Celebrity Big Brother finalist Chris Hughes passionately defended his friendship with JoJo Siwa as he left in sixth place.
The ITV reality series final is well underway, with the Love Island star and music artist Chesney Hawkes the first two to be voted out as the battle for first place cranks up.
Over the past few weeks, Chris, 32, and housemate JoJo Siwa, 21, have been the centre of chatter after forming a close friendship that was punctuated by heartfelt speeches to one another during their final meal.
As the pair choked up with emotion, JoJo said that Chris made up a missing part of her, and the two shared a poignant embrace.
When Chris and Chesney joined co-hosts Will Best and AJ Odudu on the sofa, they inevitably broached the subject of the intensely close bond they had formed.
Chris, who has previously dated Olivia Attwood and Jesy nelson, shared: ‘I know what I’m like as a human being and I bond to people who make me feel like I’m not in the Big Brother house… I want to not take life too seriously.
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‘JoJo was a pure rock to me, she was someone I can have fun with and that, to me, was a beautiful friendship,’ which AJ and Will heartily agreed with.
He then started visibly holding back tears as he compared her to his ex-girlfriend.
Chris continued: ‘The thing that fascinated me the most about her was not the stuff that she’s done because I was still finding out the stuff she’s done yesterday, but it was what she’s been through as a teenager, and that’s similar to what my ex-girlfriend went through.’
As the audience whooped at the comparison, Chris quickly shut them down.
He added: ‘She’s come through a lot and she’s just a purely nice person. I’m saying the similarities in their personality and the person they are. From a friendship point of view, of course I love her. I don’t mind admitting it.’
When AJ pointed out they were ‘very tactile’ and ‘on top of each other sometimes’ and Will reminded Chris that Ella Rae Wise has speculated he may be trying to benefit from a friendship with JoJo on the outside, Chris shut it down quickly.
He said: ‘Why would I not want to get on with people when I’m in the house. Everyone will naturally bond towards somebody and if I wanna spend the time with the person who makes me feel like I’m at home, for get that we’re filming a TV show and we’re having fun… I’ll do that.
‘Likewise with her. It was just a friendship that is only going to get stronger,’ he concluded.
The pair first got close when Chris comforted her after ex-housemate Mickey Rourke levelled homophobic comments at her, claiming he would ‘turn her straight’.
Earlier this week, JoJo got emotional after receiving a letter from home in which her partner, non-binary actor Kath Ebbs didn’t quite deliver the message of love she was hoping for.
Once more, Chris comforted her after she broke down in the diary room.
Following on the heels of Chris and Chesney, Donna Preston was the next to be evicted, followed by the Dance Moms star herself, JoJo Siwa.
You can stream all of Celebrity Big Brother on ITVX.
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