AJ Odudu would be the perfect Big Brother revival host – give her the job now-Shaun Kitchener-Entertainment – Metro

A source said: ‘AJ has had advanced talks with producers about the new series. The meetings have gone really well and it’s looking promising’ (Picture: Mike Marsland/WireImage)

Bringing back a beloved show like Big Brother must be a daunting task for bosses – especially as every decision is bound to be picked apart by the fervent fanbase.

But if recent reports are to be believed, they may be about to get at least one decision right: their choice of main presenter.

An array of names including Roman Kemp, Mo Gilligan, Vick Hope, Alison Hammond and Emily Atack have all been linked to the gig in recent months, but one recent alleged leak claims it’s AJ Odudu who is the current frontrunner.

‘Big Brother house, this is AJ. You are live on ITV2, please do not swear’. Yep. Feels about right!

Speaking to the Daily Star, a source said: ‘AJ has had advanced talks with producers about the new series. The meetings have gone really well and it’s looking promising.

‘ITV are considering a few different stars, but at the moment AJ is considered the frontrunner.’

Since her endearing turn on Strictly Come Dancing last year, AJ has quickly ascended to national treasure status (Picture: BBC/Guy Levy)

An ITV spokesperson insisted to Metro.co.uk that ‘absolutely no decisions have been made at this early stage’, but really I think they should be snapping her up immediately.

As a long-term Big Brother obsessive – who loved it when Davina McCall used to get over-excited on a live show, or when Emma Willis would put a difficult evictee through their paces – I can’t imagine a better candidate than AJ.

Since her endearing turn on Strictly Come Dancing last year, AJ has quickly ascended to national treasure status; and her warm, amiable nature will make her the perfect successor to Davina, Brian Dowling, and Emma.

Anyone who watched the recent second season of The Bridge: Race To A Fortune on Channel 4 – with all its tasks, twists and surprise exits – will know she’d be right at home in the reality genre.

Her stint on The Big Breakfast’s revival showed she can carry a live broadcast, and – as if we needed more proof – that she’s fun (Picture: Nicolas Walker/Channel 4 Television)

In that high-pressure environment, she perfectly pitched the right emotional tone for any given moment, cheerleading the contestants one minute and dropping twists and bombshells the next. She also seemed genuinely excited herself by what was happening, making it easy for us as viewers to feel the same.

What’s more, her stint on The Big Breakfast’s revival showed she can carry a live broadcast, and – as if we needed more proof – that she’s fun. That instantly iconic moment in which she told Rita Ora her alleged furry apple was in fact a peach? Exquisite!

Having fun with celebs is obviously different to interviewing evictees, but she’s got form there, too: she’s hosted the Married At First Sight sister show MAFS: Afters and gone down a treat, steering the conversations with ease. And as we saw when she delivered the Eurovision points for the UK back in May, she’s CAMP! Her ‘hell-oh-oh!’ still lives rent-free in my mind.

Of course, what would make her even more of a perfect Big Brother host is the fact she has unfinished business with it: back in 2013, when she was still relatively unknown, she joined Rylan Clark-Neal to front Big Brother’s Bit On The Side.

As we saw when she delivered the Eurovision points for the UK back in May, she’s CAMP! (Picture: BBC)

It didn’t work out: some people claimed she was too inexperienced to steer that chaotic spin-off as smoothly as, say, Dermot O’Leary before her; and although Rylan was kept on until the show’s axe in 2018, AJ quietly departed.

At the time, Channel 5 said it was a mutual decision – but she later told Fabulous: ‘There are so many highs and lows working in TV. I learnt that the hard way when my contract for Big Brother’s Bit On The Side wasn’t renewed. Nobody gave me a reason, so I felt rotten.’

Ten years later, she’s grown exponentially as a presenter – and while she would be well within her rights to say she doesn’t want to go back (if, heaven forbid, it didn’t go well – would it be too painful for her?), there’s a golden opportunity for her to return and prove herself as one of the country’s best hosts.

One person who would undoubtedly support her is Emma Willis. She said at the time of AJ’s BBBOTS exit: ‘I’ve no doubt in my mind we’ll be seeing her somewhere cool very soon because she’s great.’ 

And, nearly a decade on, not only has that ‘somewhere cool’ already involved a couple of reunions with Emma herself (they collaborated on Emma and AJ Get to Work; and AJ’s also fronted backstage coverage for The Voice – which Emma presents), but it could – somewhat ironically – be Big Brother; especially now Emma has categorically denied she would want to return.

AJ’s not the only good candidate in the mix – in fact, any of the names that have been touted for the 2023 revival would be ace. 

I especially think Vick Hope would relish a job this huge, and Alison Hammond would be a great shout, too. Critics who claim she’s all fun and no gravitas have clearly not seen her incredible Black history documentary Back to School.

But AJ Odudu is just the perfect fit. Right person, right time.

There are a lot of questions over how the new-look Big Brother will operate in 2023, and whether or not it will be a success – but with her at the helm, we fans will at least have one less thing to be nervous about. 

Do you have a story you’d like to share? Get in touch by emailing jess.austin@metro.co.uk. 

Share your views in the comments below.

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