It all began on a chilly Thursday evening, when we first met the expectant eleven: Rylan, Frankie, Tricia, Paula, Ryan,Gillian, Sam, Lacey, Razor, Claire and Speidi. The celebrities were in for a shock from the start, as Rylan and Frankie forced half of them downstairs to live in the dirty basementbefore they'd even had a chance to catch their breath.

The first few days were blighted with basement-filled drama, after Speidi refused to help the other housemates win hot water. Frankie soon switched places with the stubborn reality stars, putting himself up for nomination to win the basement dwellers freedom, before moving back upstairs. Seriously, we could never nail that little jockey down.

Week 1 ended in tension with the first nominations of the series. Paula, Speidi and the aforementioned Frankie were the unlucky four called up for the chop.

We rolled into Week 2 with the multi-faceted shopping task,'Against the odds', where the housemates were gunged and forced to invade each other's personal face space in the pursuit of a luxury shopping task. They won, FYI – hoorah!

The good times did not roll, however, as Paula was soon slung out of the House, dressed in her habitual beige sheepskin coat.  This was only the start of Week 2’s trials and tribulations...

Bear with us as we rattle through these. First we had Speidi's staged walkout, followed by face-to-face noms (with Ryan and Sam in the firing line) and a lot of voyeuristic behaviourresulting in some miffed Americans. After all that, Sam got the boot.

Deep breath...

Speidi returned on the eve of Sam’s departure. They caused quite the ruckus and put Claire and Rylan up for eviction to boot. More noms took place, and the housemates were told that Lacey and Speidi would join chums Claire and Rylan in the public vote. And let's not forget the moment the housemates donned Zentai suits and got shocked because, well, it was just really funny.

Phew. So that, ladies and gentleman, was another week done and dusted.

Week 3 didn't escape controversy, either. We said 'hello' toDictator Frankie and another luxury food budget, and 'bye bye' to Banghard. There were two rule breaks – one that resulted in a Cockney knees up and one that had the more serious repercussion of all the housemates facing the public vote. To many aghast housemates, Gillian became the fourth evictee– all thanks to naughty boys Razor and Ryan.

The week was dominated, however, by the uproar that wasBig Blogger, which came courtesy of yours truly (that's us, the digital team!).

Speidi unwittingly dished out a few home truths to the viewing housemates and pandemonium ensued (well, a few arguments).  Any hope of reconciliation was quashed after the debacle that was the Diletter task and that clap. Or so it seemed...

We don't mean to spoil the ending of this saga, but they made up (yay!), and the last week started on a positive note.

Fortunately, the good times did actually roll on this occasion. There was the thigh-slappingly fun task that was Boys vs Girls, the raucous Hen party that followed, a letter drop that warmed some cockles and Paula Hamilton fleetingly returned to shape up the shabby housemates. Gawd, it was a right hoot.

In the end, it all came down to the night that we, and the housemates, had been waiting for... Finale night.

Prior to their quickfire ejection, housemates were forced towait it out and reflect on the last 23 days. After Big Brother treated them to a lie-in and a good old pampering, the final afternoon was spent wondering how on earth it would all turn out. And they didn't have to wait long. There was a winner to announce and when the evening of Day 23 rolled around, we found out just who had scooped victory.

Razor was the first of our final five to leave the House. He walked straight into the arms of Brian and gave us a great interview. Shortly after Mr. Ruddock, Claire (from Steps) was given her marching orders, taking a highly respectable fourth place. Next out was Ryan – our lovely Aussie import taking third place. He left the House with the kind of style we'd come to expect.

That left two. It had fallen to our Essex boy and our couple from The Hills to battle it out for the winner's place. When Brian announced the winner, Rylan went into quite a tizzy. The Essex Boy had beaten Speidi to the top spot. They took it in their usual, mixed, hot and cold way. In stark contrast, Rylan gave us his signature joyful reaction. We dropped him out but we did it from the loftiest position possible.

Rylan Clark was officially the winner of Celebrity Big Brother. He'd wanted it for so long and he achieved it in quite some style. What's more, he did it Rylan Style.

A deserving winner if ever we've had one!

We don't like generalisations here. We'll not have people stereotyping our housemates, as though they're not all uniquely individual stars in their own right. Each has travelled on their own, lone journey to fame – infamy or general notoriety – and we view them all as one-offs, ducking out of conversation when labels are tacked to our beloved contestants.

But, saying that, we've had a lot of housemates over the years – too many to count, even using all your digits and extremities. So, simply for the sake of data collation (and nothing to do with generalising whatsoever), we've decided we need a few pigeonholes so we can keep our catalogue of starry, talked-about tenants in order. We couldn't have our archive falling into chaos, could we?

Here's our first attempt at coming up with some categories in which to place former challengers. We'd like to make it clear from the start that there's more to the below than any flimsy grouping…

Resting music-makers

When the royalty cheques just aren't cutting it any more and the mortgage remains unpaid, or if that spirit of adventure developed backstage after years of gigging still hasn't waned, former pop and rock stars might turn to a stint in CBB. Free drinkies, everything looked after by unseen minders and a healthy pay cheque at the end of the day - it's obvious why time in the House has appealed to wildmen like Bez and Goldie. And it also explains why the likes of boyband idols like Mark Owen and Keith Duffy were drawn to the bungalow. Factor in legends like Coolio, Leo Sayer and, umm, Claire from Steps, and it's arguable that we should open up a music room and get our housemates jamming.

Models looking to progress

Models love exposure (not like that - don't be dirty). Time on CBB guarantees that your name will soar higher than ever before as your beautiful image beams into the houses of millions, night after night. It's a sure way to increase the profile. That is, so long as you don't mind being shackled to a prince in rags, a la Danica. Or thrust into a situation of unrequited love, like Rhian. Or hurled into a vipers nest of arguing, up against Michael Barrymore and George Galloway, as with Jodie Marsh. Or voted out first, like poor old Lucy Pinder. We still love you, Lucy.

Actors between jobs

Hollywood's provided us with some treats over the years, with some fairly major players winging their way over from movie-central to dress up in silly costumes and muck about for our entertainment. We've had the likes of Michael Madsen through our doors, if you recall - that's an actual Reservoir Dog for your money. Not forgetting Stephen Baldwin and Tara Reid… it's a veritable mini-Tinsel Town in that place when we chuck in the major league thespian talent.

TV presenters on a break

When they're not looking into a camera and reading from the autocue, TV presenters are usually working out new and exciting ways to plonk themselves inside our telly-boxes for further opportunities to shine on-screen. Celebrity Big Brother offers ample opportunities for that kind of caper, so the likes of Vanessa Feltz, Les Dennis, Sue Perkins, Anne Diamond and Ulrika Johnsson have all walked across our threshold with varying degrees of success. There are winners and public meltdowners among that lot. It's a bit of a mixed bag. We even help our contestants launch their own TV presenting careers. Rylan will tell you that.

Former soap stars

British soap stars are at a bit of a loose end once they quit the day job. Some of them turn to serious drama, some even wind up in films - but our favourites are the ones who pile into the CBB House for fun and games. Step forward Julie Goodyear. Come along, Natalie Cassidy. Step up, Ryan Moloney. Don't be shy, Jeremy Edwards. We loved you all in character and we love you just as much as your acting alter egos. We've always got room for the stars of the small screen.

Politicians (and their ilk) on holiday...

…and this is where it gets serious. We occasionally get the odd politician rolling up to our doors and, with them, controversy often turns up too. Tommy Sheridan is one such example of a statesman who entered the House bringing talking points aplenty when he stepped on our doormat. Then there's George Galloway - and we all know how that turned out. What about Sally Bercow - wife of the Speaker of the House of Lords? She's still causing controversy, long after her time with CBB. Our elected officials and their brethren always give us something to talk about, so they're always welcome within our four walls.

So - we've made a start. Admittedly we've not even touched on the Reality TV stars, the sportsmen and women, the journalists, the film directors or the Hollywood madams… but there was only so much space.

We're gonna need a bigger list.

It's launch night and if you're not exited enough already about meeting a whole new batch of awesome celebrity housemates then wait until you hear what we're got going down on Bit on the Side tonight.

Your fabulous hosts, AJ and Rylan will be starting the party with a panel guaranteed to pack a punch.

That's right, it's your Big Brother top three  - Sam, Dexter and Gina. The mighty triumvirate will be having their say on the celebs.

Ex-Corrie star and reality stalwart the lovely Helen Flannigan will also be joining the chat.

Expect tip-top banter, laughs a plenty and more exclusives than you can shake a stick at.

Bit on the Side is on Channel 5 at 11pm.

Strap yourselves in, it promises to be one heck of a ride!

Louie Spence has hot-footed it onto the Big Brother House!

Loved for his lisp and flexible legs, choreographer Louie shot to fame after appearing on docu-soap Pineapple Dance Studios, where he is artistic director. As you'll probably know, it was Pineapple Dance Studio that also gave us past Celebrity Big Brother contestant Andrew Stone. Has he had any tips pass on?

Louie, who grew up on a North London council estate, started dancing at the age of five. He toured and worked with Take That, E17, 2 Unlimited, Boyzone, Eternal, Björk, and Joss Brown. He was one of only a handful of male dancers to join the Spice Girls on their debut tour Spiceworld and travelled with the group for a year.  

He counts Emma Bunton as his best friend and says his favourite anecdote from touring with the girls involves them filling the car with petrol in their PJs. What larks!

Will Louie split the House or will his infectious personality and outspoken manner make him one to side with?

Following in the footsteps of our Emma Willis, Lauren Harries has made the leap from Bit on the Side to the House, although she is now a Celebrity Big Brother housemate rather than host!

Former child star Lauren made her name in the '80s as child prodigy James Harries. As a ten-year-old boy with distinctive Dickensian looks and a precocious manner, she made various telly chat show appearances including a memorable stint on Wogan where she valued porcelain.   

Looking back on her early image, she explains, "I was like this freak in this little suit with a bowtie on. I do see that as a different person, but as an aspect of myself as well."

Lauren was born in 1978 and had a full gender reassignment in 2001 after a casual remark in a supermarket that, 'he should be a woman' helped her realise this was what she wanted.

The Buddhist's appearances on Bit on the Side are legendary and quite possibly the defining moment of her career. A campaign was even mounted to get her in the House in 2012 featuring the slogan, "I'm getting behind Lauren."

Now she is living the dream. Will she wake up a winner? We'll have to wait and see. 

Sophie Anderton has stepped off the catwalk and through the doors of the Celebrity Big Brother House.

Model turned television personality Sophie hit the big time after appearing in underwear brand Gossard's Girl in the Grass campaign, stopping traffic with her saucy billboard image.

She began earning £30,000 a week and enjoying the party lifestyle making her a regular feature in the tabloid press. Her wild ways were much publicised, although she announced she was "completely clean of addictions" thanks to the support of the Amy Winehouse Foundation.

Sophie started working with the Foundation after meeting the late singer's dad Mitch and later went into schools in London to talk to teenagers about the dangers of drugs, explaining, "I am proof you can change your life and I want others to know that, so I am helping other people who are in the same place that I was."

The beauty has also spoken out about her weight, saying, "I don’t really care nowadays. I couldn't give two hoots. When I was size 10 I was called obese now I’m size six to eight, my natural weight, people say I've lost loads of weight. I couldn't be happier. In the grand scheme of things what I'm wearing isn't important. It's not going to solve world famine."

Will Soph be a role model in the House or will the former wild child let her hair down? 

Not many people can say they've had Bet Lynch and Ken Barlow in the back of their cab, but Bruce Jones certainly can. The former actor is best known as his alter ego Les Battersby, and has spent most of his life driving a taxi around the cobbles of Coronation Street.

Les became a cult hero of sorts on the Street thanks to his weekly calamities (and those ginger locks, obviously). His ten-year soap life saw him unhappily married to wife Janice, before divorcing her and jumping into bed with fellow fiery-haired friend Cilla. He even got Status Quo to play at his on-screen wedding.

Sadly all good things come to an end, and Les Battersby mysteriously vanished from the Street in 2007 when Bruce was suspended. He's now living the dream in North Wales as a full-time mechanic, with the odd bit of panto on the side. He's behind you, housemates!

Vicky Entwistle has joined the Celebrity Big Brother House!

Best known as Coronation Street's gobby Janice Battersby, one-time better half of layabout Les, Vicky left the show after 13 years in 2010.

Hailing from Lancashire, she began her career as a Pontins Blue Coat before taking up a scholarship to study drama in London.

She was spotted by Granada while playing Madonna freak Maxine Graham in Like A Virgin and offered the role of Janice, making her debut in January  1997. As the matriarch of the Battersby clan, her telly family was made up of Bruce Jones (Les), Jane Danson (Leanne) and Georgia Taylor (Toyah). 

Speaking at the time of her departure, Vicky said, "Corrie means so much to me and I could easily have continued to play Janice for the rest of my acting career. But I've been thinking of leaving for some time, and couldn't deny those feelings. I've a hankering to do other drama projects and so if I don't make this move now I never will."

Keen to shake the Janice image, Vicky shed over three stone and later released a workout DVD Vicky's WOW! Weight Off Workout, in 2006. Wowzers, just reciting that title makes the pounds drop off!

She has appeared on stage post Corrie and since January this year has been playing Madame Thénardier in Les Miserables in the West End.

With on-screen sparring partner Bruce joining Vicky in the House, will we be seeing some Battersby style battles? We'll have to wait and see....

Howdy! It's our resident American sweetheart, Courtney Stodden... The blonde bombshell was born in Tacoma, Washington. At the age of 15 she was crowned ‘Miss Ocean Shore Teen USA’. One of her YouTube videos has over six million views. She’s still a teenager. And she's married to a 53 year-old Hollywood actor.

Need any more? Oh, alright then... Courtney is a model by day and an American TV personality by night. She's also a country music popstar, which is how she racked up all those YouTube hits. The main reason Courtney rose to fame, however, is due to her other half, Don Hutchison. You may remember him from such films as Con Air and Green Mile. He’s kind of a big deal, but Courtney's certainly gained a heck of a lot of her fame through her own hard work.

After meeting on the internet, the pair married in a fairytale Las Vegas wedding in May 2011, when Courtney was just 16. She's still a young nipper, but she's lived more of a life than most. Also, she's 19-years-old mere hours after the CBB launch, so she'll literally emerge from the House more grown-up.

Everybody get up, it’s boy band legend Abz!

While today’s teenagers are obsessed with the fresh faces of One Direction, back in the 90s the UK’s young'uns were fixated by 5ive. Abz Love – named after his carefully chiselled body – was the leading man of the boy band put together in 1997 by a certain Simon Cowell.

At the height of their fame, 5ive achieved 11 top ten singles and four top ten albums, selling almost 20 million records worldwide along the way. Their signature track Keep On Movin’ can still be heard at school discos and on wedding dancefloors to this day.

After 5ive split up in 2001, Abz enjoyed a brief but successful solo career, most likely down to the excellent pun in the title of his debut album, Abstract Theory. But it wasn’t all plain sailing, as Abz will surely reveal himself – it's not easy being a former star.

Thankfully for Abz, he was saved by his girlfriend, Vicky, who he says gave him a "reason to live". And now he's been reincarnated, we're hoping he revives some of those old 5ive classics in the House too.

Marr-vellous, it's Danielle...

Irish viewers will recognise this Irish gal as the leading lady from the reality show Dublin Wives. And the term 'leading lady' is by her admission - she's even gone as far as to brand her four fellow 'wives' on the show as a "talentless supporting cast". Harsh!

Danielle is a woman of many talents; she’s also a Botox doctor and clinical director, with a dentistry degree and aesthetic medicine certificate to boot. Clever Dan.

Expect strong opinions and show-stopping one liners from our bombshell, and most definitely the odd bit of flirting too. Only time will tell if the luck of the Irish will work in her favour...

No sooner had they taken the walk of fame down the House's new red-carpeted stairs than Louie, Lauren and Sophie were summoned to the Diary Room. A game was afoot! A secret task given to them by Big Brother revealed that this trio formed the Big Brother House's Cult of Celebrity.

They will spend the next day living in secret in the Cult Temple Room, rulers of all they survey. Their first task was to watch as the housemates decided amongst themselves which of their new housemates was the most famous, and send them to sleep in a grand four poster bed in the garden all night.

They chose Bruce and Vicky to enjoy the amazing title of 'Most Famous', due to their notoriety from Coronation Street. This may partly be down to Bruce acting as the housemates' spokesman, which will surely lead to some ructions among their, well, less famous counterparts.

Later, the Cult of Celebrity will have to make a big decision, one which will shake the House to its very foundations. We can't wait!