How would your friends and family describe you?
I think they would say I’m particularly sociable and very chatty. I mean, I’ll be honest, my parents would definitely say I’m a bit of a snob but I take it as a compliment. I think it means you’ve got high standards and good taste. They’d say I was quite a peculiar child.
Name: Olivia
Age: 23
From: Glasgow
Occupation: Dancer
What made you apply to be a Big Brother housemate?
I grew up watching the show and I’ve always said if it ever comes back, I want to do it. I just think I fit the brief because I’ve got personality to sell and this is the best place for it.
What part of the experience are you most looking forward to?
The fact that it’s gonna be like being in a completely alternate universe. It’s a totally surreal experience. I like to meet people, I’m quite a social being. I think just the overall experience of getting to disappear for a few weeks and take part in something that’s so excluded from normal day to day life.
How would your friends and family describe you?
Loud, confident, annoying. I’m the type of person who is up for anything. I’m the life and soul of the party. I’m that friend who people invite to things because at least I’ll be fun. They know that they’re guaranteed a good night if I’m there.
Name: Kerry
Age: 40
From: Essex
Occupation: NHS Manager
What made you apply to be a Big Brother housemate?
I love the programme. It is, for me, the ultimate reality TV show ever. I’ve got multiple sclerosis and so the reason why I never applied before is because I always saw those whacking great big stairs to get into the house. It just felt a little bit unachievable because for the first three years of my illness I was in a wheelchair. When I saw it was coming back and searching for real people from all walks of life, I thought, this is my year.
What part of the experience are you most looking forward to?
I’m really looking forward to meeting new people. I’m quite plugged in and I’ve got quite a bit of emotional intelligence so I think I’ll know if someone is having rubbish day and we’ll have a chat. I’m quite inquisitive and nosy. I’m also really, really looking forward to the challenges and the tasks.
How would your friends and family describe you?
A lot of fun. I’m a bit of a force to be reckoned with. I’m a doer and I’m quite competitive.
Big Brother continues tomorrow at 9pm on ITV2 & ITVX.
