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Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
Entertainment
Katherine Heslop

Davina McCall becomes bookies' favourite to host rumoured Big Brother relaunch on ITV

Odds are looking good for Davina McCall to return as the host of Big Brother, after it was reported the show is set for a relaunch next year on ITV.

Producers are reportedly in talks to introduce the iconic programme on the channel, with Davina, 54, who hosted the series for a decade, the favourite to present the reality TV series, according to bookies.

Ladbrokes have installed the former face of the show, which was later led by former winner Brian Dowling and Emma Willis, at 2/1 to present again.

Alex Apati of Ladbrokes said: "Big Brother fans will be delighted at this week's news of a return to our screens for the series, and the latest odds suggest a familiar face could well front the show once again, after 12 years away."

Radio presenter and former X Factor star Rylan Clark is also said to be on a shortlist for hosting the ITV version.

Odds are looking good for Davina McCall to return as the host of Big Brother's rumoured relaunch (pictured with Craig Phillips, in 2000) (Press Association)

Current plans for the new series won't feature celebs and will go back to its original roots with ordinary members of the public, according to reports.

Bosses are contemplating airing the series on ITV2 in autumn 2023 after Love Island, it has been claimed.

Big Brother was ground-breaking when it first launched in the millennium and ran for 18 years, first on Channel 4 and then on Channel 5, launching the careers of household names such as Jade Goody, Alison Hammond and Josie Gibson.

Davina with Josie Gibson as she entered the Big Brother house in 2010 (PA)
Big Brother was ground-breaking when it first launched in the millennium and ran for 18 years (PA)

The show, which put people in a house together and recorded them day and night, produced many iconic moments, also generating a celebrity version too.

A TV source told The Sun : "They think putting it on ITV2 will open it up to a new audience and legion of younger fans.

"The talks are still at an early, and delicate, stage and the next few weeks will be key."

The show, which made compelling viewing at times, ran from 2000 to 2010 on Channel 4, with Channel 5 relaunching it in 2011.

Davina presented the series between 2000 and 2010, and has gone on to host The Million Pound Drop and Long Lost Family.

Most recently she has been seen as a judge on ITV's The Masked Singer.

Despite the odds, Davina seemed uncertain about how the show would work in today's age, when she spoke about it this year.

Rylan Clark is understood to be on the shortlist for hosting the rumoured Big Brother relaunch (SplashNews.com)
Emma Willis presented Big Brother after Davina McCall left (Dave Benett/Getty Images for Jag)

"I don't know if you could bring it back now. The one time I thought Big Brother coming back would have been amazing was for the 20th anniversary in 2020. Everybody was locked down," she told Fabulous magazine in January.

"But if it came back now, it would never be the same as it was. And it’s not because of the programme but because of society. It’s changed so much and the expectations of TV have changed - I just don’t know if you could do it."

She added: "In today’s culture, people would be constantly getting chucked out for saying something."

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