Where sexiest Big Brother stars are now – from bitter split over Prem love rat to model’s drastic career change
IT’S the TV comeback we’ve all been waiting for – and it’s got a lot to live up to.
For 17 years Big Brother fans watched agog as housemates from different walks of life rowed, romped and rebelled.
Many of its stars went on to forge successful entertainment careers – while some retreated from the spotlight after their five minutes of fame.
Here we take a look at where some of Big Brother’s sexiest housemates ended up.
Imogen Thomas
A former Miss Wales, Imogen Thomas rose to prominence following her appearance on the show in 2006.
She became a hit with lads magazines and has appeared on dozens of covers.
In 2011 it emerged the model had a six-month affair with a footballer, which turned out to be married Manchester United legend Ryan Giggs.
It later emerged Giggs had also been having an affair with his brother Rhodri’s wife for years.
At the time Imogen claimed: “I called it off a million times but he kept coming back. He knew it was wrong as well, he said as much, but he was pursuing me.”
She has since put the scandal behind her, and in 2015 she launched her own swimwear brand Chasing Summer.
Imogen, 40, has two daughters, Amelia and Siera, with her ex Adam Horsley.
She has also stepped away from modelling and is now focused on property.
Imogen has been named as one of the richest Big Brother housemates with a whopping £2.9million.
Chanelle Hayes
During the 2007 series Chanelle Hayes, then just 19, was a self-proclaimed Victoria Beckham wannabe.
She got together with Ziggy Lichman, who had a look of David Beckham, and they were branded the Posh and Becks of reality TV.
Another lad’s mag favourite, she appeared in the likes of Nuts and Zoo Weekly and even tried her hand at a singing career.
Chanelle, 35, is now a mum-of-two – her first child is with former Bristol City footballer Matthew Bates, and her second is with PE teacher Ryan Oates.
She had a rocky relationship with Ryan, but they appear to have put their differences aside to co-parent their son.
Chanelle has been open about her struggle with binge-eating and she underwent gastric sleeve surgery in 2020 after tipping the scales at 17st.
Earlier this year she revealed she is training to be a nurse.
Makosi Musambasi
In 2006, nurse Makosi Musambasi, originally from Zimbabwe, became the breakout star of the sixth series of the show thanks to her over-the-top antics.
While she was an early favourite on the show, the public turned on her after she claimed she could be pregnant days after a hot tub tryst with Anthony Hutton.
After finishing third on the show she was embroiled in a deportation scandal and once claimed Big Brother “totally ruined” her life.
She told the Mirror: “When you first come out everyone wants to know you and be your friend.
“Agents are queuing up to sign you up and promising you the world. But all they care about is making money for themselves. One minute they want to know you, the next they don’t.”
After moving to Nigeria, Makosi now appears to have turned her life around and is working as a life coach, having built up an impressive social media following. She is also a keen golfer.
Sophie Reade
During the 2009 series blonde bombshell Sophie Reade had to change her name to Dogface as part of a challenge in order to remain a housemate.
It paid off – she eventually won by the highest ever percentage of votes.
She too went into glamour modelling, posing for Playboy at one stage.
Sophie had a fling with former Manchester City player Mario Balotelli in 2010, but it ended in tears when she claimed he cheated on her with her best mate on New Year’s Eve.
Sophie took a break from her career in 2017 when she had her son Walter, who she shares with her ex – Dundee United star David Goodwillie. They split while she was pregnant.
Sophie, 34, has ditched her platinum locks and skinny brows for a darker, more natural shade and voluminous look, and has been open about having cosmetic surgery.
She now flogs her raunchy pictures on OnlyFans and says her son often walks into the room when she’s taking pictures.
Sophie told The Sun: “I don’t mind him knowing what I do. He sees pictures of me and says ‘Oh Mummy, you’re in your underwear!'”
Sam and Amanda Marchant
Twins Sam and Amanda Marchant, now 35, came second in the 2007 series, having won over fans with their bimbo-like behaviour.
They became known as Samanda and are said to have made a whopping £1million from brand deals including workout DVDs, skin-care products and a short-lived music career.
They’ve since gone in completely different directions and live a quieter life out of the spotlight.
In 2018 it was revealed Amanda works as a merchandiser at ASOS, while Sam is a sales manager at a fashion agency.
Kate Lawler
Series three winner Kate Lawler is one of Big Brother’s most famous success stories – she’s released a best-selling book and is a TV and radio presenter.
The devoted animal rights campaigner is married to Martin Bojtas – they share a daughter called Noa.
In 2021 she revealed she managed to trick the Big Brother cameras after they failed to catch her and Spencer Smith in a sex act.
Kate, 43, said: “Spencer was my love interest in Big Brother 3 and we got up to something under the covers which they never got on camera, they never captured, because of how subtle we did it.
“We were basically having a conversation in bed while something else was going on which I’m not going to share. And they never showed it.”
Aisleyne Horgan-Wallace
Die-hard fans of the show will remember Aisleyne, now 44, as the fiery blonde bombshell who wasn’t afraid to speak her mind in Big Brother 7.
After coming third on the show, she has been involved in other reality shows such as Celebrity Salon, Judge Rinder and The Challenge.
She also launched a fitness app, set up a clothing line and was among the judges for Miss Universe Ireland in 2011.
Aisleyne’s dating life has also made headlines – she once dated boxing legend Mike Tyson and had a fling with presenter Jack Whitehall.
She was known to be best friends with pop icon Amy Winehouse up until her death in 2011.
In 2018 she revealed she considered having unprotected sex with strangers to try to have a baby, having suffered four miscarriages.
She suffers from a rare blood disease called rhesus negative that makes it more difficult for her to carry a baby to full-term.
Aisleyene has courted many controversies including her use of the N-word in 2014 and has feuded with other Big Brother stars including Sallie Axl.
Orlaith McAllister
Although Orlaith was a late addition to Big Brother 6, the Irish beauty arrived with a bang.
She was part of the infamous three-way pool shenanigans that included Makosi and Anthony Hutton and ended up snogging both stars.
Speaking about her time on the show, she said: “I absolutely loved that experience. You have different chapters in your life and that was just one of the chapters of my life that I would never change.”
Orlaith, who is now 44 and a mum-of-two, has swapped the busy world of showbiz for a much quieter life in Co Antrim.
She is now a real estate agent for CPS property, while her husband Neil works as a partner at a law firm in Belfast.
Michelle Bass
Who can ever forget Michelle’s under-the-table romp with Stuart Wilson aka ‘Chicken Stu’ is series four?
The pair tried to make their relationship work outside the show but broke up after a year.
Michelle, who has since ditched her raven locks for a blonde do, is now happily married to psychoanalyst and hypnotist Steve McKeown.
The Geordie beauty, 42, has a limited social media presence and enjoys a quiet life with her family.
Sallie Axl
Although she was the first to get the boot in 2013, Sallie Axl remains one of the most memorable housemates.
The heavily tattooed beauty went on to have a daughter who she travelled around the world with.
She also became infamous for going under the knife, having two boob jobs and three nose jobs – one of which went badly wrong.
In 2015, she released an intimate picture purporting to be of Aisleyne Hogan-Wallace with two men.
The pair engaged in a bitter war of words on social media after Aisleyne reported the snap to the police.
Sallie, now 36, was investigated by police in 2019 after a video emerged of her lunging at her ex-boyfriend Gerard Williams with a pair of scissors. She claimed he’d laughed at her, and she was in a “dark place”.
She was also forced to pay back £12,000 in housing benefits she wrongly claimed that same year.