MANY OF YOU might have breathed a sigh of relief when Channel 5 confirmed Big Brother was coming to an end last year.

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Yes, after more than two decades on our screens, the plug was finally pulled on the reality show last year despite it seeing some of the biggest viewing figures of recent years.

But fear not – for those of you who were actually disappointed to hear the news of the show’s cancellation, you’ll be delighted to hear that the US version of the show is returning to the telly and with a class lineup.

The US’s Big Brother:Celebrity Edition is kicking off its second season at the end of this month and with some high-profile names signed up to take part, we’d be lying if we said we’re not keen to see the premiere episode.

Twelve stars from the world of film, television, sport and politics will be moving in together at the end of the month for the chance to win $250,000.

And the list of names is nearly as good as the fake ‘leaked’ version that was doing the rounds last week. 

Here’s the who’s who of this year’s housemates.

1. Ricky Williams – former NFL star

Ricky Williams is best known to audiences in the US as the running back who played 12 seasons in the NFL with the New Orleans Saints before he was traded to the Miami Dolphins and then with the Baltimore Ravens. He now works as a football analyst on ESPN.

2. Tom Green – actor

Tom Green is a Canadian actor and comedian who is best known for his roles in the early noughties films Road Trip and Charlie’s Angels and on his MTV show, The Tom Green Show.

He was married to Drew Barrymore for little over a year back in 2001.

3. Lolo Jones – Olympian

Lolo Jones is an American hurdler and bobsledder with two gold medals from the World Indoor Championships. She was the favourite to take gold in the 100-metre hurdles at the Beijing Olympics in 2008 but tripped over the penultimate hurdle and dropped back to finish in seventh.

She is one of a few athletes that have competed in both the summer and winter Olympics.

4. Anthony Scaramucci – former White House director of communications

Known to many as ‘The Mooch’, Anthony Scaramucci is an entrepreneur and financier who repeatedly made headline news throughout his record-breaking 10-day stint as the White House director of communications.

5. Joey Lawrence – actor

Joey Lawrence is one-third of the Lawrence brothers who were the 90s heartthrobs that everyone had posters of. He is best known for his roles in Brotherly Love, in which he starred alongside real-life brothers Matthew and Andrew Lawrence, and Melissa and Joey.

He is now working on his music alongside his two brothers in their band, Still 3.

6. Eva Marie – WWE star

Eva Marie is well-known to E! viewers as one of the stars of the hit show, Total Divas. After signing up to the WWE in 2013, she starred in the reality series based around the women of the WWE and became a member of the SmackDown brand.

7. Tamar Braxton – singer

Tamar Braxton is a singer songwriter who performed alongside her sisters in the group, The Braxtons. She later had a successful reality TV career in shows like Braxton Family Values and co-hosted the talk show The Real for three years. She was nominated for three Grammys in 2013 and topped the Billboard Independent Chart in 2017 with her album, Bluebird of Happiness.

8. Ryan Lochte – Olympian

Ryan Lochte is a 12-time Olympic medalist in swimming, making him the second-most decorated swimmer in Olympic history after long-time rival Michael Phelps. He made headline news worldwide after he falsely claimed that he and three other American swimmers had been robbed at gunpoint while competing in the 2016 Summer Olympics in Brazil.

9. Kandi Burruss – reality TV star

While Kandi Burruss might be best known these days for her role in The Real Housewives of Atlanta, she has a Grammy to her name for her part in the mega-jam that is ‘No Scrubs’ which Burruss wrote for TLC. She also wrote the Destiny Child classic Bills, Bills, Bills. She later joined the cast on RHOA which led to her own spin-off show.

10. Jonathan Bennett – actor

Jonathan Bennett is best known for his legendary role as Aaron Samuels in the teen classic Mean Girls and as Bud McNulty in Cheaper by the Dozen 2.

He now works in TV, hosting reality shows such as Cake Wars and Halloween Wars on the Food Network.

11. Kato Kaelin – actor

We say Kato Kaelin is an actor, and he is, but he is definitely best known for his role in the OJ Simpson murder trials in 1995. Kaelin was living in Simpson’s guest house at the time of the murders of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ron Goldman and was called as a minor witness for the prosecution.

12. Dina Lohan – mum of Lindsay

Dina Lohan is best known for being the mother of Lindsay Lohan but has gone on to have her own career in reality TV.

The show returns to CBS on January 21 for a two-night premiere special. For any Irish viewers keen to tune in, you won’t be able to watch it on TV here but no doubt the series will appear on bootleg streaming sites.  

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