Celebrity Big Brother star Chris Hughes has been accused by trolls of being too old to be close with his co-star JoJo Siwa after they struck up a bond on the ITV reality show
Celebrity Big Brother star Chris Hughes has hit back after trolls branded his 11-year age gap with JoJo Siwa “creepy”. Chris, 32, and JoJo, 21, have been at the centre of romance rumours since forming a close friendship inside the Big Brother house – which involved intimacies such as massages and forehead kisses.
The pair have continued to see each other since the show’s final on Friday, which has fuelled further speculation about the nature of their relationship. Chris found himself the target of online abuse after JoJo was spotted leaving the UK today wearing his clothes. A troll commented under a photo of them playing tennis, claiming their friendship was “inappropriate”.
Chris quickly fired back, saying: “I have friends who are 50+ too, you weirdo.” Despite all the speculation, both JoJo and Chris have insisted their bond is purely platonic.
During an appearance on This Morning Chris explained: “It’s just a really strong bond between two people, which is just a strong friendship.
“And I think you can have like a soulmate friendship. And to me it’s like that energy of where it’s not like the standard friendship that you have with your friends. But you know it’s still a friendship, and it’s just nice.”
Although JoJo also confirmed they are not dating, her response hinted at very strong feelings for the Love Island alum, as she gushed: “He is in my life forever now. I’m so incredibly grateful for him. He has helped me through my hardest times in the house, and created some of my happiest memories too. He is just such a special guy, I’m so lucky.”
Chris also pointed out that it was her resilience – a quality she shares with his ex-girlfriend Jesy Nelson – that he admires the most, adding: “The thing that fascinated me most about her is not the stuff that she’s done, because I was still finding out stuff she’d done even yesterday, it was what she’s come through, and what she’s been through when she was a teenager.
“And that’s similar to what my ex-girlfriend went through, so kind of seeing how they are both similarly as people, I mean in the respect that she’s come through a lot, and she is purely a nice person, and I’m saying the similarities are in the personality.”
The timing of JoJo and Chris becoming so close has raised eyebrows — especially after JoJo broke up with her partner Kath Ebbs during the CBB after-party.
In a now-deleted TikTok video, Kath expressed their shock over the sudden split, suggesting JoJo “fell in love” with Chris while in the house.
Kath, who had travelled from Australia to support JoJo, revealed: “I went to the live show to show up for my partner and support them… went to the after party with my, I guess now, ex, crazy thing to say, and was dumped at the party.” They also claimed that JoJo had previously proposed marriage before her stint in the Big Brother house.
Meanwhile, in the Big Brother house JoJo was open about her evolving understanding of her sexuality, telling RuPaul’s Drag Race UK star Danny Beard: “I’ve realised I’m not a lesbian, I’m queer. And I think that’s really cool.”
Like this story? For more of the latest showbiz news and gossip, follow Mirror Celebs on TikTok, Snapchat, Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and Threads.