Brian Dowling on Big Brother legends, same sex surrogacy and coming out in the early 00s
Big Brother's ultimate housemate and much-loved host Brian Dowling chats with Kate about his first brush with fame, being openly gay on TV in the 00s, and how his and his husband's challenging journey to have a child lead to his younger sister becoming their surrogate.
White Wine Question Time with Kate Thornton is the podcast that brings together well-known guests to answer three thought-provoking questions over three glasses of wine. Discover the friendships behind the entertainment headlines, and listen in on their conversations for a side to the celebrities you've never heard before. Listen on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts, and follow on Instagram (@whitewineqt) & Twitter (@WhiteWineQT) to keep up to date with the latest guests, news and more.
Video Transcript
KATE THORNTON: You won the first "Big Brother" with over 4 million votes. That is nuts.
BRIAN DOWLING: 4.3 million. More people voted for me to win "Big Brother" than elected Tony Blair to be prime minister in the general election. And I thought, hang on a fucking minute, could I be prime minister? I was criticized a lot from the gay community for being so effeminate and for being so camp and for being so loud back in the day.
I'd go out and drinks would be thrown over me. It was very strange. And we had rang the adoption agency in Ireland. And as soon as Arthur explained that we were same sex-- it was on loudspeaker-- this woman's whole tone had changed. She felt uncomfortable. And this was 2020, two years ago.
KATE THORNTON: God.
BRIAN DOWLING: And we kind of thought, well, this just isn't going to work either. And then, you know, the whole surrogacy. And then my sister Aoife was like, no seriously, I really want to do this for you. She was 32 at the time. She put her whole life on hold for us, you know, and for absolutely nothing. Like for just wanting to do it for love. I mean, it's absolutely incredible.
Nikki Grahame, to me, will always be "Big Brother." Jade Goody, to me, will always be "Big Brother." Nadia, to me, will always be "Big Brother." I got to live with Ulrika Jonsson. I got to live with Coolio. These-- Chantelle and Preston! They fell in love on telly. They got married. I was living with them. And I would see Coolio and Ulrika and Coolio and Nadia fight and Nikki Grahame going, it's disgusting! I would be like this-- fucking loving it.
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