bbspy

Why did you sign up for CBB?
My mum has Alzheimer’s, I pay for her care and it is expensive. The honest answer is I’m here to pay her bill.

How long has she been ill for?
She was diagnosed in 2010. As a family we’ve dealt with it since then. She had to sell her home in order to pay for her care. Unfortunately she only lived in a two-up, two-down, in a Northern town, so the money doesn’t go very far. She did live with us as a family, and in March of this year we felt that we could no longer meet her needs, and she moved into a facility. That’s why I’m here. I’m not ashamed of it. I don’t care what people think – people say all sorts of things when you want to do a program like this: ‘you’re washed up’, ‘they’re scraping the bottom of the barrel.’ I unashamedly say, ‘You can say what you want, but no one takes cares of my bills other than me and that is what I am here to do.’

Are you hoping to raise awareness while you’re at it?
People now say things like, ‘There are positive ways to live with dementia’. You name me one. Because as far as I can see, there is nothing positive to having Alzheimer’s or dementia. It is brutal and it is cruel and I have nothing good to say about it. But if I can make these years as comfortable for her as possible, then I will do whatever it is I have to do in order to do that. And it’s not all doom and gloom – I’m here to have some fun as well. I’m also coming in to the Big Brother house to have no responsibility. Most people are like ‘Urgh, they’ve got to take your phone away’ and I’m like ‘Take it! Turn it off!’ I don’t have kids, I don’t have things like that – yes I miss my husband, but in some ways, I find the whole thing quite liberating.

What do you think you’re going to be like as a housemate?
There’s not many secrets to me – I do what it says on the tin. I like to think of myself as fun. I’m quite a positive person. If life has taught me anything over the last couple of years, it’s that you have to just make the most of it, because even if it all slips away, we don’t remember it. As a housemate, I’m going to try and diffuse. If there’s something going on over here, I’m going to put something on over there that’s equally as entertaining, and maybe a bit of a distraction. I know that this show is known for being volatile, and I’m not expecting them to put in 16 people who all get on and love each other, but there’s no reason why it has to be horrendous, or people screaming at each other. You can have a difference of opinion with somebody, but we don’t have to make it uncomfortable.

Do you think you will manage to avoid the conflict?
I’m sure there will be people who don’t like some of the ways I live my life. A phobia is an IRRATIONAL fear. I say face your fear. I’m not here to judge anyone, change anyone’s opinion. I’m not here to represent anyone or anything other than myself. No amount of shouting or screaming is going to change the way you feel about me, but I could maybe kill you with kindness. That’s what I’m going to try and do. I’m not going to go out of my way to make you like or dislike me.

Is there anything that would wind you up?
There are lots of things of course – I like to be clean, I like to be tidy, but I will try not to let them wind me up. I want to use this as an exercise for myself more than anybody else. I want to learn things about myself – if there is anything to learn. Four weeks is a long time, and I think it would be great if you could strike up some common ground with somebody who you wouldn’t normally see eye to eye with.

I bet you cook as well don’t you?
I love to cook. If I need to amuse myself, I’ll go and whip up a risotto.

Do you have any habits that might wind them up?
I am a morning person, so that in itself could be quite annoying if you’re Mr and Mrs Pillowhead. I’m the sort of person that wakes up and says ‘hey!’ – I don’t take a long while to warm up. But I do think I’m pretty flexible and I can rub along with anything.

Has your husband given you any advice?
He’s going to Canada! It’s his dad’s birthday so I was like ‘now might be a good time to leave the country for a while… Me and Jon have been together 13 years, he loves me. He has told me to keep my mouth shut: ‘Think about it first, count to ten, think about it again and then if it really compels you, then you’re allowed to speak.’

Have you seen any of your rumoured fellow housemates?
I purposefully tried to avoid it. But I was told about Kristina Rihanoff, who in my house is called ‘the Siberian Siren’. I’m very much excited by the prospect of her going in, because I’ll be learning to rhumba… I’m a huge fan of hers. I also heard about Stephanie Davis, who I worked with on a show called Over the Rainbow. I was a big fan of hers, and very pro-Stephanie during the show. It would be nice to see her and where she’s at. Of course, when I’m putting on one of my various productions in the house, I’ve obviously got a young ingenue who is more than capable of stepping in to fulfil those needs, so let’s put on a show!

Would you like to win?
I’ve already won. I came in here for a reason and the fact that I’m here means that I’ve won that. Anything else is a bonus.