We now have all 16 housemates – here’s everything you need to know.
Big Brother is officially back for 2023 and the first 16 housemates have now been revealed.
The ITV reboot kicked off on ITV1, ITV2 and ITVX in a massive TV takeover on Sunday 8th October, with hosts AJ Odudu and Will Best introducing viewers to this year’s housemates.
Jenkin, 25, from Wales was the first contestant to be revealed, followed by Farida, 50, Tom, 21, and 18-year-old youth worker Halle, who is the youngest contestant to take part this year.
Miss Universe GB winner Noky Simbani was rumoured to be taking part, with The Sun stating: “Noky’s an ideal housemate. Not only is she beautiful but she’s got brains and a fantastic personality. Several casting producers have been desperate to sign her to reality shows” and during the launch episode, the 26-year-old was confirmed to be taking part.
Over the next six weeks, the housemates will face the ultimate social experiment with £100,000 up for grabs at the end. And the games have already begun, with Jenkin without hot water, Dylan without a bed and Olivia the first person up for eviction. However, there’s a twist – if she can make sure she’s not voted the least interesting housemate out of all the contestants she’ll get immunity from Friday’s eviction.
As the 2023 season gets underway, read on for everything you need to know about the Big Brother 2023 cast.
Big Brother 2023 cast
Here’s a full list of the Big Brother 2023 housemates:
- Jenkin
- Farida
- Tom
- Hallie
- Trish
- Yinrun
- Jordan
- Zak
- Chanelle
- Dylan
- Matty
- Paul
- Noky
- Henry
- Olivia
- Kerry
Read on for more on this year’s housemates.
Kerry
Age: 40
Job: NHS manager
From: Essex
Kerry is the last housemate joining the line-up.
“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,” she said.
Olivia
Age: 23
Job: Dancer
From: Glasgow, Scotland
Olivia joins the rest of this year’s housemates for the Big Brother reboot. She describes herself as the “princess” of the household.
“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,” she said.
Henry
Age: 25
Job: Food writer
From: Cotswolds
Food writer Henry loves Boris Johnson, who he says he’d love to go for a martini with, and the Royal Family.
He’s hoping there will be a matron in the house because he can’t cook or clean.
“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.”
Paul
Age: 23
Job: Security officer
From: Liverpool
Paul is a 23-year-old security officer from Liverpool. Asked if he joined the show, he said: “We’ll see about that one, I’m a scouser so we’ll see!”
“I just always watched it with my mum and everyone said I should apply, so I did and now I’m here,” he added.
Matty
Age: 24
Job: Doctor
From: Isle of Man
Doctor Matty, 24, was the 12th contestant to be revealed for this year’s show. He currently works in the geriatric department and loves “old people”.
Matty has a very good reason for signing up, saying: “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.”
Noky
Age: 26
Job: Miss Universe GB / banker
From: Derby
Noky joins the Big Brother house with the hope of showing viewers that there’s more to her than her good looks.
“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,” she said.
Dylan
Age: 39
Job: DJ
From: Coventry
DJ and MC Dylan is one of this year’s contestant. He got into an accident a few years ago and decided to have his leg amputated after living in pain for three years.
“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,” he said.
Chanelle
Age: 29
Job: Dental therapist
From: Llanelli, Wales
Dental therapist Chanel is one of this year’s housemates.
Asked why she applied, she said: “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!”
Zak
Age: 28
Job: Model
From: Manchester
Zak is a 28-year-old model who is originally from Thailand.
Asked why he decided to take part in the show, Zak said: “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.”
Jordan
Age: 25
Job: Lawyer
From: Scunthorpe
Jordan is one of this year’s contestants, who applied out of boredom.
“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,” he said.
Yinrun
Age: 25
Job: Customer support agent
From: Harrogate
Yinrun is a 25-year-old customer support agent from Harrogate. Originally from Shanghai, China, Yinrun says when she moved to the UK she found the people to be very “polite”.
So, why did she sign up for Big Brother?
“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,” she said.
Trish
Age: 33
Job: full-time mum
From: Luton
Trish is originally from Congo. She came to England when she was nine-years-old and describes herself as “very left-wing and a feminist.”
“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!” she said.
Hallie
Age: 18
Job: Youth worker
From: South London
Halle is an 18-year-old youth worker from South London. While she might be young, she doesn’t want to be babied in the house, warning the other housemates to: “Check yourself before you wreck yourself.”
She said sometimes her mouth can get her in trouble and she’s been described as a “raging b***h on wheels some times”.
Tom
Age: 21
Job: Butcher
From: Livington, Somerset
Tom is a 21-year-old from Livington, Somerset. He says: “I’m funny, outgoing – that’s where the list ends.”
He’ll be supported by his mum while in the Big Brother House.
In terms of why he applied for the legendary reality TV show, he said: “It’s just a bit of fun really, isn’t it? Something a bit different from day to day life.”
Farida
Age: 50
Job: Make-up artist
From: Wolverhampton
Fardia was the second housemate. She describes herself as a “very proud muslim” who “loves praying five times a day”. She’ll be dressing modestly in the Big Brother house.
Back home, she lives with her husband and loves embracing her age. Her family will be supporting her back home as she competes for the £100k cash prize. BTW, she’s “in it to win it”.
In terms of why she joined the show, she said: “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!
Jenkin
Age: 25
Job: Barman and cleaner.
From: Bridgend
Jenkin was the first person to join the cast of Big Brother for 2023.
“I’m not the only gay in the village, I’m the best one,” he said in his VT.
Asked why he decided to join Big Brother, added: “I was bored and I thought I’d do something different, give it a whirl.”
Big Brother airs weekdays and Sundays at 9pm on ITV2 and ITVX.
Check out more of our Entertainment coverage or visit our TV Guide to see what’s on tonight.
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