Meet this year's Big Brother contestants – including a Calvin Klein model, an aspiring politician, an "eccentric rich kid" and a former X Factor hopeful.
For the first time in the reality show's 16-year history, show bosses have revealed the first photos and brief snippets of information about the cast before they enter the house for Big Brother: Timebomb on Tuesday evening (May 12).
Find out more about this year's housemates below, as they prepare for a summer under the watchful eye of Big Brother and audiences on Channel 5 - and find out a little more about what some of the contestants had to say to Digital Spy ahead of the show's launch:
Aaron Frew, 24
Personal shopper Aaron has modelled for Calvin Klein, appearing opposite stars including Lara Stone and Pixie Geldof. A qualified beauty therapist, Aaron, who's from Northampton, is a huge fan of The Little Mermaid.
Adjoa Mensah, 22
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Law student Adjoa - based in Manchester - is a pastor's daughter, and identifies as a devout Christian. That said, she told DS that she's not worried about how the other housemates will behave. "I know other people have got their own beliefs and their own faiths as well, so I respect that," said Adjoa. "I always, always respect that because I want other people to respect my religion as well and what I believe in."
Adjoa's first language is Dutch, and she's modelled for publications including Pride magazine and Vogue Italia. She says she's worried about kiss and tells coming back to haunt her while she's in the house - but isn't intimidated about the prospect of former housemates coming back with this year's Timebomb theme. "I'm ready for it!" she said.
Amy and Sally Broadbent, both 27
It's two for the price of one with twins Amy and Sally, who hail from Manchester. Nightclub host Amy claims that her previous relationships include a famous footballer and a reality star, while personal trainer Sally says she spends £500 monthly on beauty treatments.
The duo have previous reality TV experience, having made a brief appearance in The Only Way is Essex back in 2013.
Chloe Wilburn, 25
Described as a "salt of the earth Yorkshire lass", Doncaster-based office administrator Chloe says that she loves the Spanish seaside resort of Benidorm, where she claims she's treated "like a local celebrity". Oh, and she described Big Brother as "a gap year for chavs".
She told DS that she's not taking part in Big Brother for the fame, saying that she wants as normal a life as possible after the show. So why is she taking part? "I just think that I've got a few weeks to do something a bit crazy so I can look back when I'm older," she explained.
Chloe says her mum wrote her a letter advising her to mind her language in the house, don't sit back if others are being bullied - and to enjoy herself. While she isn't interested in purposely causing drama, she did warn us that she's worried about losing her temper in the house. "It's not that I go out looking for fights, I think it's that I'm always so drunk, I'm irritating," she said. "I'm dancing, chucking my arms all over the place, so I bet people are like, 'I'm going to knock her out in a minute'."
Cristian MJC (Matthew Clarkson), 20
Musician, rapper and producer Cristian originally hails from the north of England, and is studying biomedical sciences at University College London. He says that he's previously dated an actress in a British soap. Oh, and if all of that wasn't enough, he's a competitive swimmer, too.
Danny Wisker, 29
Danny says his proudest achievement was playing in the FA Cup for Margate FC. He works as a demolition man in Margate, is best buddies with another reality TV personality, Geordie Shore's Ricci, and claims to have dated a few former Celebrity Big Brother housemates. If you think you recognise Danny, then you might well have seen him on ITV2's Girlfriends a couple of years back (hosted, lest you forget, by Emma Willis).
Eileen Daly, 51
Scream queen Eileen might be familiar to reality TV fans thanks to her memorable X Factor audition with partner Ben only last year. Since making her professional acting debut in Soft Cell's video for 'Tainted Love' aged just 16, London-based Eileen has appeared in numerous cult horror movies, plus TV shows from Our Friends in the North to Eurotrash.
Harriet Jackson, 22
Harriet, who's based in London and works in a cafe, says that Alan Carr would play her in a biopic because, quote, they are "both common". She doesn't have a game plan, she's not looking forward to the prospect of Big Brother showmances - and she's not worried if people don't like her. "These people are not my friends. I've got my family, my friends, but let people say what they've got to say about me because not everyone's going to like everyone. People are going to slag me off but I've had it my whole life so it don't matter."
Harriet's Big Brother contestant bio said that she intended to back controversial political party UKIP at this year's election - but she changed her mind and decided not to vote at all in the end.
"I was watching them all on the telly, and I thought, 'Oh, you know what, one of you wankers is going to f**k up the country anyway, so bollocks to the vote, I can't even be bothered'," she told DS. "I don't support none of them, to be fair. Let them get on with it."
Jack McDermott, 23
Lifelong Plymouth Argyle fan Jack is a floor manager at a fast food restaurant. His nickname (in use by "everyone in Plymouth", apparently) is 'Pie Face'. Jack told DS that he's far from the typical perception of a Big Brother housemate, describing himself as an "average Joe". He was seen on Deal or No Deal last year, winning £7,000 - but Jack is insistent he's no wannabe.
"That was another of those life experiences I thought, 'I'll give it a shot'," he told us. "I managed to get on and it was great fun, I really enjoyed that. But obviously, it's a lot different to [Big Brother].
"I don't feel it's like people who have done maybe something bad, and have got fame for that, or people who think they're celebrities and are actually not celebrities. I literally went on a game show once and I'm just average Joe. It was just an experience I wanted to do."
Jade-Martina Lynch, 24
Jade is a model and student described by Big Brother as "feisty [and] spiritual". She practises non-monogamy when it comes to relationships, and wants to bust a few myths about polyamory while she's on the show. "People don't seem to grasp the concept [of non-monogamy], because I don't want to go and cheat on someone and break the trust and hurt them and give them a negative emotion," Jade told DS. "I want them to have a positive experience and a positive emotion. And if everyone was free and polyamorous and open, I genuinely think we'd be a lot happier."
Jade, who's from Dublin, has a number of pet rats, and says that she would like to own a pet bat, too. She's keen to point out that there's more to her than her looks, adding: "Models are so put on the back hand because people expect us to be dumb because we just look good and that's all we can have," she said. "Absolutely not. No, not a hope. I have tonnes of personality - although I do think I'm quite boring at times!"
Joel Williams, 19
Joel hails from Cardiff, and takes great pride in his political ambitions. He's one of the youngest community councillors in Wales, and aspires to be prime minister one day.
Kieran McLeod, 30
Former basketball pro Kieran sold his restaurant business to change careers again – this time to entertainment. He has his own show on a community radio station in Birmingham, and has been pretty honest already about the fact he's doing Big Brother for the fame and to raise his profile, telling DS: "Obviously it's a stepping stone for me to branch out and let people know who I am - and show them what I can do as well."
Confident Kieran is not worried about the show's Timebomb theme, or the prospect of old Big Brother housemates setting foot in the house. "Everyone's competition but for me, I don't have any problem," he added. "I don't think anyone's really going to be a threat to me."
Nick Henderson, 19
Billed by Big Brother bosses as an "eccentric rich kid", Nick, who's from Hertford, claims never to have been in a "proper relationship". He was expelled from two schools, and left the education system with no qualifications.
Nick is already playing down his chances of winning the show, telling DS that the winner "[has] got to be a really likeable character, and when you meet me, you instantly don't like me. It probably won't go very well, but I hope I win." He's doing Big Brother because he wants to learn more about himself - but added: "I don't know how sitting in a house for ten weeks is going to make me understand... we'll see."
Sarah Greenwood, 24
Another law student from Manchester, Sarah is an unashamed, self-proclaimed "stuck-up bitch" - and says that she's feisty and most certainly not a team player. Well, that's pretty direct.
Simon Gross, 46
Simon owns a theatre company in Kent, and has loved performing from an early age. He once starred opposite ex-Gladiator Wolf in panto, and says that he "wants to be the first male Margaret Thatcher".
Simon, who's also appeared on Hell's Kitchen, doesn't care if people think he's a wannabe. He also told DS that he might be trying to bend a few of Big Brother's rules in the house, saying: "I'm used to getting my own way because I'm usually in control. I'm usually in charge, so that is going to be quite difficult, being told what to do.
"I think there will be a lot of rules that I probably will put up a bit of a fight about. But Big Brother's rules count - they're final!"
Big Brother: Timebomb starts this Tuesday (May 12) at 9pm on Channel 5.
Kate (they/she) is a freelance writer, editor, digital editorial trainer and data technician who first joined Digital Spy as an overnight freelance sub-editor in January 2011, after studying a postgraduate diploma in journalism at Salford University while working part-time as a social researcher.
In July 2013, Kate joined the DS staff team as chief sub-editor and following six years as the site's managing editor, their role expanded to incorporate Hearst UK's entertainment portfolio (including Digital Spy and its sibling titles Best and Inside Soap) between late 2024 and early 2026.
Kate has worked as a writer and editor since 2006, with bylines syndicated across the Hearst network and at organisations including Metro. They started their career as a TV production runner for the BBC and contributed to various music websites, blogs and zines while based in Manchester.
During her time at DS, Kate has previously been a freelance sub-editor and chief sub-editor.
Kate's team at Digital Spy were proudly nominated in the Best Subbing/Production Team category at the BSME Talent Awards 2022. Over the years, she has contributed to coverage of many, many Prime Days and Black Friday/Cyber Monday, and was part of the team that launched the DS weekly TV newsletter in November 2019 – followed by the Top of the Shops e-commerce newsletter in May 2024.
Kate's screen passions include Taskmaster (their biggest career regret remains turning down the opportunity to visit the house), nature documentaries, and live sport (up there with the greatest of all soap operas although if asked to choose, it's Corrie… every time).
Her highlights while working at DS have included interviewing Stevie Nicks on the red carpet for her documentary In Your Dreams, sitting at a press roundtable with Formula 1 commentary icon Murray Walker, watching a life-sized LEGO car being driven around Silverstone, writing an album-by-album retrospective of Lady Gaga's genre-defying career for Living Legends, and raising awareness of receiving and understanding a late-in-life ADHD diagnosis through the lens of Bianca and Freddie's EastEnders storyline.
Upon remembering to log off the internet, Kate enjoys live theatre, dance and comedy, appreciating nature, baking (badly), tending a recently-rented allotment (equally badly) and pampering one very spoiled rescue cat named Jolene.
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