Alison Hammond is has gone from strength-to-strength since finding fame in the early 2000s. The TV presenter was a housemate in the third series of reality show Big Brother back in 2002. Although she was the second housemate to be evicted, her likeable personality and determination carved a path for a career in TV alongside some of the UK’s most-loved presenters.
Since her stint in the Big Brother house, Alison has been a regular on TV screens. Alison has been a presenter on This Morning, took over from the late Paul O’Grady on For the Love of Dogs in 2023 and is currently a co-host on the Great British Bake Off.
The Big Brother star hasn’t left the world of reality television behind. Over the years, fans have been able to watch her compete on I’m a Celebrity Get Me Out of Here, Celebrity Coach Trip, Strictly Come Dancing and Celebrity Masterchef.
It would seem a life in television was something Alison always had in mind from a young age. Living and growing up in Birmingham, she participated in drama workshops run by Central Television.
It hasn’t always been plain sailing for the This Morning presenter who has been open about financial struggles in the past. In 2022, speaking on the Table Manners podcast about entering the Big Brother house, she said: “I owed like £3,000, which I was traumatised by at the time.
“I just couldn’t make that debt go down. So I thought it would be a good idea to win £70,000 on a TV show.”
While working as a holiday rep in Tunisia, she quit her job for a chance at the cash. After her early departure from the house, ITV decided to take a chance and gave her a This Morning role as a travel correspondent.
Alison has switched Birmingham for London and last year purchased a new property in the capital. She gave an insight into her huge green landscaped garden and patio on an Instagram video.
She captioned it: “Feeling very emotional knowing that without all your support and love I wouldn’t be looking at this view. This is my new garden I would draw as a child but never dreamed it would be a reality. Thank you.”
The presenter made the move from her Solihull home in 2024, a source from Smart Homes told Mail Online: “[The house] nearly sold three times but never completed because of vendors’ chains falling through.
“It has finally completed just shy of the new asking price of £700,000 and is now off the market. The celebrity owner is delighted.”
While juggling a busy schedule with her career, Alison has managed to make major changes to her personal life. This year, the Bake Off star shared an insight into her weight-loss journey.
The 50-year-old This Morning presenter, who weighed 28-stone at her heaviest, has so far lost an impressive 11-stone. She decided to adapt her own lifestyle as she wanted to take action for health reasons. Instead of restricting her food completely.
Alison focusses on eating “everything in moderation” and still enjoys eating her favourite meals, like a full English breakfast. Speaking to The Sunday Times about her diet, she explained she regularly starts her day with a ginger shot before cooking a plate of sausages, eggs and bacon for her and her son Aiden.
Alison knew she had to make a change to her diet after her mum, Maria, was concerned about her health. The Great British Bake Off presenter told Good Housekeeping UK: “My mum had type 2 diabetes and she was worried for me, so when I then found out that I was pre-diabetic, that was frightening.”
She also opened up about her decision not to go down the route of using weight-loss jabs. She said: “I think that, for people who need to use them, they’re a good thing – but for me, as soon as I hear any scare story, I get frightened. So I haven’t wanted to use them, but that’s not to say I wouldn’t in the future, and I certainly wouldn’t look down on anyone who did.”
Alison has previously revealed she is happy with the success of her weight-loss journey. Speaking to Heat Magazine, she said: “I feel amazing. I feel happy within myself.”
In her family life, the 50-year-old is mum to 20-year-old Aiden Hammond. She shares her teenage son with ex-husband Noureddine Boufaied. Offering a personal insight into her relationship with her son, Alison said the way her son loves her is “magical” and he helps her so much. She added that her son “has his finger on the pulse” so can tell her what is and isn’t cool.
The mum-of-one broke down in tears last November as she spoke about “sacrificing a lot of time” with her son to “work so hard”. She was presented with the Role Model award at the Multicultural Business and Community Champion Awards in Birmingham on November 30, and she apologised to her son, Aidan, for not “always being there”.
In her acceptance speech, Alison said: “I’m actually going to take this quite seriously, because I’ve worked so hard guys, I’m not even just saying that. I’ve worked so hard.
“When you work so hard there are sacrifices you have to make and I’ve sacrificed a lot of time with my son, over there and I just want to say to my son, I love you so much, son. And I’m so sorry I haven’t always been there, but I’ll be honest with you, the reason I was doing it was only for you.”
Alison is open about her relationship with her boyfriend who is 22 years younger than her. She has been in a relationship with Russian masseur, David Putman since 2023 but the two have kept their romance under wraps and out of the spotlight.
Alison spoke about the age gap with Good Housekeeping magazine, she said: “Yes, I’m 22 years older than he is, but if you saw us together, you’d understand. People have said to me: ‘We get it now.”
She addressed that the couple regularly hear the word ‘toyboy’ used to describe their relationship, but admits they feel it “bears no relation” to what they have together. Alison spoke fondly of David comparing the two to a jigsaw as they “fit and it all comes together.”
Speaking about the latest series of Bake Off which got underway this month, Alison, who co-hosts alongside Noel Fielding said: “It’s a lovely season. You’re going to love it.
“It’s not necessarily better than all the rest. It’s a standalone series, which is wonderful, and each series is completely different. I just think this is a quality series. It’s going to be so good.”