[Spike]

Davina McCall has warned that Big Brother contestants should not expect the show to be a "stepping stone".

The programme's host revealed that she has most respect for housemates like Cameron Stout, who disappeared from the spotlight after winning Big Brother 4 in 2003.

"I think that somebody like Cameron - I loved Cameron Stout and I thought he was such a worthy winner and he really made me laugh and I think the real people always win in the end – that Cameron did it right," Davina explained. "He had a job before he went in, he took some time off, he had a brilliant time, had a fantastic experience and then went back to his job and that’s the way to do it.

"I mean Big Brother is the experience of a lifetime, it can be really, really good fun and you can make friends in there that you will keep forever but you mustn't think of it as a stepping stone to anything. I think the people who haven't thought of it as a stepping stone to fame and fortune have done really well out of it."

McCall also admitted that Big Brother producers have not yet told her what to expect from this year's series.

"I only like to know about that stuff about a week before but I obviously need to know the housemates beforehand because I need to know all their names," she said. "But I am quite crap at keeping secrets, I can keep one for about a day."

Big Brother 9 starts on June 5 on Channel 4 and E4.

DS