[James]

Big time after Big Brother

She's big, she's beautiful and a she's Brummie. Big Brother may have rejected her but this lady now mingles with the likes of Britney Spears and Rene Zellweger.

We caught up with TV celeb interviewer, Alison Hammond.

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FACTS


Alison was born on 5th February 1975, and went to the Cardinal Wiseman School in Kingstanding.


Alison took 26 pairs of knickers into the Big Brother house!


Alison missed Chinese food most of all when in the Big Brother house.


Alison claimed her game plan was to "eat as much as possible."


Alison was nominated and evicted in week two.


Alison was evicted from the Big Brother house on Friday 7th June 2002.

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Alison Hammond is having the last laugh. Whilst other BB housemates, including winners, have pretty much disappeared, Alison has become the darling of ITV as a celebrity interviewer extraordinaire.

She's had a wide-eyed Britney Spears taking in Alison's groovy new dance moves, and has had the squeaky clean Donny Osmond follow her lead and stuffed his face with cream cakes with Alison on telly.

Oh, and did I mention George Clooney and Renee Zellweger? Alison's Christmas card list just grows and grows.

You'd be forgiven for thinking this talented lass from Kingstanding cut her showbiz teeth on Big Brother 3 - but she'd already done an eight
year stint as a member of the Central Junior Television workshop in Birmingham.

Alison's now a regular on ITV's award winning This Morning programme - and when she's not interviewing megastars she's now a feature on the programme herself. That is, Alison and her growing bump. Viewers have been following Alison's progress through her first pregnancy.

She managed to find 10 minutes in her packed schedule to talk to us about life after BB for the BBB (big, beautiful, Brummie).


Q. Alison - where did you go to school?
I grew up in Kingstanding, Birmingham. Went to Cardinal Wiseman school. Everyone knew everyone's business but that's what I loved about it. I was very fond of school. My best friends were Lorraine Francis and Susan McKernon.


Q. How did you get on Big Brother?
I applied on the internet, then auditioned, then was picked!


Q. You're one of the few BB success stories - did you have your heart set on a TV career?
Not really, but I did have my heart set on winning BB and the prize money - I had a £3000 debt from college to clear! I was gutted when I was evicted after just the 2nd week.


Q. Do you think BB is past its sell by date now or would you watch another series?
I would always watch it. I love finding out who goes in, but sometimes lose interest between the first and last episode.


Q. Where is home now Alison?
I'm still in Birmingham and hope I always will be!


Q. What's your favourite Brummie balti?
Chicken is my favourite - every Saturday. On either the Ladypool or Stratford Road.


Q. Do you have any Birmingham gripes or passions?
I don't like the accent, even though I can't get rid of mine (!) and my passion would be Birmingham's architecture, especially the ICC.


Q. Who was your first ever interviewee?
George Clooney! I fancied him to bits and I was very nervous.

I felt sick afterwards because I'd hit him in the face with a microphone accidentally because I
was shaking so much!


Q. How was Britney??
It was very nerve wracking - I was kept waiting for an hour and a half and she had a
massive entourage which made me feel even more nervous. When I met her, she just seemed like a 21 year old nice girl-next-door who was very pleasant to interview.


Q. And how about Donny and those cream cakes?
He invited me to his home town in the States to meet his family - I haven't taken him up on the offer but he was really lovely. Who wouldn't to eat cream cakes with Donny?????


Q. What's been your fave 'famous Alison' moment so far?
Interviewing Renee Zellweger - I've met her twice. She remembered me and the present I'd given her when I'd interviewed her before - Jo Malone perfume.

We tap danced together the first time and she's really, really lovely - a very genuinely, nice, funny, kind person - not "Superstarry" in the slightest and I'd happily go down the pub with her!


Q. Do you remember
the first time someone asked you for your autograph?
As soon as I came out of the BB house - I stayed in a hotel after coming out and there was a wedding going on there - they got me in all the wedding pictures and I spent an hour signing autographs until I got dragged away.


Q. How's the pregnancy going?
The pregnancy is fantastic - no sickness, no cravings - the best pregnancy in the world!!


Q. Is Alison Hammond ready for motherhood???
No!!!!!! Who is?!!!


Q. Will you tell us about your partner? Who's the lucky chap?
No!!!!


Q. Will we be seeing you on TV again after the birth of junior?
Even more so. ITV's "This Morning" are following my progress!

http://www.bbc.co.uk/birmingham/feat..._hammond.shtml