Inside Alison Hammond’s incredible life - drug-smuggling dad, gastric band horror and mum’s sad death
Alison Hammond first emerged on our screens on Celebrity Big Brother 22 years ago, and entertained the nation during her stint on the reality show.
She only applied to be on the show to clear her debts, but little did she know it would be the making of her career. Her bubbly personality led her to presenting roles on This Morning, The Great British Bake Off and most recently The Love Of Dogs.
It's safe to say that Alison is one of the most popular personalities on TV, however, behind the wide smile lies some devastating truths. OK! takes a look at her life off-screen...
Early Life & Big Brother
Alison grew up in Birmingham and at the age of 11, she joined the Central Television Workshop as, due to financial reasons, she wasn't able to attend drama school. She went on to become an extra on several TV shows.
But Alison wasn't earning enough to pay off her debts, so she decided to apply for a reality TV show. She told Gal-Dem: "I was grafting but I wasn’t getting the work as a Black actress. Then someone says ‘why don’t you go and audition for this Big Brother? You could win yourself 70 grand’, I was like ‘really?’"
At the age of 27, she entered the house and was evicted after two weeks.
This Morning
Alison had planned to return to her day job, but she was spotted by a producer for ITV's This Morning, who offered her a job.
One of her first tasks was to interview George Clooney, during which she hit him over the head with a microphone. Producers loved it, so they sent her to interview other big names including Ryan Gosling, Hugh Jackman, Britney Spears and Harrison Ford.
But it was a "mortifying" incident that happened during an interview with Matt Damon in 2007 that led Alison to make a life-changing decision...
Gastric band horror
While chatting to Matt Damon about his movie The Bourne Ultimatum, she noticed her chair was a "a bit tight" and soon realised it was actually broken.
Alison wrote in her autobiography: "My girth had broken the chair while I was interviewing one of my idols. I was mortified. I wanted the world to swallow me."
Alison tried to laugh it off, however, she was deeply affected by the incident, and decided to have a gastric band fitted as she "didn't want to be fat any more". While the operation was a success at first, the band was "rejected" by her body and she started to become ill.
She later had it removed, telling the Express: “I'd literally be feeling sick and I thought, 'This isn't normal. I don't want to do this anymore'. So after about three years I asked the surgeon to take it out. I was over the moon when I got rid of it."
Double tragedy
Meanwhile, just as her career was taking off, Alison suffered a huge loss when her mum Maria died in January 2020 from cancer.
Alison wrote on Instagram: "Today I dedicate Valentine’s Day to my beautiful, wonderful Mother Maria who passed away from liver and lung cancer. I will always remember you and try and make you proud. I love you mum."
And Alison suffered another tragedy four months later when her father Clifford Hammond passed away in Jamaica.
In her memoir You’ve Got To Laugh, Alison revealed that Cliff used to smuggle drugs, handled wads of cash and even carried a shotgun in his truck. He would show up at her mum's UK home, and during Maria’s pregnancy with Alison, Cliff revealed he was married and had a family.
Alison said wasn't able to attend his funeral due to Covid restrictions and she wrote on Instagram: "I’m saddened that I won’t be able to make his funeral and saddened that he wasn’t part of my life as much as I would have liked... but I still have a sense of loss and emptiness. Sleep well Daddy, love leaves a memory no one can steal. RIP."
But it appears Alison, 49, has now found happiness and solace with a new love. Following divorce from the father of her son and several failed relationships along the way, she is said to be dating a 6ft 10in Russian masseur named David Putman, 26.
