Ex-Tory MP asks if Big Brother is looking for applicants after election defeat
Posted by  badge Boss on Jul 07
Are we in for another politician taking part in a reality show? (Picture: ITV/UK Parliament)

Following on with the theme of politicians taking part in reality shows, a Conservative MP who has jokingly asked whether is still ‘looking for people’.

Brendan Clarke-Smith was for Bassetlaw in Nottinghamshire by Labour candidate Jo White after she received nearly 6,000 more votes on Thursday (July 4).

Following the defeat, Mr Clarke-Smith jokingly threw his hat into the ring for the next series of the reality show.

He responded to a post on X from The Sun’s political editor which claimed that Big Brother was looking for a ‘big political name’ to take part in this year’s series.

Mr Clarke-Smith replied: ‘Don’t suppose they are still looking for people?’

He jokingly added that the hyphen in his surname makes it a ‘big name’.

Conservative Party member Brendan Clarke-Smith lost his seat in Bassetlaw (Picture: Ken McKay/ITV/REX/Shutterstock)

The Sun alleges that Big Brother execs have already approached Red Wall Mayor Ben Houchen – but he has turned them down.

Mr Clarke-Smith, who served as an MP from 2019 to earlier this week, was the deputy chairman of the Conservative Party under Rishi Sunak from November 2023 to January 2024.

He also held the position of parliamentary secretary for the Cabinet Office briefly in 2022 and was the parliamentary under-secretary for the Department for Education for a few months in the same year.

He received 12,708 votes on Thursday, while Ms White – who is also the deputy leader of Bassetlaw Council – received 18,476.

Several high-profile Tories and former members of Mr Sunak’s cabinet lost their seats this week, including former defence secretary Grant Shapps, former prime minister Liz Truss, former House of Commons leader Penny Mordaunt, and Sir Jacob Rees-Mogg.

AJ Odudu and Will Best brought Big Brother back to our TV screens last year (Picture: James Veysey/Shutterstock)
Reform leader Nigel Farage came third in I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here! last year (Picture: ITV/Shutterstock)

On the Big Brother front, the world-famous social experiment will return to screens this autumn, with applications closing later this month for the second batch of housemates.

In 2023 after five years away, Big Brother was acquired by ITV and staged an epic comeback, with AJ Odudu and Will Best as hosts.

Ultimately, the revival series was won by 26,

Then, in early 2024, Celebrity Big Brother came back with a bang as Sharon Osbourne, Louis Walsh, and Fern Britton were just three of the major stars

Ibiza Weekender’s though, having reached the final alongside the likes of Nikita Kuzmin and Colson Smith.

Initially, there were fears that bosses would pursue the I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here! approach by signing controversial political figures.

Former Health Secretary Matt Hancock surprised the nation with his popularity on I’m A Celebrity in 2022 (Picture: James Gourley/ITV/Shutterstock)
Kate Middleton’s uncle, Gary Goldsmith, made headlines for the wrong reasons when he took part in Celebrity Big Brother (Picture: Shutterstock)
What are your thoughts on politicians taking part in reality shows? Comment Now

While this didn’t happen, Kate Middleton’s uncle, Gary Goldsmith, certainly stirred the pot.

Reform leader last year, placing third in a result that many viewers have since argued and allowed his Party to gain five seats in this year’s election.

Before that, of course, ex-Health Secretary Matt Hancock headed Down Under for a stint in the jungle in a bid to revive his career after being sacked for breaking lockdown rules.