Celebrity Big Brother is usually jam-packed with showmances, controversies and blazing rows, with the lairiest housemate usually emerging as victor.

But this series, the winner was somebody who managed to educate and change the minds of housemates and viewers alike.

Courtney Act, aka Shane Jenek, won the series with 49% of the vote, beating stars including Ann Widdecombe, Shane Lynch and Jess Impiazzi to the crown.

And much of Shane’s popularity came from his ability to explain gender and sexuality to the housemates, and thus the country, without getting into an argument – well, in addition to his glamour and tight tuck.




Speaking to Metro.co.uk, Shane said: ‘It’s just something that I talk about all the time anyway. I’ve made all these videos about gender and sexuality online – I just made a video for MTV last year breaking it all down. I made videos about feminism, I made videos about vaginas.

‘When I was going into the house, I was glad that I had done all these videos and had done all of this research and was able to recall facts and statistics. I traditionally wasn’t one of those people and I’ve always admired those people and always wondered how you came to be one of those people, and all of a sudden – I’m one of those people I wanted to be! I realised that happens when you read stuff and research stuff. It was like going back to my own version of school and improving my understanding.’

Courtney won CBB with 49 of the vote (Picture: James Shaw/REX/Shutterstock)

Some of the most heartwarming scenes of the series saw lads’ lads like John Barnes, Andrew Brady and Shane Lynch listening to Shane explain gender fluidity and the difference between being trans and being a drag queen with patience and kidness.

The 35-year-old said: ‘I quickly saw that everybody in the house was really cool, and I think even if the cameras weren’t there they would have been just as respectful. But I do think cameras bring accountability, and in 2018, even in a capitalistic marketing sense, it’s more valuable to a brand to support the LGBT community than it is not to. It’s detrimental not to support marriage equality, even just on a financial level.

‘I was so glad they were so willing to listen and learn and understand.

‘I watched the first episode and saw India’s fight with Amanda – and everyone, and the world – and while I don’t personally understand, I can have compassion for that and see that that type of education doesn’t get you as far as how I like to have conversations. As someone who is passionate about many issues, it is a tactic to push against. So I wondered coming into the house if I would have to take that stance, but it’s not who I am. I’m so glad I didn’t try to be that and do that, and just did what it is that I do.’

Not everyone was as welcoming to different views, though. Notoriously conservative Ann Widdecombe clashed with Shane on a number of issues, and declared herself a ‘defender of the unborn and of traditional marriage’.

Ann’s views were pretty much opposite to Shane’s (Picture: Channel 5)

Speaking about Ann, Shane told us: ‘I had the fortune of being put into the house after the women and knowing who all the women were. I Googled them all, specifically Ann, I read a lot of articles about her opinions, which were easy to find, there are a lot. Going into it I knew she had voted against every piece of pro-LGBT legislation in the 23 years of parliament, I knew she was anti-abortion, I knew she was pro capital punishment. I didn’t know she didn’t believe in climate change… she’s pro-recycling, that’s one thing we agree on.



‘Interestingly enough, some of her views, on the NHS for example, seem noble. She wants everybody and particulary the least capable members of our society to have fair and free access to healthcare. I feel that way too. We discussed how she would go about doing it – to be honest, I didn’t know enough about the NHS, so while her way made sense, I was getting one person’s view on a story.’

India Willoughby also caused friction, thanks to her announcement that she was ‘dragphobic’ – a claim which was thrown into doubt after photographs emerged of her taking selfies with drag queens.

‘Initially I was like, “Wait a minute”… It kind of undermined the integrity of that story,’ said Shane. ‘Part of me wanted to throw her under the bus in a way. It’s one thing to genuinely feel that way, but it’s another to use that as currency to manipulate the situation.

India claimed she had a phobia of drag queens Picture: Channel 5)

‘But then I thought after a few hours, “You know what I should do? Message India.” So I did, and she told me she was at Prides and she took photos with different people in a line – you’re not going to say “I can’t take a photo with you because I have a phobia of drag queens”, it’s much easier to do it. Having said that, if you were afraid of snakes or spiders, and someone said take a photo with this spider, you wouldn’t.

‘At the end of day, all I can do is believe what she says or not listen. It’s much easier to discredit her, but it doesn’t help her, it just creates a bigger divide. I suppose in some ways it’s representative of how I chose to deal with things in the house.’


Of course, it wasn’t just serious topics that brought Shane attention in the house. Before the RuPaul’s Drag Race star even entered the Borehamwood bungalow, Courtney Act was awarded live TV infamy when her skirt fell to the ground, showcasing her tuck to the world.

We will never stop laughing at this moment (Picture: Ian West/PA Wire)

Laughing, Shane said of the wardrobe malfunction: ‘Obviously as I showed later on, I have no qualms about wandering around tucked, but I didn’t expect it to happen then. I had the skirt made the night before, because I had the outfit made but the original outfit was shorts. I loved it so much, but all I got to do was sit in a chair and do VTs – I wanted to wear it all night long and have fun in it. I thought maybe if I got a full-length skirt made, it would be dignified and classy.

‘It had pop studs on it, not a hook and eye – I think because of where it was placed, when I breathed out… Not wearing undies was probably a mistake.’

Now that Shane is out of the house, he has been bombarded with TV opportunities, interviews and attention aplenty – so what’s next for the Aussie drag queen turned CBB winner?

‘I know I’ve got a tour coming up, which is what I’ve always wanted to do. I did a tour last summer, which was amazing, but now instead of doing 100 seat venues I’m doing 1,000 seat venues. It’s unreal. And as well as the live stuff, I’m just looking at other opportunities, television… not so much another existing reality show, but more about creating stuff.


‘Amazing doors have been opened. Everybody that I’ve met has been so nice. People care about what I have to say now, and they want to hear it, and that’s one of the greatest gifts you can be given.’

Courtney Act is taking her Under The Covers show on tour across the UK and Ireland this June – tickets are available via her website.

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