As chatter continues about JoJo Siwa and Chris Hughes’ unexpected bond in the Celebrity Big Brother house, they’ve found an ally in Oti Mabuse.
The Dancing On Ice judge and regular Late and Live guest dished out some surprising insights on the ITV spin-off show.
Oti pointed out that their tight-knit friendship is pretty standard fare in the dance community – with JoJo having stepped into the spotlight on the show Dance Moms, before making waves in the dance scene. As viewers expressed bafflement at the duo’s intimacy, Oti stood by the closeness as industry-standard.
This commentary followed a moment where JoJo, aged 21, was spotted savouring chocolate off 32-year-old Chris’ shorts, which was soon followed by her attempting to tackle his slightly awkward ingrown hair situation.
When panel members dubbed the interactions “not normal”, Oti countered: “Can I just say I don’t mind their friendship. As a professional dancer, we are quite tactile people anyway so we don’t mind touching.
“We don’t mind touching and being really close because their friendship is actually showing other people’s insecurities and thinking why are we not in that duo and it’s just showing who they are.”
Firmly believing in the purity of their connection, she added: “I don’t think that Chris is thinking opportunity with JoJo. I just think his intelligence level is more like JoJo and it’s literally platonic.”
Earlier in the show, viewers witnessed an emotional moment as JoJo comforted Chris following his tearful breakdown in the Diary Room. The tension arose during an Easter egg hunt where clues hinted at a housemate labelling Chris as annoying, reports the Mirror.
The revelation deeply affected Chris, who spent over an hour pouring his heart out to Big Brother. He confessed: “I hate toxic stuff in life. I hate toxic energy. It just brings you down. You can feel when energy shifts and it’s just not nice.
“I don’t want to be emotional and sad but sometimes you just can’t help it.”
Upon rejoining the group, Chris tried to brush off Patsy Palmer’s curiosity about his lengthy absence by claiming he had a stomach ache, though Patsy suspected he might have been treated to a secret meal.
But it was JoJo Siwa’s keen eye that noticed Chris’s distress, leading her to envelop him in a comforting hug. Later, still reflecting on the incident, Chris confided to JoJo in the garden that he felt he “isn’t cut out” for the pressures of the Big Brother house.