Davina McCall has revealed that she contacted ITV to host the Big Brother reboot but was roundly rejected. The TV personality, 58, became a household name during her time hosting Channel 4’s iteration of the hit reality series that puts a bunch of strangers into a house where they’re monitored 24/7.
Davina’s Secret Pitch
After a decade helming the series, the show came to an end in 2010 and jumped over to Channel 5, where Davina turned down the offer to present, instead being taken over by former winner Brian Dowling and, eventually, Emma Willis. After the Channel 5 version wrapped up in 2018, it returned to screens once more – this time on ITV – in 2023 with brand new presenters AJ Odudu and Will Best.
At the time, Davina posted saying she had serious ‘fomo’ and said in a separate interview: ‘New start, fresh start, younger. I do understand, and I think it’s quite a good idea.’ But now she’s revealed her ‘secret’ that she actually approached the network to reprise her role in some way, either as a host or even just voicing her trademark catchphrase – fancy another one?
Rejection and Reaction
Speaking on the Business Growth Secrets podcast earlier this month, hosted by entrepreneur Adam Scott, she said: ‘I’ve got a secret to tell you actually. When they started Big Brother on ITV, I put myself forward to present it and they went they went with new presenters. But I was like, look can I please just be pre-titles and just go “fancy another one” but they didn’t want me to do that, and I was like: “F**k”.’
She later added: ‘I love that show so much, it was in my DNA and, interestingly, it’s changed now and it will never be what it was at the beginning, because people know what it is. They know what to expect. They know what’s going to happen after. They always kind of semi-know they are being watched. Whereas people at the beginning, it really was an extraordinary human experiment. It was incredible at the time.’
Fan Outrage
The knowledge that Big Brother icon Davina could have been the face of the ITV reboot has utterly gutted fans. ‘ITV fumbled so bad, Davina IS Big Brother,’ Lewis wrote on X. ‘This certainly would have enhanced the credibility of the show immeasurably. The OG back with the OG “Big Mother”. It’s really shocking they let Davina slip through their fingers…’ BB_Superfan declared.
‘Diabolical decision from [Big Brother] there,’ Demi shared. ‘INSANITY. What a dreadful decision!’ Matt agreed. ‘As much as AJ and Will have grown on me and I like them as a duo, Davina would have been (and still would be) the best host for [Big Brother]. She *is* Big Brother. I understand ITV needed their own stamp on the new era, but Davina and maybe even Emma as a duo,’ TwellyWatcher reflected.
Mixed Sentiments
Over on Reddit, the sentiment was much the same, although some saw it as a blessing in disguise. ‘Part of me can’t believe ITV passed on Davina McCall, but another part thinks she may have had a lucky escape. As disappointing as it sounds, at least she’s not tied to the much softer, watered-down version of the show we ended up with,’ Direct_Future_5328 reflected.
‘Honestly, as someone who doesn’t mind AJ and will, I think it was a massive mistake. Davina would’ve given a totally different Big Brother and would’ve added so much charm and nostalgia,’ MARN-E noted.
Davina’s Earlier Comments
In 2023, she said on The Chris Moyles Show: ‘Of course I would have done it. I’m being really honest now, but in retrospect, I don’t think it would have been the right fit for me. It’s nostalgic for me. It’s come a long way since I hosted it, and I am a different person.’
Health Scares and Stepping Back
As for Davina, she recently opened up about stepping back from full-time work to concentrate on herself after two health scares, first a brain tumour operation, then another surgery for a small, early-stage breast cancer tumour. On the Miss Me? podcast earlier this year, she said she had a ‘breakthrough’ in the ’90s, and after her brain tumour was removed, to ‘destress’ her life.
She said: ‘Interestingly, I realised that, but then the breast cancer, which I thought was a very, very frightening thing, made me realise that I really, really had to put that into place. And I have now. I’m going to work a four-day week. I feel so much better now about my life and trying to get it more balanced. I want to take more care of myself. That is my latest project: me, because I can’t take care of anyone else if I’m not okay.’
Big Brother’s Future
Big Brother will return for a new extended series this autumn, over the course of eight weeks. Metro has reached out to ITV for comment.
