FEW series of Big Brother produced more memorable moments – and characters – than BB7.
From Nikki Grahame and Pete Bennett's heartwarming romance to the sight of Glyn Wise haplessly trying to boil an egg, the 2006 cast are etched long in fans' memories.
With the beloved show returning to our screens to captivate a new generation of viewers, we have been looking at where the cast of previous eras are now.
Here, we revisit the housemates of 2006, who were sadly rocked by the sudden, tragic death of Nikki two years ago at the age of 38.
Nikki Grahame
Nikki was the star behind one of Big Brother's most iconic lines, dramatically screaming to the camera: "Who is she? Who is she? Where did you find her?”
She shared a brief, touching relationship with Pete and later took part in Ultimate Big Brother, Big Brother Time Warp and the Canadian version of the show.
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Sadly, Nikki struggled with an eating disorder that plagued her life from the age of seven and spent her last days checked into hospital before passing away on April 9, 2021.
The previous year, she had completed a course in caring for children with special needs. Her mum told how she had wanted to help kids as she lost huge parts of her childhood to her illness.
But as the pandemic hit, her family told how the closure of gyms, “terminal loneliness” and an accident had seen her relapse.
Following her death, tributes poured in from stars including Rylan Clark-Neal and Aisleyne Horgan- Wallace, and from Big Brother host Davina McCall, who said: "She was the funniest, most bubbly sweetest girl."
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Pete Bennett
10Nikki's ex-boyfriend Pete Bennett went on to win the series and scoop the £100k prize.
He has battled his own demons in the past, suffering a drug addiction after tragically losing a number of close friends, and at one point the star was left homeless.
He then went on to set up his own cleaning company, and was able to turn his life around.
Now, he's an actor who starred in Amazon series Green Fingers and plays in the rock band LoVeDoGz.
Glyn Wise
Glyn Wise was just 18 when he entered the Big Brother house wearing a Baywatch-style lifeguard outfit, and infamously boiled his first egg while on the show.
The Welshman has since dabbled in politics – running in an election for Plaid Cymru – athletics, teaching… and is now a trainee vicar.
Having trained for a year at Camden, he is back in Wrexham, studying for a three-year course at university.
He recently told The Sun: “I’m learning theology, going into depth about the Bible and learning how to cope with people, because you’re not only the vicar, you’re someone to listen, you’re a psychiatrist, you have to help sort people’s lives out and spread the good word.
Aisleyne Horgan-Wallace
Eventual third-placed Aisleyne Horgan-Wallace was known after her upfront and straight-talking attitude on Big Brother back in 2006, and has since transformed herself into a multi-millionaire.
Her first paid job after the show was a photoshoot with lads mag Nuts, which made her a “life-changing” amount of money.
“I put the money straight into property. I didn’t buy one pair of shoes, one handbag, I didn’t spoil myself,” she said.
As well as acquiring a multi-million-pound property portfolio, Aisleyne has also appeared on a string of reality shows, including Celebrity Botched Bodies, Judge Rinder, The Gadget Show, Celebrity Coach Trip and Stars at Work.
Earlier this year, Aisleyne revealed she wanted to reduce her boob size.
After her time in the house, she got the largest implants legally available in the UK, increasing her bust size to a 34FF, spending more than £50,000 on procedures to achieve the hourglass figure she's always craved.
But after seeing the results of Katie Price's latest eye-popping enhancement, Aisleyne has decided to go the other way.
Speaking to new! magazine, she said: "I want to get a reduction and have natural-shaped boobs.
"Katie going bigger has put me off and I want to go smaller. Hers look too big.
Imogen Thomas
Model Imogen's first brush with fame was winning the title of Miss Wales, before Big Brother made her a household name.
She later went on to present on T4 and in 2015 she launched her own swimwear brand.
In 2011 it was revealed the model had a six-month affair with Manchester United footballer Ryan Giggs, and Imogen then went on to have two daughters, Ariana and Siera, with Adam Horsley.
With the help of a financial adviser, Imogen immediately started investing her money in property.
Her £10million portfolio now includes two houses in Wales, a flat in Notting Hill, West London, and another townhouse in Chelsea over the road from where she lives with her two daughters, Ariana, ten, and Siera, seven.
She told us: “Because I own properties I have a lot of passive income, so I don’t technically work.”
Grace and Mikey
Proving any doubters wrong about reality TV romances, Mikey Dalton and Grace Adams-Short got together on the show – and have been together ever since.
The pair are still together after marrying in 2009 and now have three children – Georgiana, Spencer and Allegra.
Not only did they find true love, but the show enabled the pair to buy multiple properties and enjoy travelling the world.
While Mikey heads up his own advertising company, Grace set up Studio 76 Performing arts college in Liverpool and sold the company for millions.
Appearing on This Morning ahead of the new series, Mikey said: "The nice thing for us is as our children get older, our oldest is 11 right now, they've got questions and they can actually see how their mummy and daddy met, so it's a nice feeling for us."
Suzie Verrico
Nikki fans will remember the starlet for many things, including her infamous catchphrase, "Who is she?"
The tragic star uttered the iconic words in the diary room about her fellow housemate Suzie Verrico, after Suzie arrived a few weeks after everybody else on a 'golden ticket'.
While she hasn't encountered mega fame since the show, Suzie certainly lives a very comfortable life.
Pre-lockdown Suzie and her husband enjoyed travelling and staying in luxury hotels like the Ritz, sailing on yachts and driving in limousines.
Richard Newman
Richard Newman managed to survive eviction six times while in the house, and struck up a close friendship with fellow housemate Lea Walker.
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He went on to present a show with her on Gaydar radio for two years after Big Brother, interviewing the likes of Gail Porter, Alan Carr and Kim Wilde.
He reportedly also dabbled in writing, taking on work as a travel and lifestyle journalist and writing for a variety of publications.
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