It looks like Celebrity Big Brother bosses are hoping a romance will spark between Ella Rise Wise and Chris Hughes on the new series.
The show kicked off on Monday night with stars including Mickey Rourke, Jojo Siwa and Trisha Goddard moving into the house.
But it looks like bosses are hoping former Love Islander Chris, 32, might take a shining to TOWIE star Ella, 24, who is newly-single after splitting from Dan Edgar.
When Ella entered the house midway through the show, the camera immediately cut to Chris who had a big smile on his face.
During her VT before she went into the house, Ella described herself as a ‘terrible flirt’.
She said: ‘I could literally float with a loaf of bread. I could flirt with anything! I’m flirting with the camera.’
It looks like Celebrity Big Brother bosses are hoping a romance will spark between Ella Rise Wise and Chris Hughes on the new series
When Ella entered the house midway through the show, the camera immediately cut to Chris who had a big smile on his face
With the addition of a prominently-placed double bed in the house this year, some stars will be forced to share.
Many viewers picked up on the moment and took to X to comment on the potential showmance brewing.
They wrote: ‘Chris seeing Ella walk int he house. He’s going to go for her isn’t he?’
‘The camera IMMEDIATELY panning to Chris when Ella walked in LMAO. They know what they’re doing.’
‘The way they put the camera straight on Chris when Ella came in. They want a showmance chile not suble at all.’
It comes after Ella recently confirmed she has split from boyfriend and fellow TOWIE star Dan Edgar, days after promising him she wouldn’t flirt with Chris in the house.
‘We can’t just be together because we have a great sex life,’ the reality star said as she told The Sun of their shock break up.
‘We are not together – and it’s really, really sad that we’re not together, we split up a week ago,’ she said.
During her VT before she went into the house, Ella described herself as a ‘terrible flirt’
She said: ‘I could literally float with a loaf of bread. I could flirt with anything! I’m flirting with the camera’
Many viewers picked up on the moment and took to X to comment on the potential showmance brewing
She went on to say that while Dan is sweet, there was ‘something missing’ between them and she didn’t want to waste each other’s time.
She added that Dan is set in his ways, adding: ‘If he’s comfortable in how he is and if he thinks what he gives in a relationship is enough, that’s okay because that can be enough for someone – but it’s just not enough for me.’
Their shock split comes just days after she reportedly promised Dan that she won’t flirt with Chris in the Big Brother house.
But despite Ella’s plea, The Sun reported that producers ‘may have other ideas’ and could be planning to ‘pair the duo up’ for tasks and ‘airing any intimate chats’.
A source told the publication: ‘Ella and Dan have worked hard on their relationship to get to this point, having overcome several bumps in the road.
‘The last thing Ella wants is for Dan to feel insecure about Chris while she’s in the house with him’.
With the addition of a prominently-placed double bed, some reluctant stars will be forced to share
It comes after Ella recently confirmed she has split from boyfriend and fellow TOWIE star Dan Edgar, days after promising him she wouldn’t flirt with Chris in the house
‘She promised Dan that she won’t flirt with Chris or lead him on. The very last thing she wants to do is embarrass Dan’.
Before adding: ‘But producers are already predicting Ella and Chris will hit it off, so they may have other ideas about pairing them together in tasks and airing any inmate chats they have’.
According to The Sun, Celebrity Big Brother producers were keen to land Ella – who once dated Pete Wicks – as one of the latest batch of housemates.
They are hoping she might spill the beans on some of her other famous exes.
Chris was previously in a relationship with fellow Love Island star Olivia Attwood who he reached the final with and he also memorably dated Little Mix star Jesy Nelson until they split in April 2020.
CELEBRITY BIG BROTHER 2025: MEET THE LINEUP!
MICKEY ROURKE
AGE: 72
FAMOUS FOR: The actor and former pro boxer is one of the show’s biggest ever signings and after public feuds with Robert De Niro, two marriages and a string of high profile relationships, producers will be hoping he brings plenty of drama.
DALEY THOMPSON
AGE: 66
FAMOUS FOR: The double Olympic gold-medallist is considered one of Britain’s greatest athletes, and he would no doubt cause a stir with younger celebrities if he entered the house. He broke the decathlon world record four times.
PATSY PALMER
AGE: 52
FAMOUS FOR: It’s an open secret that Patsy is leaving EastEnders, with the actress enjoying a wild leaving party this month. The Bianca Jackson star posted a snap of her character on Instagram with the caption: ‘Bye bye B, always grateful to see her again.’
DONNA PRESTON
AGE: 38
FAMOUS FOR: While Donna has featured in several TV shows and movies, the comedy star is known for hosting Apocalypse and for the role of a circus Compere in 2018’s Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes Of Grindelwald. She plays Den in Coronation Street, has featured in Pants On Fire in 2019 and even wrote and co-produced BBC Three’s Comedy Threesomes.
CHESNEY HAWKES
AGE: 53
FAMOUS FOR: The singer topped the charts for five weeks in 1991 with his hit The One And Only, before making a string of acting and TV appearances. His arrival on CBB has been described by a TV source as ‘perfect timing’, as he’s set to release a comeback album in April.
ANGELICA BELL
AGE: 49
FAMOUS FOR: The TV presenter is said to have landed a staggering five-figure deal to appear on Celebrity Big Brother. Fans will be keen to see if the CBBC legend spills all on her untimely exit from The Martin Lewis Show – which left fans baffled back in 2023. Angellica currently co-presents Hits Radio while Fleur East is on maternity leave.
DANNY BEARD
AGE: 32
FAMOUS FOR: The RuPaul’s Drag Race UK winner – whose real name is Daniel Curtis – has signed up as a late entry. Danny previously made headlines after swearing on Big Brother’s Late & Live last March whilst doing an impression of housemate Louis Walsh. The incident saw the guest say the word ‘c***’ before immediately apologising after being informed they weren’t allowed to say that on the show.
CHRIS HUGHES
AGE: 32
FAMOUS FOR: After shooting to fame on Love Island in 2017, Chris went on to become a sports presenter and regularly hosts the horse racing coverage on ITV.
JOJO SIWA
AGE: 21
FAMOUS FOR: The American singer, who shot to stardom on reality show Dance Moms, is expected to draw a big American audience. The hitmaker has made a name for herself in the U.S. pop charts and is known for her outlandish looks and being a vocal member of the LGBTQ+ community.
TRISHA GODDARD
AGE: 67
FAMOUS FOR: The talk show host regularly presented on ITV from 1998 to 2004 and then shifted to Channel 5 from 2004 to 2010. Trisha has been suffering horrible side effects of her chemotherapy – but has bravely battled on.
JACK P. SHEPHERD
AGE: 37
FAMOUS FOR: The actor has played David Platt in Corrie since 2000 and is following in his pal Colson Smith’s footsteps by taking part in the popular reality show. He has won a string of awards for the role including Best Actor at the British Soap Awards.
ELLA RAE WISE
AGE: 24
FAMOUS FOR: Producers have been keen to land the TV personality, who previously dated Pete Wicks and has had an on-off romance with Dan Edgar. Bosses are hoping the TOWIE star might reveal all about some of her other famous exes.
MICHAEL FABRICANT
AGE: 74
FAMOUS FOR: The former Conservative politician is understood to have signed a lucrative six-figure deal to take part after political stars were banned from the broadcaster’s other reality show, I’m A Celeb. He served as MP for Lichfield in Staffordshire from 1992 until his defeat in 2024 as well as vice-chairman of the party under David Cameron. But he is perhaps best known for his blonde mop for which he has been widely ridiculed but repeatedly denies is a wig.