Reality TV fans rejoiced last year when it was announced Big Brother was returning to our screens after a five-year hiatus.
Everybody knew that a show so iconic would need some quality presenters and - AJ Odudu and Will Best did not disappoint.
Taking up the mantle from previous hosts Davina McCall, Brian Dowling and Emma Willis, the presenting duo quickly made the roles their own. They were on hand to comfort the housemates and tell them, ‘Do not swear’ – or, as it sounds in Blackburn native AJ’s accent, ‘Do not swurrr’.
With another series of the show – which first aired in 2000 – just around the corner, heat caught up with AJ, 36, and Will, 39 (plus his adorable dog Sandwich) fresh from their nomination at the National Television Awards. Here, they tell us what really goes on behind the scenes at the famous house…
The first time around, you two couldn’t even tell each other you had landed the job. Is it still quite so cloak and dagger?
AJ: This time last year it was all a secret. We were not allowed to say anything to anyone! So, it’s really special now, as we get to shout, celebrate and let everyone know how excited we are.
Will: I told my mum, which I regretted.
AJ: I can’t believe Will didn’t even tell me he got the job last year, even though I knew he got it. I was like, ‘We’re working together, I already know…’
W: I wanted you to find out on the first day of filming.
We assume everything’s tightly under wraps for series two – but can you give anything away?
W: We wish! We know absolutely nothing. We see the housemate videos on launch day.
Do you at least get to sneak into the house?
W: We go into the house the Friday before – that’s the big reveal. It still smells of wet paint when we go in. You have to wear plastic bags over your shoes. There’s some nice stuff in there. Great scatter cushions. They don’t get the cheap stuff – big budget.
What’s eviction day like?
AJ: It is morning until night. I literally set off about 8.30 in the morning.
W: We get there about 9am and then we get home about five in the morning – but that’s usually because we’ve gone out. The first thing we do is watch the previous night’s episode, then it’s script meetings, talking through interviews and prep. We make the eviction show and then Late & Live straight afterwards. It’s two-and-a-half hours of live telly – that’s pushing the limit of how long your body can sustain.
AJ: That’s just a little snippet. The shows are being constantly filmed, so things can change constantly.
It must be a wardrobe minefield…
AJ: I try and map out as much as I can. Will starts to get photos, saying, ‘I am wearing this, wear something matching.’ Some of the outfits need customising, so even getting dressed is a long process.
W: It is 25 looks in total between eviction looks and then Late & Live.
AJ: Our stylists are very, very busy. And very good – thank God. I couldn’t come up with all those outfits myself.
We’d love a peek inside your dressing room…
AJ: I’ve always got music blasting. I’ve got the loudest dressing room ever. It is chaos. You might leave with a headache. Enter at your own peril. There are wigs flying around, outfits being tossed about and the room is tiny. It’s got no windows. But there’s a lot of room for love, joy and laughter.
We assume shut-eye is out of the question?
AJ: It is so difficult to sleep after a show. The adrenaline is so high! We have got to have a social media detox.
W: One of the highlights is getting to see each other on a Friday. We don’t see each other during the week because we do alternate days on Late & Live, so we’re catching up on what we think of the show and general gossip. We have to fit that in.
On your days off, are you having a proper duvet day?
AJ: I am like an actual zombie. I like to avoid all need to even get out of bed. I try to get into a bit of a routine; I’ve convinced myself that going to the sauna is exercise. Is it cardio? It is hard to breathe in there! I just really relax, maybe meet a friend for lunch and get an early night. I’m going to try and get naps in this series, as I stay up late watching the main show.
W: I run my drinks company, Bloody Drinks, outside of TV, so I go from all the joy and excitement of Big Brother to emailing. I try for a lie-in. It’s so dull!
You guys are such good friends. Where did you first meet?
W: We first worked together on a 4Music show called Trending Live. Had we met at a party?
AJ: I’m pretty sure we had.
W: That didn’t feel like we were meeting for the first time. It wasn’t, ‘Nice to meet you…’
AJ: Some of my closest friends, I can’t actually remember the very first time we met. I can’t actually remember a time before Will. It feels like he was always in my life.
People always talk about your great chemistry – do you communicate in a secret language?
W: We don’t need it, as honestly, we are telepathic.
AJ: Last launch show, I was actually really ill, and last year during the final episode, Will was really ill, and we just bounced off each other so much that it was fine. I was like, ‘Even if I projectile vomit on TV, Will has got me.’
W: As long as no one falls off the stage and hurts themselves, then it’s all part of the joy of live telly.
And do you go ‘out out’ afterwards?
AJ: Yes, I love it. After a live show, the adrenaline is so much. There’s a crowd, the housemate who just left – we can’t just finish a live show and go straight to bed. I do think Will wishes that he could, but I can’t do it. I’m like, ‘We’re going straight to the pub with the crew.’
W: I sometimes get a bit of a headache after the show because it’s so intense. I have to stay late on the nights when my mum comes. She makes the most of it. We usually end up in a kebab shop on the Hackney Road at four in the morning.
Have you done any special prep this year for the show coming back?
W: I was going to do Dry September.
AJ: I have not been doing extra exercise, I’ve been doing extra partying. And I meant to – I was like, ‘I’m going to be even more healthy.’ But I do Pilates and I’ve kept that up.
W: Last time, I was very mindful about alcohol the month before the show and this time, flipping ’eck! It’s been the booziest month this year.
Will there be a big wrap party when the series ends?
W: Big time. That is always quite weird because the housemates are there. You know them, and they don’t know us. You feel like you’re mates. You go, ‘Hi, how are you?’ and they’re like, ‘This is a bit weird,’ so that’s always funny. It’s such a big family. Everyone becomes one unit. That’s one of the things I enjoy most.
AJ: My family and friends absolutely love the show, so it’s a really exciting time for us all to get together. My mum’s obsessed with watching us on Big Brother, so the watching parties really ramp up.
Last year, you put out a video telling fans to be kind online when watching the show. How do you protect your own mental health?
AJ: It goes without saying that we love the housemates, they make the series and we want everyone watching to remember they are actual human beings putting themselves into a real social experiment. To keep my mental health in check, I try not to sweat the small stuff while it’s so intense and so polarising. Just focus on all of the positives.
W: I sit and doom scroll eight hours a day.
Are you jetting off somewhere sunny once filming wraps?
AJ: I love going away in January. I’d love to be in South East Asia.
W: I’ll probably go with her...
Celebrity Big Brother was nominated for a National Television Award. What do you think made it such a popular hit?
W: I think Louis Walsh and Sharon Osbourne were so entertaining. Louis veering from lovable grandad to panto villain. But all of them were great. David Potts was a really worthy winner and there was the right amount of drama.
AJ: It was so fun going to the NTAs and knowing the fans love the show so much. But I think these series two house guests can be even more amazing than the celeb ones.
W: There’s a magic with the regular series that you can’t replicate. It’s fascinating in a different way. You become obsessed with housemates you didn’t know existed until launch night. People build up a real affinity with their favourites. There’s someone for everyone to root for.
Why has Big Brother stood the test of time?
W: We all make snap decisions about people and we’re usually wrong. You get to know the housemates organically over the series and everyone turns out to have hidden depths and be nicer or meaner than you were expecting. Everybody reveals themselves – that’s why it works.
