Gary Goldsmith, an uncle of Catherine, Princess of Wales, has entered the Celebrity Big Brother house.
In his pre-filmed introduction video, he said it is the one show he had previously said he would “never do”.
But some viewers criticised ITV for hiring Goldsmith despite his previous conviction for punching his wife.
The new series – which follows a six-year Celebrity Big Brother hiatus – has also reunited X Factor’s Sharon Osbourne and Louis Walsh.
The former TV judges were tasked with watching their fellow contestants and rating them from a secret lair.
Sharon and Louis nominated three housemates to be “in danger” of facing a public vote, based on first impressions.
They chose Goldsmith, David Potts and Zeze Millz – and when asked for their reasoning, Louis replied: “We didn’t like them”.
Strictly’s Nikita Kuzmin and Love Island’s Ekin-Su Cülcüloğlu are also among this year’s contestants.
The series started on Monday and is hosted by AJ Odudu and Will Best.
Here is the full list of this year’s housemates:
Gary Goldsmith
The Princess of Wales’ uncle, Goldsmith is the younger brother of Kate Middleton’s mother.
The 58-year-old auditioned for I’m A Celebrity 2023 but was reportedly rejected over fears he could embarrass the royal family.
In 2017, he was fined £5,000 and handed a community order after he admitted punching his wife in the face during an argument.
He said introduced himself on the show as the “uncle to the future queen of our country”, and said his niece is “simply perfect”.
He added that he would also like to “put the record straight” on his “bad boy reputation”.
But the Telegraph’s arts and entertainment editor Anita Singh said ITV “should be ashamed” of themselves for “having him as a ‘fun’ character” on the show.
Fern Britton
Fern Britton is best known for being one of the former hosts of ITV’s daytime show, This Morning.
She presented the show for six years alongside Philip Schofield, before being replaced by Holly Willoughby in 2009.
In her introduction interview, she said she has no “game plan” and is just looking to have fun.
Louis Walsh
A judge on The X-Factor for more than a decade, Louis Walsh has joined the house and reunited with fellow judge Sharon Osbourne.
The Irish panellist worked as a mentor for JLS in 2008 and was also the manager of boyband Westlife.
He walked into the Big Brother house and said: “Oh God, what have I done?”
Bradley Riches
Known for his role in the coming-of-age LGBTQ+ Netflix series Heartstopper, actor Bradley Riches has joined the line-up.
The 24-year-old is close friends with Jordan and Henry from last year’s series of Big Brother – and said the advice he was given was to be himself.
He is autistic, and said he wants to “inspire people” and make them realise being different is “very cool.”
Colson Smith
Another young actor entering the Big Brother house is Colson Smith, who is best known for his role in Coronation Street as policeman Craig Tinker.
Colson has previously dabbled in reality TV and in May 2022 appeared as a contestant on sporting series The Games.
He is a long-time fan of the show and said going into the house feels “mental”.
Ekin-Su Cülcüloğlu
Love Island favourite and winner of the 2022 show, Ekin-Su Cülcüloğlu is joining the house following a split from former on-screen partner Davide Sanclimenti.
The TV personality has the most social media followers with 3.5m on Instagram. She also recently appeared on the US version of The Traitors.
She entered the house to chants from the live audience, and teased what may be to come as she said drama follows her “everywhere”.
Lauren Simon
An original member of the Real Housewives of Cheshire, Lauren Simon is another reality star to enter the Big Brother house.
She said she “doesn’t answer to anybody” – and that she might end up flirting with Big Brother.
Levi Roots
Levi Roots is one of Dragons’ Den biggest success stories.
The Jamaican businessman appeared on the show in 2007 and was looking for an investment in his Reggae Reggae Sauce brand.
He has since become a regular on cooking shows, and according to the Sunday Times Rich List, is worth an estimated £30m.
Saying he was very excited to be on the show, he called Big Brother a “brother from another mother”.
Marisha Wallace
Marisha is a US actress who is best known for roles in Aladdin and Dreamgirls on Broadway.
She has also appeared in the West End in Hairspray and Waitress.
In 2022, she received an Olivier Award nomination for best actress as Ado Annie in Oklahoma!
The actress and singer said she would be the “jukebox” of this year’s show.
Nikita Kuzmin
Strictly Come Dancing’s favourite Nikita will be hanging up his dancing shoes for a while as he enters the Big Brother house.
The 26-year-old Ukrainian dancer has been on the show since 2021 and his dance partners have included Layton Williams and Tilly Ramsay.
He said he was just a “kid from Ukraine” looking to accomplish his dreams.
Zeze Millz
Social media celebrity Zeze Millz rose to fame with her YouTube show, The Zeze Millz Show.
She has interviewed the likes of Akon, N-Dubz and Fireboy DML.
Zeze has appeared on a number of British TV shows, including Good Morning Britain, E4’s Celebrity Cooking School and The Victoria Derbyshire Show.
She called herself a “polarising character”, but said people would be surprised to see her “softer” side.
David Potts
TV personality David Potts is no stranger to reality TV having risen to fame on ITV2’s reality series, Ibiza Weekender.
He also appeared on a celebrity episode of Dinner Date and the sixth series of the E4’s Celebs Go Dating.
He described himself as a natural-born leader, “like Mufasa in The Lion King” – and said the audience would be in for a treat.
Sharon Osbourne
Another X Factor judge, Sharon Osbourne has joined the show, but not for the full duration of it.
According to The Sun, Osbourne’s fee was too high to have her on the show for the whole time.
The wife of rock artist Ozzy Osbourne has been brought in as Big Brother’s “celebrity lodger”.
