Pete Bennett
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Peter Alexander Bennett (born March 22, 1982 in Camberwell, London to Mark Bennett and Anne Stephenson), better known as Pete, was the winner of Big Brother 7[1]. He is a rock n roll singer, formerly with Daddy Fantastic. He lives in Brighton and has Tourette syndrome. His characteristic phonic tic is a loud shout of "wankers", and he is also renowned for his catchphrase of "Ezamanah!"
Pete was bullied at school from an early age, and was diagnosed with Tourettes at the age of 14[2]. He was deemed an outcast by fellow children at this time. Pete's father walked out on his mother when he was very young, and he did not see his father from the age of 14 onwards, although he has always kept in touch. However, in a letter he received on Big Brother, he found out that his father wished to see him again, though this has apparently not yet happened.[3] Pete also has a younger half brother, Alex.
Pete's Tourettes have been publicised as being aggravated by an addiction to ketamine[4], a dissociative anaesthetic drug generally used in veterinary practice or for pain relief in burns treatment of children. This drug use contributed to his "own personal hell" and led him to "go completely bananas" a year before he entered Big Brother.
There is ambiguity over Pete's surname. Some claim that it is Bennett and some that it is Stephenson. He uses his father's name Bennett, but his violinist mother is Anne Stephenson (they were not married). During a conversation with fellow Big Brother housemate Aisleyne Horgan-Wallace, he said that he, like her, had a double-barrelled name, which explains the discrepancies. Pete's prized possession is a teddy-bear given to him by Robert Smith, lead singer of band The Cure with whom his mother has played[citation needed].
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[edit] Pete on Big Brother
Pete entered the Big Brother house after supposedly experiencing a premonition[5]. According to Pete, a friend of his who died appeared before him in a vision, and told him that in order to leave hell and discover himself again, he needed to enter Big Brother and win. This was first shown on Day 89 in a conversation with Richard and then again on Day 90 in a conversation with Aisleyne but in both conversations they said that he had told them this before.
Pete was the second entrant into the Big Brother house, and made an immediate impression as he tumbled down the stairs. Pete had many admirers in the Big Brother House (Lea, Nikki, Aisleyne, Lisa and Jennie), and it was noted that he had strong feelings toward Nikki. However, psychologists on Big Brother's Big Brain concluded that he fancied Aisleyne the most. Between Nikki's eviction and her return to the main house on Day 86, Pete attended the Diary Room several times to express his feelings of loss and anger, at times crying in the bathroom, but was aided quickly by his friends. Nikki claimed that she was 'in love with Pete' during her first eviction interview[6] with host Davina McCall.
Pete was the centre of many of what some people consider the series' funniest moments, such as falling into the pool while under the influence of alcohol, which many believe was Pete playing up to the cameras.[7].
Pete was the bookmakers' favourite throughout the duration of the series, and had the shortest odds of any Big Brother housemate at the halfway stage of any series, at 1/8, according to John McCririck on Big Brother's Little Brother. On August 18, 2006, Pete won Big Brother 7 with 61.2% of the final vote[8].
[edit] After Big Brother
Since winning, he announced that he would give the £100,000 prize to his mother, so that she could pay off her mortgage.[9] Also since winning, he sat on the triumph chair as the winner of the series on Big Brother's Big Mouth, along with the other ex-housemates, whilst being lauded by John McCririck, Paul Morley and Toby Anstis. John McCririck called Pete 'a hero' for "costing the bookmakers hundreds of thousands of pounds".
Pete has since received many chatshow offers as well as offers for personal appearances. The Daily Mirror has recently revealed that Pete has left his band Daddy Fantastic after agreeing with a record label that he should go solo. He has now split from Daddy Fantastic.[10] Pete is currently writing music with songwriter and record producer Guy Chambers.[11] Pete has also signed a deal to publish his autobiography entitled Pete: My Story.[12]
After leaving the house Pete started a highly publicised relationship with fellow contestant Nikki Grahame but ended the relationship after a matter of weeks. He is now engaged to his girlfriend, Gemma "Cherry" Costin.
[edit] References
- ^ Pete Wins Big Brother 2006 Channel4 Website URL last accessed on October 1 2006.
- ^ Profile: Big Brother winner Pete Bennett BBC News URL last accessed on August 24 2006.
- ^ Big Letdown The Mirror URL last accessed on August 24 2006.
- ^ Pete fried mind with drug The Sun URL last accessed on August 24 2006.
- ^ Pete Meets Davina Channel 4 URL last accessed on August 24 2006.
- ^ Nikki given boot in Big Brother BBC News Published on July 14 2006, URL last accessed on August 24 2006.
- ^ Drunk Pete wreaks havoc in house Digital Spy URL last accessed on August 24 2006.
- ^ Big Brother - does anyone really still watch it? Yes, one in four of us actually Guardian Unlimited URL last accessed on August 24 2006.
- ^ Millions tune in for 'Big Brother' finale in Britain Bretibart.com URL last accessed on August 24 2006.
- ^ EXCLUSIVE: PETE TO BAND: S*D OFF SundayMirror.co.uk URL last accessed on September 11 2006.
- ^ "Bennett makes most of his 15 minutes" Scotsman URL last accessed on 2006-11-21.
- ^ "Pete's BB Book" Dailyrecord.co.uk URL last accessed on 2006-09-21.
[edit] External links
| Preceded by Anthony Hutton |
Big Brother UK winner Series 7 (2006) |
Succeeded by Incumbent |
