Celebrity Big Brother’s Nikita Kuzmin reveals warning Strictly bosses gave him when he asked permission to join show
BBC and ITV usually keep a tight rein on their talent, famously banning their biggest names from shows such as Strictly Come Dancing and I’m A Celebrity.
So fans were shocked to see Strictly’s Nikita Kuzmin prance into the Celebrity Big Brother house on Monday night.
Now the dancer has revealed how he got Beeb bosses to sanction his stint on ITV1’s new series — with one condition.
In his only newspaper chat, I asked Nikita if he had to get the OK to join CBB he said: “Yeah.
“To be fair, I also asked out of respect.
“They’re the ones who brought me to this country and gave me all these opportunities.
“I feel almost like they raised me, in a way.”
Celebrity Big Brother line-up
So who are the 13 stars expected to appear in the Celebrity Big Brother house? The Sun's Jamie Downham takes a look...
Sharon Osbourne – TV legend – who is a “house guest” on a megabucks deal – said she was doing the show for “a good time not a long time”
Louis Walsh – Irish boyband manager who has never knowingly backed down from a fight and is not above pulling rank over the double bed
Ekin-Su Cülcüloğlu – As we know from Love Island, the Ek-ster is capable of throwing about some dramatics to claw her way to the final
Levi Roots – Reggae Reggae Sauce sauce packs a bit of a kick, but its inventor seems quite mild-mannered. Will that change under pressure?
Fern Britton – The former This Morning star called out Phillip Schofield – don’t think she won’t do the same to anyone who tangles with her
Colson Smith – You’ll probably know him best as Corrie’s Craig Tinker – but prepare to find out he’s not much like his character
David Potts – Ibiza Weekender’s breakout star has left that show behind – as well as his trousers by the look of things
Gary Goldsmith – Kate Middleton’s uncle is a big signing for ITV, but has proved a divisive booking among viewers
Marisha Wallace – It’s not CBB without the role of ‘American who doesn’t know what they’ve let themselves in for’ and she’s doing brilliantly
Nikita Kuzmin – The Strictly pro is coming onto the show fresh off the show’s tour. Poor lad probably just wants a rest
Zeze Mills – the social media star has a “no holds barred interview style” – and she hasn’t backed away from calling people (well, Louis) out
Bradley Riches – The actor played kindly James McEwan in Netflix hit Heartstopper and he seems just as sweet in the house
Lauren Simon – She’s a Real Housewives of Cheshire star and you really don’t get on that show by being shy and retiring
The execs left Nikita with just one word of warning.
He added: “They just said to me ‘make us proud’.”
Listen to all our CBB podcasts here….
Harry’s down on his luck
HARRY REDKNAPP breaks his own record of being the most “shut down” star on The Wheel this weekend.
The former football manager first appeared as an expert on the BBC game show – which sees contestants clock up cash by answering questions with the help of seven celeb guests – in 2022.
But contestants had little faith in Harry being able to answer correctly and chose to eliminate him from seven rounds, even in his prime category – identifying the names of football managers.
This weekend, Harry is again locked out from the action in favour of AJ Odudu, Deborah Meaden, Lucy Beaumont, Bash The Entertainer, William Hanson and Russell T Davies despite Michael pleading with people to give him a chance.
Michael tells contestant Jess: “Harry is historically the celebrity who has been shut down the most.
“I think it was seven times in a row, but the challenge is to not shut him down on social media when he thinks that Twitch is an actual twitch and TikTok is a clock.”
As Harry shakes his head in mock dismay, Jess picks him to be shut down, saying: “Harry, I’m so sorry.”
The Wheel airs on BBC One this Saturday at 6.50pm.
ENGLAND football captain Millie Bright has scored a spot on CBeebies Bedtime Stories. The Lioness will read Catherine Emmett’s book Sammy Striker and the Football Cup, about a young girl working out how her skills can help her win, at 6.50pm today.