AJ Odudu says Davina McCall gave “her blessing” to host the ‘Big Brother’ reboot.
AJ Odudu is keen to host Big Brother
The 35-year-old star will host the revival of the Channel 4 reality show alongside Will Best when it returns to screens later this year and revealed that original host Davina, 55, - who fronted the series from 2000 until 2010 - sent her a video message where she reassured her she is “going to smash it”.
She told Grazia: “The Queen herself has given me her blessing.
“She sent me an amazing video when I got the gig saying, ‘You’re going to smash it.’
AJ - whose other predecessors include Brian Dowling, 45, and Emma Willis, 47, who fronted it after it moved to Channel 5 and aired from 2011 to 2018 - detailed how she “clawed her way back” after “so much rejection” like when she was replaced on ‘Big Brother’s Bit on the Side’.
She said: “I’ve clawed my way back without being horrible, just by working hard and being myself. Back then I didn’t even want to get out of my bed.
“I fell into a deep depression because TV just wasn’t going my way.
“Five years ago I was living on my dad’s bedroom floor in a council flat. I was like, ‘I don’t live where you guys think I live and I’m not doing what you guys think.”
When the news broke that AJ would be presenting the reboot of the show, the former ' Strictly Come Dancing' contestant admitted she "couldn't be more ecstatic" to be fronting the return of such an "iconic" series.
She wrote on Instagram: "This is not a drill! I’m beyond excited to finally be able to say that, I am hosting Big Brother! I couldn’t be more ecstatic to front such an iconic show and to do it alongside my amazing friend @iamwillbest is the icing on the cake. Get ready to be obsessed! Big Brother House, I’m coming to get you!"
Tagged in Davina McCall Keith Lemon Emma Willis