Big Brother: Dates, contestants, TV channel, history & much more

bet365 News Team Updated: 01 Oct 24 16:03

After five years away from our screens, Big Brother returned last year for its 20th series and is back in 2024 for the 21st iteration.

The ultimate social experiment was a ground-breaking show when it first hit our screens at the start of the millennium, turning their participants into celebrities and dominating the reality TV landscape long before the likes of Love Island, Made In Chelsea and The Only Way Is Essex came along.

A total of 19 series were made before the show was cancelled in 2018, but after years of speculation that it would one day return, Big Brother looks like an annual fixture on our screens once again.

Big Brother Series 21 Dates

Big Brother Series 21 is set to return to our screens Sunday 6th October 2024, which will be shown across ITV2 and ITVX from 21:00.

Following the launch show, a regular programme will be broadcast Sunday to Friday from 21:00 on ITV2 followed by Big Brother: Late & Live. There will also be a livestream of the house available to watch all day, everyday on ITVX.

Big Brother Series 21 Format

Over the years of its original run, Big Brother got bigger and bigger, which meant contestants would potentially stay in the house for as long as three months.

Series 21, like series 20, will not run for that long, as it has been confirmed the series will last six weeks and contestants will receive regular support before, during and after they enter the house, which includes regular sessions with mental health professionals.

Big Brother Series 21 Presenters

During its original run, Big Brother was hosted by Davina McCall, Emma Willis and former contestant Brian Dowling, who won the second series of the show in 2001.

However, none of that trio will be returning for the rebooted series, with presenting duties instead going to AJ Odudu and Will Best.

Odudu previously worked on Big Brother's Bit on the Side with Rylan Clark and is perhaps best known for being a contestant on the 19th series of Strictly Come Dancing, while Best has previously hosted shows such as T4 and Dance Dance Dance.

In addition to Odudu and Best, Marcus Bentley will be returning as narrator, a position he has held since the show launched 23 years ago.

Big Brother Series 21 House

The location of the house for Series 21 will be at Garden Studios in North London.

Big Brother Series 21 Contestants

The identity of the contestants for Series 21 will not be revealed until the launch episode on Sunday 6th October.

Big Brother History

Originally created in the Netherlands, Big Brother first hit our screens in the UK in July 2000 with Davina McCall taking on hosting duties for a series that was eventually won by builder Craig Phillips.

The first 11 series of the show were broadcast across Channel 4 and E4, but it was announced in 2010 that the 11th series would be the last on the network, throwing its future into doubt.

That future was sorted the following year when Channel Five acquired the rights, with Series 12 being the first to be shown on the channel in 2011, with former winner Brian Dowling replacing McCall as host.

Dowling was himself replaced as presenter by Emma Willis ahead of the 14th series in 2013, a role she held until the show was brought to an end after the 19th series in 2018.

However, after months of speculation, it was confirmed in 2022 that ITV would be bringing Big Brother back, with the 20th series launching on 8th October 2023.

As well as the regular series, there have also been numerous spin-off shows over the years, most notably Celebrity Big Brother, which ran for a total of 22 series from 2001-2018, with some of the notable winners including Jack Dee, Ulrika Jonsson and Katie Price.