Midlands Heroes: It's no longer just Big Brother watching Alison Hammond
Big Brother is always watching - and back in 2002, it certainly watched this Midlands Hero.
Born in 1975, Birmingham’s own Alison Hammond came to prominence when she starred in the third series of the aforementioned reality show, and has since gone on to become a presenter and reporter on ITV's This Morning.
In 2023, Hammond became a co-presenter on the Channel 4 reality baking competition The Great British Bake Off alongside Noel Fielding. The following year, she began presenting the ITV reality show For the Love of Dogs.
Born to Jamaican parents and raised in the north Birmingham district of Kingstanding, Hammond participated in drama workshops run by Central Television from the age of 11, but lack of funds meant she was unable to attend drama school.
Undeterred, she found her big break with Big Brother, and is now a household name, flying the flag of the Midlands proudly.
Early last year, Hammond reflected on her fitness journey and said she had not wanted to use medication for weight loss.
Reportedly, the TV star started seeing a personal trainer twice a week after finding out that she was pre-diabetic, and said at the time that she is now no longer pre-diabetic and has a “new shape” that she loves.
Reflecting on a conversation she had with her mother, she said: “Just before she died, Mum said to me ‘If you can, sort out your weight, Alison’ – and that really set it in my head.
