Big Brother winner crowned after return to British TV

Jordan has been crowned the champion of Big Brother following its return to British TV screens.

The live final on ITV saw Olivia and Henry placing second and third respectively, following a final with Yinrun and Noky on Friday, which saw almost six million votes cast.

The social experiment, in which housemates live together in a custom-built home for weeks without access to the outside world, returned in October with 16 contestants following a five-year hiatus.

On winning the £100,000 prize, lawyer Jordan said: “I can pay my council tax!”

Jordan also said he “hasn’t the foggiest” why he was voted champion after 42 days in the house, but said of his Big Brother journey: “I have let myself go a tiny bit, I didn’t feel any regret so that was shocking.

“I could be quite uptight – I hope I haven’t lost the dryness and become a bit wet.”

He added: “First round on me then,” when asked what he would do with his prize money.

While second-placed housemate Olivia, a dancer from Glasgow, said: “I’ve said from the get-go as soon as you open your mouth in that house you become part of the firing line, sometimes it is easier to be quiet, you carry less of a weight on your shoulders if you just keep your mouth shut.

“But I would not be me if I didn’t open this big, fat gob.”

Big Brother, which was axed by Channel 5 amid a ratings slump in 2018, returned this year with new hosts AJ Odudu and Will Best.

On placing third in the competition, food writer Henry said: “I honestly never expected to be here and I am shocked. It genuinely has really, really impacted me and I think I am leaving a much better person.”

Fourth place contestant Yinrun, a customer support agent, said: “I would say I had the best time of my life in the house.

“I was very shy in the first week especially. I was the outsider. I gained more than I paid in this process.”

Placing fifth, Miss Universe Great Britain 2022 winner Noky added: “I think I kept it real throughout and I think people respected that consistency and that’s why I am here.”