Celebrity Big Brother is back and first to enter the famous doors was Chesney Hawkes. The former '90s heartthrob, who rose to fame in that decade with his hit 'The One And Only', made an instant impression by getting naked in his VT, describing himself as 'a bit of a nudist' and smashing his first secret mission where he had to introduce himself as 'the one and only Chesney Hawkes' to his new housemates.
The show only launched on 7 April and we're already sure he's going to add some much needed chaos and jeopardy to the series. If he continues to bare all, let's just hope he remembers to wipe down the diary room chair...
Who is Chesney Hawkes?
Chesney Hawkes is a British singer and actor. He found fame after starring as lead character Buddy Clark in the 1991 comedy-drama film Buddy’s Song, alongside The Who frontman Roger Daltrey. The movie featured the song The One And Only, which became a huge hit after its release, becoming the UK’s Number One single for five weeks and reaching the Top 10 in the US.
Dubbed a ‘one-hit wonder’ by record bosses, Hawkes’ follow-up songs weren’t as successful: I’m A Man Not A Boy peaked at Number 27 in the UK, while What’s Wrong With This Picture?, Stay Away Baby Jane and Another Fine Mess featuring in the Top 100.
Hawkes has tried to emulate his ‘90s success with stints on The Games, Let’s Dance For Comic Relief, Sing If You Can and Celebrity MasterChef. He also appeared in the musical Can’t Smile Without You, featuring songs from Barry Manilow. He was due to take part on the 2012 series of Dancing On Ice but had to pull out after fracturing his ankle and was replaced by former X Factor singer Chico Slimani.
Chesney recently released a single called 'Get A Hold Of Yourself', so there's no doubt his appearance on CBB is in tandem with his musical comeback.
How old is Chesney Hawkes?
Chesney was born on 22 September 1971, making him 53.
Who is Chesney Hawkes’ wife?
Chesney has been with American model and actress Kristina ‘Krissy’ since they met in a London pub in 1995. ‘It was pretty instant when I met Krissy. She was 20, I was 22. She walked into a pub in Mortlake, London, near where I lived, to celebrate 4 July,’ he recalled. ‘I asked if I could buy her a drink. She said, “I’ll have a pint of lager”. In my head I thought, “Marry me”.’
The couple married on 4 July 1997 and have been together ever since. They lived in Los Angeles for 12 years before they moved back to Surrey in 2024.
How many children does Chesney Hawkes have?
Chesney and Krissy have three children – sons Casey, 23, and Indiana ‘Indi’, 18, and daughter Jesse, 21. Casey is a film director while Indi has followed in his father and grandfather’s musical footsteps and plays lead guitar in The Tremeloes.
Who are Chesney Hawkes’ parents?
Chesney Hawkes is quite the nepo-baby before they were even a thing! His father is singer and bassist Chip Hawkes from the ‘60s band The Tremeloes, while his mum is former actress and game show hostess Carol Dilworth. His sister is songwriter Keely Hawkes, who was lead singer of 1990s band Transister, and his brother Jodie played drums in Chesney’s band.
Who wrote The One And Only song?
The One And Only was written by Nik Kershaw, who also penned other hits like I Won’t Let The Sun Go Down On Me, Wouldn’t It Be Good and The Riddle.
What does Chesney Hawkes do now?
He is currently singing in The Tremeloes alongside his youngest son Indi (who’s lead guitarist), brother Jodie and their dad. He’s also planning a music comeback with a UK tour.
Why was Chesney Hawkes naked on Celebrity Big Brother?
Within the first episode, Chesney was naked playing the guitar in his VT. ‘One thing that people don’t know about me… I am a bit of a nudist,’ he confessed. ‘I do like to get naked. Just saying.’
It might not have been what viewers were expecting to see, but they swiftly took to social media to express their delight. ‘I really was not expecting a naked Chesney Hawkes four minutes into this launch’, wrote one user on X. ‘Chesney Hawkes naked 5 minutes into the show….reality tv is back!!’, declared another.
He also stripped down for his recent 'Get A Hold of Yourself' music video where he reenacted the infamous dance scene from Saltburn where Barry Keoghan ran around the grand estate naked. So perhaps that won't be the last time we see Chesney with no clothes on...
Who else is on Celebrity Big Brother?
Chesney was the first person to enter the Big Brother house and therefore was given a secret mission. As part of a game show task, he had to introduce himself as ‘the one and only Chesney Hawkes’ to his fellow housemates, a mission that made him feel incredibly awkward.
However, he succeeded along with the other housemates, Jack P. Shepherd, Chris Hughes, Danny Beard, and Patsy Palmer, when several other tasks were introduced. Chesney earned 400 points for saying the title of his best-known song four times, Michael earned 1,000 points for giving out 10 high-fives, and the whole group won 1,000 points for a 10-second conga line.
The singer is joined by Hollywood actor Mickey Rourke, TV personality Angellica Bell, TV presenter Trisha Goddard, actress Donna Preston, Nickelodeon star Jojo Siwa, former Love Islander Chris Hughes, former Eastenders actor Patsy Palmer, Coronation Street actor Jack P. Shepherd, former Olympian Daley Thompson, TOWIE star Ella Wise, former Conservative politician Michael Fabricant and RuPaul's Drag Race UK winner Danny Beard.
Celebrity Big Brother is on ITV2 on Monday to Friday at 9pm.