Speaker 1: It's in the news today, but it was actually on
Speaker 1: TV Reload the podcast last week. They might welcome back
Speaker 1: to TV Reload. My name's Benjamin Norris and on this
Speaker 1: podcast I go behind the scenes with the biggest players
Speaker 1: in television. Each episode you will get a front row
Speaker 1: seat with content makers like executive producers, writers, editors and
Speaker 1: casting agents, plus the talent that we see on our screens.
Speaker 1: TV Reload reloads the shows that you were currently watching
Speaker 1: and gives you a better insight at our television industry
Speaker 1: and streaming services today. On the podcast, I have the
Speaker 1: winner of Big Brother twenty twenty two. It's Reggie Byrd.
Speaker 1: Reggie took out the competition back in Series three, which
Speaker 1: won over Australian audiences like no housemate had ever before
Speaker 1: and maybe ever since. This year, we were treated to
Speaker 1: Reggie's return to the Big Brother House as we celebrated
Speaker 1: twenty one years of the show in Australia, and while
Speaker 1: it had been nearly two decades, we saw the same
Speaker 1: heart and soul of the most treasured Big Brother player
Speaker 1: rise to the top all over again. Reggie has been
Speaker 1: through a lot with her son cystic fibrosis, her deteriorating
Speaker 1: eyesight and a few extra bumps along the way, although
Speaker 1: Reggie has never given up and she took on this
Speaker 1: new format with just as much gusto as the younger newbies.
Speaker 1: We will talk Reggie's win as she heard from Gretel Colleen,
Speaker 1: her memorable moments, what she has learnt from a life
Speaker 1: full of lessons, and we will even get a few
Speaker 1: home truths on some of the former housemates. However, let's
Speaker 1: get started. I'd like to welcome Australian legend Reggie Bird
Speaker 1: to TV Reload.
Speaker 2: I was so shocked. I really was, because I didn't
Speaker 2: want to get it into my head as well that
Speaker 2: I was editing the bay.
Speaker 3: We've been through a lot together, haven't we.
Speaker 2: Keep him away from the public eye This.
Speaker 3: Year it's my first birthday and.
Speaker 2: I thought, Matt, I'm going to get rid of her
Speaker 2: before she gets rid of Mat.
Speaker 3: And I've invited housemates, both new and legendary.
Speaker 2: I opened up every single letter and I wrote back
Speaker 2: to every single person.
Speaker 3: Will experience be enough to take on the next generation
Speaker 3: of housemaid I'm.
Speaker 2: So happy to be at the end with Johnston to rest.
Speaker 1: This is big brother, Hi Reggie, how are you?
Speaker 2: Hi? Ben? How are you.
Speaker 1: What has the last few days been like for you?
Speaker 1: I mean, come on, this is so phenomenal. I mean,
Speaker 1: winning Big Brother for the second time. It must feel
Speaker 1: so surreal.
Speaker 2: I've been It hasn't hit me. Honestly, has not been
Speaker 2: that slat out. It's been crazy. Interview after interview after interview,
Speaker 2: I have not stopped. Yeah, it still hasn't. It hasn't
Speaker 2: sign king. I think once I get a moment to
Speaker 2: catch my breath and it'll start hitting me.
Speaker 1: Then have you been able to have some time with
Speaker 1: the boyfriend? Have you been able to have some time
Speaker 1: with the kids. Have you had anything any time to
Speaker 1: be able to celebrate this or with the people in
Speaker 1: your life?
Speaker 2: Oh? Look Phil, bless him. Yesterday we went and had
Speaker 2: to buy it to eight with his daughter and then oh,
Speaker 2: I'm going to get to have a sleep over. I'm
Speaker 2: excited about because he flies back back to Wah tomorrow
Speaker 2: and I won't see him again for another month.
Speaker 1: You know what I think is really funny is people
Speaker 1: keep saying that this is some sort of new relationship,
Speaker 1: like you found him in the last you know, a
Speaker 1: couple of weeks. But you've been with Phil for how long?
Speaker 1: Has this been going on for because that was through COVID,
Speaker 1: wasn't it.
Speaker 2: Yeah, over four years we've been together, I've kept him secret,
Speaker 2: I've kept him away from the public eye.
Speaker 1: Does he say to you, I don't want to be
Speaker 1: in the media, or is it that you're scared that
Speaker 1: the media will try and eat him up?
Speaker 2: Yeah? I just wanted to keep him to myself, like
Speaker 2: he's such a beautiful person, and I thought this one,
Speaker 2: I know, I'm keeping this one quiet. He also is
Speaker 2: quite shy, he's not one to be in the spotlight,
Speaker 2: so I respected his wishes as well. So it's and
Speaker 2: it's worked. We enjoy each other's company. We're both chalk
Speaker 2: and cheese. And he loves me for who I am,
Speaker 2: which is amazing, and I love him for who he
Speaker 2: is as well. So yeah, it's just working. And well,
Speaker 2: we didn't see each other for gosh, he got stuck
Speaker 2: in the COVID crap for two years over in w A.
Speaker 2: But you know, we that was tough, but you know,
Speaker 2: I kept him going and because mentally, like for them
Speaker 2: not to be able to fly back to see their
Speaker 2: family was just awful. I mean it was awful for
Speaker 2: a whole of Australia.
Speaker 1: Yeah, but I think sometimes, you know, even through COVID,
Speaker 1: we tend to be aware of what's happening to everyone else,
Speaker 1: but what is happening in our homes is still the
Speaker 1: pressure point, you know what I mean?
Speaker 2: Yeah, because it's funny because I've read a lot of
Speaker 2: articles along the way of this Big Brother journey that
Speaker 2: I'm still married to Dale. We split up quite a
Speaker 2: long time. We split what's lucas He'll be thirteen next month,
Speaker 2: so eleven years ago, Dale and I better. Yes, So
Speaker 2: me and Phil have been four years together.
Speaker 1: Well, what was the conversation when it came to what
Speaker 1: name you were going to use? Because I kind of
Speaker 1: know you with a couple of names, and then you
Speaker 1: decided to go with Reggie Bird in the media, but
Speaker 1: you haven't been a bird for maybe nearly two decades.
Speaker 2: Yeah, because it was funny, Like they asked me, they said,
Speaker 2: what are you going to go with? And I said, look,
Speaker 2: I'm known as Reggie Bird, and I think it might
Speaker 2: and I think it might have just been easier to
Speaker 2: keep it that way than Reggie Sorenson. I really do
Speaker 2: need to change my name again and go back to
Speaker 2: my maiden name.
Speaker 1: Do I know your made a name? What's your maiden name?
Speaker 2: Bingham being cam Yeah? Yeah, so I should really go
Speaker 2: back to my maiden name, not keep old married names.
Speaker 2: I just feel puts the ring on my finger.
Speaker 1: Did you have any conversations with your first husband about
Speaker 1: using his name Bird? Have you heard from him from
Speaker 1: him to even say congratulations to No?
Speaker 2: No, I haven't had from Adrian for god, pretty much
Speaker 2: since I left as he No, I haven't heard anything
Speaker 2: at all. And it's funny. My sister was we're having
Speaker 2: this conversation, you know, she said, Oh, they're going to
Speaker 2: hate you using Bird.
Speaker 1: Do you even know if he's alive?
Speaker 2: I don't know. He's still in the fish and chip shop,
Speaker 2: so he's still very cooking the fish and chips. I
Speaker 2: do know that.
Speaker 1: And I have to ask so people when you win,
Speaker 1: big brother, because I'm aware people ask you the usual questions,
Speaker 1: and you know, what are those questions that you're getting
Speaker 1: all the time. For me, it was always how are
Speaker 1: you going to spend the money?
Speaker 2: Yeah, that's what it is. And I'm going to use
Speaker 2: the money as a deposit to try and get a
Speaker 2: reef over our heads. And I need to also try
Speaker 2: and make that money grow a bit more because these
Speaker 2: days it's crazy, it's insane, so you can get a place. Yeah,
Speaker 2: so that's my main priority. The kids need a laptop
Speaker 2: each for school, eventually going to need braces on their teeth,
Speaker 2: so all that current you know stuff I'm going to
Speaker 2: also have to do as well.
Speaker 1: It's really funny how people don't really understand that two
Speaker 1: hundred and fifty thousand dollars is a life changing amount
Speaker 1: of money in some way. But it doesn't really buy
Speaker 1: your house, it doesn't really make you live a millionaire lifestyle.
Speaker 1: It really is just, you know, a very small cash
Speaker 1: injection that can probably help help out.
Speaker 2: Yeah, it's going to help, Like, it's definitely going to help.
Speaker 2: But I reckon if I went to the bank, you know,
Speaker 2: I mean, when I do get the money, if I
Speaker 2: went there and for alone, like the houses up here
Speaker 2: on the goal case, you're looking at eight nine hundred
Speaker 2: thousand dollars, three four bedroom houses. It's insane. So I'll work,
Speaker 2: I'll work it out. I'll work. I've got a lot
Speaker 2: of good friends and around me this time to give
Speaker 2: me good advice.
Speaker 1: The person who I want to know if you've heard
Speaker 1: from and I think I've heard this a few times.
Speaker 1: Asked to me, do you know if Reggie's heard from
Speaker 1: this person? Have you heard from Gretel Colleen via text
Speaker 1: or via a phone call to say congratulations?
Speaker 2: Oh no, I haven't even thought about that. Hey, I
Speaker 2: don't mean I haven't even might have seen a message
Speaker 2: in Facebook, Messenger or Instagram. I have not even checked
Speaker 2: my inbox. It's because it's gone through the roof and
Speaker 2: I'm really overwhelmed by it. So I honestly have got
Speaker 2: hundreds and hundreds of messages I need to get through.
Speaker 2: I noticed a notification popped up today and someone's going,
Speaker 2: can you please check your DMS. I've been trying to
Speaker 2: get in contact with you, so I've got to go through.
Speaker 2: There could be one in there, but no I haven't.
Speaker 2: Peter Rabbit, my old producer in Two Hairs and the
Speaker 2: three we're on a WhatsApp check group, our Twofairsman's three housemates.
Speaker 2: They all congratulated me through that is.
Speaker 1: What about Mike Godman, have you had from Money?
Speaker 2: Yeah, Mike's seen that. Yeah, I heard from Mike. He
Speaker 2: congratulated me.
Speaker 1: You know what's funny was that I had the same
Speaker 1: thing because social media had really kind of boomed in
Speaker 1: twenty twelve, and I felt so overwhelmed with all these
Speaker 1: messages that I have a confession, and that is that
Speaker 1: I actually didn't read through all of those messages for
Speaker 1: maybe two years. I was so scared about it. Oh,
Speaker 1: it just me because I read some messages that were
Speaker 1: really kind, but then I'd also read some messages that
Speaker 1: weren't so kind, and then I had this feeling of
Speaker 1: it was just as ridiculous to connect to the good
Speaker 1: messages as it was to the bad ones, and so
Speaker 1: it all just seemed like a lot of belooney. I mean,
Speaker 1: I would say thank you to everyone who messaged me
Speaker 1: back in the day, but you know it, it was
Speaker 1: a very stressful thing. It's not as easy as what
Speaker 1: people imagine. You're not sitting there with letters fan mail,
Speaker 1: opening them up and hearing the most amazing thing.
Speaker 2: Yeah. Well it's different this time around because back in
Speaker 2: yeah two fairusands three, I've still got the bag. I've
Speaker 2: got a big you know those two dollars Chinese bags.
Speaker 2: I've got a massive one of them full of fan mail.
Speaker 2: And I when I got out of Chief Aairs and three,
Speaker 2: I opened up every single letter, and I wrote back
Speaker 2: to every single person.
Speaker 1: We know where you've been now for the last say,
Speaker 1: eighteen years, You've actually been sitting there writing back to
Speaker 1: all your fan mail from the first time round.
Speaker 2: Taking that long, I'm sure I'm going to come across
Speaker 2: some bad stuff as well, There's no doubt about it.
Speaker 1: You've got to take the good with the bag, you know, good.
Speaker 2: With the bad, good with the bad is going to
Speaker 2: be more good than bad day.
Speaker 1: Over the years, like, we've had so many conversations about
Speaker 1: Big Brother, about our lives, and I've been privileged enough
Speaker 1: to spend time with you, and dreaming about the idea
Speaker 1: of going back to Big Brother always felt like just
Speaker 1: a dream, never felt like something that would ever happen,
Speaker 1: you know, re entering the house, what was there a
Speaker 1: moment where you stepped inside and you thought, Wow, this
Speaker 1: is actually happening.
Speaker 2: Because I didn't know, I didn't know what this concept
Speaker 2: was going to be, and I thought that I was
Speaker 2: just going to be an old housemate getting thrown in
Speaker 2: like an intruder into the show. And I didn't realize
Speaker 2: there was other past housemates coming in. And when I
Speaker 2: saw Tim Dahmer in the cow, I was just like
Speaker 2: over them. Oh, I was just esthetic. I was over
Speaker 2: the moon. I'm like, oh my god, I'm here with Tim.
Speaker 2: So I felt more comfortable and not as afraid, because
Speaker 2: until you feel really scared. But once I stepped right
Speaker 2: into that house, it just felt like being back home again.
Speaker 2: I know that sounds weird, but that's that's how it felt.
Speaker 1: It was like I'm home, I could imagine. I mean,
Speaker 1: that's kind of what I felt. Really surreal with the
Speaker 1: Big Brother house. People unless they've been in there, they
Speaker 1: probably don't understand how connected you become to it. And
Speaker 1: you know, Reg, I met you at the Commonwealth Games
Speaker 1: before I did Big Brother, at an after party, and
Speaker 1: I remember talkalking to you about Big Brother and I
Speaker 1: said to you, look, I want to apply, I want
Speaker 1: to get in, and you gave me some advice about it,
Speaker 1: and you talked about the need to have a routine,
Speaker 1: you know, so that you don't sort of lose your mind.
Speaker 1: And how you told me that you'd make a cup
Speaker 1: of coffee at a certain time or I followed exactly
Speaker 1: everything that you told me that I should do is
Speaker 1: basically what I did. It did make me feel super
Speaker 1: connected to that place.
Speaker 2: Yeah, it's your home. It's gone to have a routine.
Speaker 2: It was sort of bit hard this time around to
Speaker 2: have a routine because it was a big brother was
Speaker 2: really full on, you know, like back then, you know,
Speaker 2: we just laid by the pool and I'll get up
Speaker 2: and I'll make my bread and do my exercise. But
Speaker 2: I'd always be up earlier. I think Tim was the
Speaker 2: first main Tiam were the first wines up every morning
Speaker 2: without fail.
Speaker 1: Did they tell you what time of the day that was?
Speaker 2: No, but it must have been early. It must have
Speaker 2: been early because you could just tell by the sun
Speaker 2: coming up.
Speaker 1: What was your thought and what was going through your
Speaker 1: mind when they announced the winner? What was going through
Speaker 1: your mind at that point?
Speaker 2: Oh, look, I honestly thought one of the boys was
Speaker 2: going to win it. I thought Johnson was going to
Speaker 2: take his out, And going through my mind, I was
Speaker 2: just like, oh, I was just like, hurry up, hurry up,
Speaker 2: hurry up, hurry up. Just just announce it. Just announce it.
Speaker 2: And looking into the crowd and also hearing the crowd
Speaker 2: they were cheering a lot for me, which was lovely.
Speaker 2: And then when Sonya opened up that envelope and read
Speaker 2: out my name, it just brought back memories back to
Speaker 2: two thousand and three when Gretel read out and the
Speaker 2: winner is Reggie. I was so shocked. I really was,
Speaker 2: because I didn't want to get it into my head
Speaker 2: as well that I had it in the bag. And yeah,
Speaker 2: I was just shock. Then when she read my name out.
Speaker 1: When amazing, you know, just so crazy, you know what,
Speaker 1: I was really shocked about the show kind of just
Speaker 1: all of a sudden, it kind of just ended, and
Speaker 1: we didn't get Sonya to sit down and ask you
Speaker 1: any questions about how you felt.
Speaker 2: No, that's weird. I didn't even realize that, miss elf.
Speaker 2: Now I'm gonna watch it back. I haven't watched it back,
Speaker 2: so I'm watching that this afternoon. But now that you've
Speaker 2: said that about I didn't like in two thousand and three,
Speaker 2: Gretel sent me on the couch and went through it
Speaker 2: all and showed the package and asked you questions, and yeah,
Speaker 2: none of that happened.
Speaker 1: And you know, everywhere I went, I would be going
Speaker 1: through the airport to try and get back home to Melbourne,
Speaker 1: or I go out for lunch or go out for dinner,
Speaker 1: and everyone would say ask me questions about Big Brother
Speaker 1: you know what it's like. People recognizing me asked me
Speaker 1: questions and everyone said the same thing. They're like, But
Speaker 1: we didn't get to see if she's okay. We don't
Speaker 1: even know. She just looks so overwhelmed and scared and
Speaker 1: frightened and excited and thrilled. But we wanted to know
Speaker 1: how you felt.
Speaker 2: How was that? I happily day down to that next
Speaker 2: year to the winner whore the winds wut them down?
Speaker 1: Yeah?
Speaker 2: Yeah, do you reckon? I'll do another or one in
Speaker 2: this concept, I don't think they will.
Speaker 1: I don't know.
Speaker 2: I don't know.
Speaker 1: I think the catch up figures are strong, Like I
Speaker 1: think over all the yeah we're better in that regard
Speaker 1: because there was a lot of negative press about oh,
Speaker 1: it's not rating and all the rest of it. But
Speaker 1: once the Overnights has sort of happened and people got
Speaker 1: a chance to watch it, you know, the numbers work
Speaker 1: quite strong. I just think it's a very hard show
Speaker 1: to make because it's a lot of people's emotions and
Speaker 1: feelings and a lot goes into it. Are the producers
Speaker 1: going to have enough energy in the tank, then have
Speaker 1: enough gas in the tank to really want to go
Speaker 1: through the whole thing all over again.
Speaker 2: With if they do, if I do, I do, hope
Speaker 2: they do all stats, like a total all stats.
Speaker 1: I've heard a lot about it. One particular housemate said
Speaker 1: to me at the after party that he actually heard
Speaker 1: from a producer that they're thinking about doing an All Stars.
Speaker 1: I was like, well, that'd be good, because I think
Speaker 1: Reggie should have it in her contract. Every year, I
Speaker 1: must do Big Brother and win two hundred and fifty
Speaker 1: thousand dollars.
Speaker 2: I'll go back for a third. Imagine if they did
Speaker 2: a Winner's one band, bring back all the winners.
Speaker 1: That would be so good. That would facilitate my dream
Speaker 1: because I've just always dream in my mind that I
Speaker 1: would get to do it. So that would with you,
Speaker 1: with particularly with.
Speaker 2: You, imagine that they've got to do it, bring back
Speaker 2: the winners.
Speaker 1: I feel like you're so much more self aware about
Speaker 1: disingenuous people around you and making sure you surround yourself
Speaker 1: with the right people. Is that how you feel. Do
Speaker 1: you feel like this time around you sort of have
Speaker 1: to be careful of the people you are including in
Speaker 1: your circle.
Speaker 2: Yes, I'm more aware of this time around, and I
Speaker 2: do have a lot of good people around me. So
Speaker 2: I do feel a lot more confident in where I'm
Speaker 2: going in what I'm doing this time around. So yeah,
Speaker 2: last time I didn't have a clue and it showed
Speaker 2: I was made so many mistakes, so it won't be
Speaker 2: doing it this time.
Speaker 1: And I guess there's been the two other boys that
Speaker 1: have come, you know, the runners up to your win.
Speaker 1: Have you been able to speak to those boys because
Speaker 1: you'd have so much to offer them an advice on
Speaker 1: post Big Brother and how to survive post Big Brother?
Speaker 2: Oh, definitely, like John's Terrest, So they are great people,
Speaker 2: they really are. And you know it was a game,
Speaker 2: and you know people come across to Ls, especially coming
Speaker 2: across as you know, real snake, but he's got a
Speaker 2: big heart and Johnson's a character like he's got a
Speaker 2: big heart too. And you know Terrest said like the
Speaker 2: in the room before going on stage, like he couldn't
Speaker 2: have felt happier with the three people that were going
Speaker 2: to be up on that stage. But I will definitely
Speaker 2: keep in touch to the boys and make sure that
Speaker 2: they're okay.
Speaker 1: Well, if it wasn't for Terress, then you know those
Speaker 1: three wouldn't have been the same, Like Terress really had
Speaker 1: the power, I thought, No matter what he had done
Speaker 1: through the show, he played a brilliant game of Big
Speaker 1: Brother and the modern Big Brother, you know, like with
Speaker 1: all the twists and turns and you kind of have
Speaker 1: to throw people under the bus and you kind of
Speaker 1: have to build a resume and all of that kind
Speaker 1: of stuff. But then he kind of redeemed himself in
Speaker 1: lots of ways because he did choose Johnson and yourself
Speaker 1: to be there with him. Yeah, and they were the
Speaker 1: rightful they were the people's choice, they were the ones
Speaker 1: that everyone wanted to be.
Speaker 2: There because even though, like I said to him in
Speaker 2: that scramble cry to who he had to choose, I said,
Speaker 2: so said, you've got to take me. I said, AUSTRALI
Speaker 2: is going to hate you if you get rid of me. Now,
Speaker 2: I said, no, one's going to vote for you. And
Speaker 2: then I said, but if you take me, I said,
Speaker 2: they will love you for that, tourette. So and that
Speaker 2: played a big part in his game play. So for
Speaker 2: him taking me along, and I'm glad that he did,
Speaker 2: because yeah, I wouldn't be here talking to you now.
Speaker 1: You know what's really strange for me is the commentary
Speaker 1: about taras people loved him through his villainry and him
Speaker 1: being a villain and a steak or people hated him
Speaker 1: for it. But my impression of him now that I've
Speaker 1: spent some time with him is that he's kind of
Speaker 1: not villainous. He's not the person that people have seen
Speaker 1: good or pout. He's actually better. There's something quite wonderful
Speaker 1: and quite unique about Taras as a person, someone so
Speaker 1: infectious and warm. I mean, I'm just enamored by Arras.
Speaker 1: I don't know if you can tell, but I've just
Speaker 1: been blown away by him and how kind and wonderful
Speaker 1: this person is. It's crazy.
Speaker 2: He has a heart, he does, and we didn't get
Speaker 2: to see a lot of that on the show. But once, yeah,
Speaker 2: once you get to know to us as a you know, personally,
Speaker 2: he is a beautiful person. And I'm so glad that
Speaker 2: I've met these group of housemates and so happy to
Speaker 2: be at the end with Johnson and Terrette. So whoever
Speaker 2: ahead of taking this out regardless, we all have a
Speaker 2: love for each other, and.
Speaker 1: You could see the bond, you know. I was standing
Speaker 1: with your sister Anita and we were both crying, and
Speaker 1: I don't think she knew how to feel at the
Speaker 1: after party, and there was this moment where you were
Speaker 1: being lifted up by these new housemates. They were literally
Speaker 1: carrying you to your ride back to the hotel, and
Speaker 1: it was it was such a beautiful moment, like these
Speaker 1: people truly love you. Yeah, I obsessed with.
Speaker 2: You, you know, because I played a social game and
Speaker 2: my personality that's just who I am being. That's why
Speaker 2: they love me.
Speaker 1: Such a strange thing. Maybe they were reach maybe they
Speaker 1: know you've got the term ye. Now, you have been
Speaker 1: mediating some significant drama throughout the show, but then you've
Speaker 1: also been mediating some drama after the show that kind
Speaker 1: of spilled into the real world. Why do you think
Speaker 1: that Estelle and Tim seem to clash so much after
Speaker 1: the show?
Speaker 2: Oh? I think they bloody. I haven't spoken to him.
Speaker 2: I hope they made up before they went on the
Speaker 2: stage there. Yeah, because in the house, like they had
Speaker 2: this relationships, so they were friends going into the show,
Speaker 2: and then you know, and I think the whole game
Speaker 2: play thing. Tim didn't want to play the way that
Speaker 2: is still wanted to play, and then they were having
Speaker 2: all these fights and I had to step in and
Speaker 2: try and get them to make up. And yeah, and
Speaker 2: it is happening in it's spilled out now into the
Speaker 2: real world where they've been fighting, and I've had to
Speaker 2: step in and ring him ring a spell, you know,
Speaker 2: try and get them to kiss and make out. So
Speaker 2: I don't know whether they have or not. I haven't
Speaker 2: spoken to them since I got back home.
Speaker 1: Went out of all of these relationships as time has
Speaker 1: gone on, Like during your time in the house, was
Speaker 1: it quite stressful to pick sides with people? Was it
Speaker 1: hard for you because you're such a kind and very
Speaker 1: giving person in the way that you the way that
Speaker 1: you offer your friendship is very much like that in
Speaker 1: this game of Big Brother? How hard is it for
Speaker 1: Reggie to navigate all of these relationships and pick sides?
Speaker 1: How hard was that?
Speaker 2: I've got a very good gap intuition. My gather instinct
Speaker 2: played a massive role my gameplay. So I could read
Speaker 2: three people. I could read your room, and I could
Speaker 2: see he was full of shit. So yeah, I could.
Speaker 2: I'm like, and I use that to my advantage. And
Speaker 2: so I would say to my ag you know, ogs
Speaker 2: like this one, and then again that you can't this
Speaker 2: one is so full as shit, trust me, Like you've
Speaker 2: got to trust me on this one, so they would
Speaker 2: go with me and oh, jeez, read you were right,
Speaker 2: you know, like so I didn't know. Yeah, it's funny
Speaker 2: watching the back because you don't see all these secret
Speaker 2: deals that have been made and what's been happening. But
Speaker 2: you know, I played my part, especially with Dave, like,
Speaker 2: bless him, he just he just he trusted everyone. And
Speaker 2: I'm just like, oh, Dave, you need to open your
Speaker 2: eyes a bit more, mate.
Speaker 1: So if you know Dave, Dave is the funniest person
Speaker 1: because who Dave was in Big Brother is who Dave
Speaker 1: is in the real world.
Speaker 2: Like this, that's him, That's who he is. You know
Speaker 2: I need I'd say it, and Dave, like you just
Speaker 2: open your eyes and listened. There was a few times
Speaker 2: there like he was gone against hers and I'm like, no, mate, no,
Speaker 2: you can't do this day. But Reggie, I love this person,
Speaker 2: and I'm gone, I'm sorry, but you just can't do this.
Speaker 2: I'm bless him. I'm so glad he read in and
Speaker 2: I love him so much. He's beautiful.
Speaker 1: And you also mentioned about the fact that you at
Speaker 1: one point were sleeping. You're having a day sleep and
Speaker 1: you could overhear conversations that people having, and you were
Speaker 1: quite shocked with things that you overheard. What was the
Speaker 1: most shocking thing that you overheard from housemates talking while
Speaker 1: you were evesdropping.
Speaker 2: Ah, they've shown me a few times, like listening in
Speaker 2: on conversations. I wish I had heard the first one
Speaker 2: that deal going down with Tim and Johnson, because they
Speaker 2: showed me standing outside the treehouse Heaven. I listened, but
Speaker 2: I didn't hear it. But that's when the big deal
Speaker 2: happened with those guys. Yeah, there was a moment I
Speaker 2: was in bed, I was wanting. Yeah, I was laying
Speaker 2: down and I could hear I think it's a leisure Gabby.
Speaker 2: I think there was a couple other newbies on the
Speaker 2: other side of the room, and I could hear Gabby
Speaker 2: coming for me, and no one could understand why. I was, like,
Speaker 2: why I was going for Gabby. Why I wanted to
Speaker 2: get because I could hear her talking about me coming
Speaker 2: for me, and I thought, I'm going to get rid
Speaker 2: of her before she gets rid of mete.
Speaker 1: Absolutely, I think that that's I mean, I'm so glad
Speaker 1: that we finally heard that because it was a piece
Speaker 1: of the puzzle that was certainly missing.
Speaker 2: And from that moment, like when Gabby would you know,
Speaker 2: she was the floater and she come and sit in
Speaker 2: on our conversations and then sleeping the other side of
Speaker 2: the house and I'm just like, this doesn't it didn't
Speaker 2: sit well with So, yeah, there was a piece missing
Speaker 2: that no one saw. That's why I wanted Gabby out.
Speaker 1: You know what's also really good is have you noticed
Speaker 1: that Tim Dormer seems to have a bit of a
Speaker 1: renaissance with himself. It's nice to see him now believing
Speaker 1: in himself again because over the years he sort of
Speaker 1: started to doubt himself and the magic of Tim Dormer
Speaker 1: and he seems to be back. Is that nice to see?
Speaker 2: Yeah, it's so good. Like he's so loud, like he's
Speaker 2: so love and it's so good because he went missing
Speaker 2: in action there for a while off social media, and
Speaker 2: that he wanted to know obviously things were gone on
Speaker 2: in his life and wanted nothing to do with it.
Speaker 2: And it's so good that he.
Speaker 1: I mean, I noticed something with you. I mean it's
Speaker 1: a real journey that we go on after the show
Speaker 1: and to get a little bit sort of personal with you.
Speaker 1: You know, there had been some times in your life
Speaker 1: where you'd sort of come up and come down. You
Speaker 1: know what was the hardest moments between your two big
Speaker 1: brother wins?
Speaker 2: Oh gosh, Ben, My hardest was it was really weird
Speaker 2: because after the show, also you so loved, like everyone
Speaker 2: loves you and wants to speak to you, but you
Speaker 2: also feel very lonely at the same time, Like I
Speaker 2: remember back in yeah, that first time, just like wow,
Speaker 2: everyone wants me, but I'm just so lonely. It was awful.
Speaker 2: And then and I remember I remember asking Harry and Miller.
Speaker 2: I just wanted to go back and help the next
Speaker 2: lot of housemates that were coming through. I wanted to
Speaker 2: be there for them and give them advice and help
Speaker 2: them how to deal with stuff because you were left
Speaker 2: to been for yourself pretty much like there was no
Speaker 2: help after the show, and I just didn't want any
Speaker 2: other house to go through that. My biggest pressure, Like
Speaker 2: I went through depression for about two years, real bad
Speaker 2: after like with my eyes driving, having to hand in
Speaker 2: my driver's license, and Luke has been diagnosed with cystic fibrosis.
Speaker 2: So yeah, that was really bad, but I managed to
Speaker 2: pull through and not they make.
Speaker 1: Case things isn't it nice to be able to think,
Speaker 1: you know, those dark moments. You're like, think about how
Speaker 1: if someone could just come and whisper in your ear
Speaker 1: and say keep going because you don't know what's around
Speaker 1: the corner. And yeah, it's the beautiful thing for people
Speaker 1: to take from your experience. Reg you know. I remember
Speaker 1: reading on Facebook, you know, you put up a post
Speaker 1: about being quite sad one day, and I just wanted
Speaker 1: to fly up to Queensland and see you, take you
Speaker 1: out for a drink and remind you of the things
Speaker 1: that I love about you and the things that other
Speaker 1: people love about you. And I think for people listening
Speaker 1: to this, we do have those dark moments in our lives.
Speaker 1: We all do, but you know we have to keep
Speaker 1: going to see what's around the corner.
Speaker 2: Yeah, and I'm glad. Jeez, I remember when I did that.
Speaker 2: That's when I was at my darkest point life and
Speaker 2: I just didn't want to be here anymore. I really didn't.
Speaker 2: And I'm like, wow, I remember the ambulance because what's
Speaker 2: one of my friends was worried and the ambulance come
Speaker 2: to take me away, but I didn't go with them.
Speaker 2: And then I'm like, oh, jeez, this is just awful,
Speaker 2: and I'm glad that I've stuck it out. Then. You know,
Speaker 2: look what's happened now. I just got to keep going.
Speaker 2: You just got to keep going. And I'm so blessed
Speaker 2: to have had that opportunity to come back and do
Speaker 2: Big Brother all over again. There's no way I was
Speaker 2: going to say no, There's no way in hell. So
Speaker 2: I was going to do it regard, you know, no
Speaker 2: matter what hurdles I had to jump over to get
Speaker 2: back into the house, I was going to do it regardless.
Speaker 1: And we're so glad that you did.
Speaker 2: You know, I'm so glad that I went by. Can
Speaker 2: hear it again?
Speaker 1: You know we touched on this a little bit before,
Speaker 1: but you know, i'd really like to ask you about
Speaker 1: what could change your Big Brother does come back. I've
Speaker 1: always thought they should bring Big Brother into I mean,
Speaker 1: of course, i'd love to see it be live for
Speaker 1: audience to be able to have more control, that is important,
Speaker 1: But I'd love to see some real world things happen,
Speaker 1: things that happen in our lives now, like give them
Speaker 1: phone so we can read their text messages on the
Speaker 1: screens and make it seem more like real world with
Speaker 1: the house looking like a sharehouse, less like a spaceship.
Speaker 2: Yeah, well i'd love obviously, Look, we'd all have the
Speaker 2: live format to come back, and so the audience does
Speaker 2: have more of a say in what goes on. But
Speaker 2: I don't know if they will ever do that again.
Speaker 2: I'd like to bring back more of the old format
Speaker 2: so you get to know who their housemates are. Unfortunately,
Speaker 2: like the newbies, no one really got to fall in
Speaker 2: love with the newbies because they didn't know who they
Speaker 2: were because it was all game play. Like if they
Speaker 2: could just cap back on this whole challenges and not
Speaker 2: make it so much like Survivor, it'd be good to
Speaker 2: go back to the social social experiment of what Big
Speaker 2: Brother is.
Speaker 1: I mean, if producers asked you, or if they asked you,
Speaker 1: would you be willing to sit down with them and
Speaker 1: give them your ideas on you know, what you think
Speaker 1: could be good to change in the format.
Speaker 2: If they ever want advice, I'd love to give them advice,
Speaker 2: but maybe maybe you know, it's the whole budgets. They
Speaker 2: don't have the budgets like they used to do back
Speaker 2: in the Channel teen days. I don't know, but to
Speaker 2: bring back that whole live formula. It'd be bloody awesome.
Speaker 2: They could even put it online, like how they loved
Speaker 2: to where you could watch the housemates twenty four hours
Speaker 2: a day. Why can't they do that?
Speaker 1: Well, apparently after the Turkey slap incident, they then became
Speaker 1: really the networks became really stressed about what people could
Speaker 1: see if it was being streamed twenty four hours a day.
Speaker 1: But that is what people genuinely wanted, and interestingly enough
Speaker 1: with my series in twenty twelve, which they then didn't
Speaker 1: do in twenty thirteen or fourteen, was that they gave
Speaker 1: a blog which people could follow, so at all times
Speaker 1: of every day there was someone saying exactly whatever one
Speaker 1: was doing, so that gave people more insight into what
Speaker 1: was happening inside.
Speaker 2: Oh yeah something, just something, because you know, they've crammed
Speaker 2: seven days into three shows, like so much got missed,
Speaker 2: so much got cut out, and so many funny things
Speaker 2: that we did like it didn't get shown, which was sad,
Speaker 2: which was sad. So you know, I think the public
Speaker 2: would love to see more of that than the constant
Speaker 2: challenges and the stretch chat.
Speaker 1: What was interesting to me was I spoke to you
Speaker 1: because you and I have friends. You know, obviously we
Speaker 1: said we talk and Dave and I have friends, Layla
Speaker 1: and I have friends. So have all these friendships with
Speaker 1: housemates that went into the show, and none of you
Speaker 1: were allowed to tell me the specifics of what had happened,
Speaker 1: And obviously we had to part them and wait till
Speaker 1: the show was over so we could sit down and
Speaker 1: really unpack it and talk about what the experience was like.
Speaker 1: But you, Dave, Layla, everyone said, you know, there's so
Speaker 1: much that goes on. I can't wait forrustrated to see it.
Speaker 1: And then everyone said, but you really missed out on
Speaker 1: some of the most amazing moments of the series.
Speaker 2: Oh yeah, there's a lot. Yeah, there was a lot
Speaker 2: that they didn't show. And even towards the end, Oh gosh,
Speaker 2: it was like this he was me, he has left me,
Speaker 2: Tim Melisia Johnson Ras Brenton and we had this awards ceremony.
Speaker 2: It was like the Golden Blows all the Oscars and
Speaker 2: we got dressed up and had this award ceremony party
Speaker 2: and they didn't show it. I'm like, oh, but it
Speaker 2: was so good. It would have been good to see that.
Speaker 2: And then we you know, like we had another challenge.
Speaker 2: It was a twenty four hour freaking challenge. This phone
Speaker 2: box in the backyard called the Truth Booth, which we
Speaker 2: had to run to the phone. When it rang, a
Speaker 2: Big Brother would say yes, like we had asked the
Speaker 2: brother for some truth, like is this person coming for me?
Speaker 2: Or did someone do this? And Big Brother would give
Speaker 2: us a yes or no answer, and that wasn't shown.
Speaker 1: That sounds ot yeah, yeah, yeah, because I.
Speaker 2: Was like, oh, because when I first hopped into the
Speaker 2: I didn't know what to ask. And I'm like, oh,
Speaker 2: I'm wasting my time here, I'm wasting question time and
Speaker 2: I didn't know what to ask. And I remember when
Speaker 2: Alisha came out of it, her phrase was like you
Speaker 2: could tell she got some juicy gossip, like she could
Speaker 2: clarified Big rather must have clarified something up, which also
Speaker 2: was part of the whole game play as well, because
Speaker 2: people were finding out stuff about other housemates.
Speaker 1: They dropped that stuff out and you're like, that's the
Speaker 1: juicy stuff. That's if you ask any Big Brother fan
Speaker 1: or people that are the Big Brother purists, the stuff
Speaker 1: they want is like the really it's sort of like
Speaker 1: the small everyday stuff that they can get to be
Speaker 1: that's the stuff that they love the most.
Speaker 2: Yeah, hopefully next year they'll be able to bring more
Speaker 2: more old instead of all these brutal challenges. Oh man,
Speaker 2: I gave it a good heart crack then those challenges.
Speaker 1: I have an idea, and it was funny someone told
Speaker 1: me that this idea had been thought of before, but
Speaker 1: they really should do like a time warp and they
Speaker 1: should travel back through the Big Brother Ages and collect
Speaker 1: housemates from all the series, you know, throughout the series
Speaker 1: and back and an even amount of housemates from each season.
Speaker 1: Because the dynamics that exist between people that have formerly
Speaker 1: lived together and then haven't seen each other but now
Speaker 1: we're doing it again is fascinating.
Speaker 2: Oh, absolutely, absolutely fascinating. Then, oh my goodness, imagine that
Speaker 2: that'd be awesome.
Speaker 1: How much money would it cost to get chrisy Swand
Speaker 1: to go back into the Big Brother House because everyone
Speaker 1: in Australia wants to see you both lying in bed
Speaker 1: in your pajamas.
Speaker 2: I'd have to get in her ear I mention that
Speaker 2: we went together. People would love it.
Speaker 1: They would love it, you know. I saw Chrissy yesterday.
Speaker 1: The thing about her that I loved the most and
Speaker 1: that has stayed with me. Is your series felt so
Speaker 1: personal to me because I was living out of home
Speaker 1: at that point, you know, still in my early twenties.
Speaker 1: And now today, when I cook garlic in my kitchen,
Speaker 1: like I'm cooking speaking, the first thing I think of
Speaker 1: is you and Chrissy. For some reason, I've associated the
Speaker 1: smell of garlic, but the two of you laughing in.
Speaker 2: Bed was a welu like he to have gone on
Speaker 2: this big brother journey likee it's just unbelievable.
Speaker 1: Whilst it's sometimes hard to, you know, maintain friendships with people,
Speaker 1: it's so good when you get to see them again.
Speaker 1: You know, it was so good to see you see
Speaker 1: Chrissy at the logis like it was such a bad was.
Speaker 2: The best just like we it was like we haven't
Speaker 2: left each other side. That's how it felt. Yeah, that's
Speaker 2: how it felt like. When we saw each other, it
Speaker 2: was just like, oh my god, it was just instant,
Speaker 2: like back back to two thousand and three.
Speaker 1: Well, I guess before you go, I guess I need
Speaker 1: to ask you know, what was your favorite moment of
Speaker 1: the series. I mean, obviously winning it is a good one,
Speaker 1: but you know, looking back over the twenty twenty two series.
Speaker 1: You know, was there a favorite Reggie moment?
Speaker 2: Oh? Gosh, Then I think there was a few. There
Speaker 2: was the moment in the room when May all our
Speaker 2: s housemates for singing one night, and that was just
Speaker 2: the absolute best. We'll all come together, gameplay was all
Speaker 2: for the side. We were just all singing and it
Speaker 2: was unbelievable. It was really good. And then I guess
Speaker 2: the next one was seeing the kids on the screen.
Speaker 2: That was absolutely the best.
Speaker 1: Have you got any idea about what your life is
Speaker 1: going to look like now after Big Brother? Have you
Speaker 1: got any aspirations moving forward?
Speaker 2: Oh? I I'm hoping good things are going to come
Speaker 2: out of this then, and I'm hoping, you know, I'll
Speaker 2: be able to do some more TV or radio. Freeze's review.
Speaker 2: Definitely going to ride a book, so obviously it might
Speaker 2: a back bit smart. I've got a good feeling. I
Speaker 2: really had a really good feeling about it time around.
Speaker 1: I think it won't be a book, Reggie, because knowing
Speaker 1: your wife, I think it's going to be a series
Speaker 1: like a series of books.
Speaker 2: Definitely won't be one little bit more.
Speaker 1: Well, Regie, this is the end of our chat talking
Speaker 1: about Big Brother, But it's not the end of our friendship,
Speaker 1: while still be estrawing you as I always do.
Speaker 2: Bless you, h m hm