Devastated to hear about Nikki’s passing and thinking of her family and friends who loved her deeply and supported her so much. Nikki came through my diary room during the BB7 auditions in early 2006. We’d already heard word that some girl was shaking up the group rooms.

She sat down behind the black curtain and was so hilarious, and brutally honest and just a tiny ball of fun. She cracked us up so much we ran about 20 mins over the allotted time and could have talked with her for hours!

During the auditions each candidate has a short form they fill in before we got to speak to them and on the front is a big blank space for taking notes on our interview for review later down the line.

Usually filled with lots of personality info and general reactions to the interview, the only thing I wrote on Nikki’s and underlined in capital letters was ‘HOUSEMATE’.

It was such a pleasure to reunite with her in 2018 as we worked on the final series and the massive joy on her face when we asked her if she wanted to go in to the house one more time was wonderful.

She was - as she quite naturally went on to define herself - Special. A Big Brother icon. RIP Nikki sweetheart #bbuk

If you or anyone you love is battling this horrible disease then help can be found here http://www.beateatingdisorders.org.uk