Former Celebrity Big Brother housemate Natalie Cassidy has some important advice for the next crop of celebs about to enter the CBB house.
The reality TV gameshow is returning after a six-year hiatus on its new home, ITV, on Monday night.
Contestants are isolated from the outside world over an extended period of time in a custom-built house and will eventually be eliminated by a public vote one-by-one, with the last person remaining named the winner.
It’s a popularity contest at the end of the day and according to Cassidy, 40, who took part in the ninth series back in 2012 and was the fifth housemate to be eliminated, there are a few essential dos and don’ts.
Speaking to the Standard to promote her new BBC Sounds podcast Off The Telly, which she will host weekly with Gavin and Stacey star Joanna Page, she said she was “excited” to see CBB back on our screens.
“I am looking forward to it,” she enthused. My advice would be to be yourself. If you have something to prove and you’re not yourself, you won’t last long because there is nowhere to hide.
Music manager and former X Factor judge Louis Walsh, plus, Love Island winner Ekin-Su CülcüloÄlu, are among the big names who have reportedly signed up to appear.
Asked who she thinks would make a great housemate, she said: “My friend Lorraine Stanley, who played Karen [Taylor in EastEnders] would be good.”
Cassidy is best known for playing Sonia Fowler in BBC soap EastEnders, a role she has played on and off since the age of 10.
She has also appeared in BBC Two sitcom-horror Psychoville and was a contestant on the seventh series of Strictly Come Dancing so is no stranger to the silver screen.
The London-born personality is over the moon to be teaming up with Page, 46, for their new joint project.
Despite their clear rapport, at the time of writing, they have only actually met a handful of times after initially meeting while both appearing on ITV’s Loose Women where they “just hit it off,” bonding as two women in their forties and both being working mums.
Drawn on her own viewing habits, she said: “I am really boring and I will watch Grand Designs, University Challenge, EastEnders and I watched The Post Office, which I loved and we’ll grab a drama, but I feel like this new podcast is brilliant because this is work and it means I have to dedicate my time to watching series and not just sticking to what I love.”
As a mum-of-two, she also admits to being “a bit of a sucker for all of the kids stuff” and has watched her share of kids shows such as Peppa Pig and Bing.
Adding: “I love the School of Roar with Kathy Burke, I think it is absolutely brilliant. I would absolutely love to voice a cartoon character.”Off The Telly with Natalie Cassidy and Joanna Page is available to stream weekly on BBC Sounds now.
