Trisha Goddard‘s daughter Billie Dee has shared her theory that Twitter trolls encouraged Celebrity Big Brother crowds to boo her terminally-ill mum when she was evicted from the iconic house. TV presenting legend Trisha, 67, received a frosty reaction from the crowd after emotionally sharing how her terminal cancer had impacted her experience earlier in the show.
The TV star was up against EastEnders star Patsy Palmer and Coronation Street actor Jack P Shepherd but unfortunately, she was the housemate who received the fewest amounts of votes from viewers.
While she was in the house, Trisha, who lives with stage four breast cancer – meaning it’s treatable but not curable – said that being there was a huge distraction from her cancer diagnosis and treatments.
And while she was still in the Celebrity Big Brother house, Trisha was being treated by a palliative care team, after having a major treatment just before joining the show.
Trisha first fought the disease in 2008, but was sadly diagnosed in 2023 for a second time. Despite opening up about her feelings of mortality knowing that she is living with an incurable disease, Trisha was subject to a cruel reaction from the crowds who attended the eviction.
Trisha had joined the show with a mission to inspire her audience not to fear life, despite battling terminal stage four cancer. After a nine-day stint, she exited the show but Trisha was met with a chorus of cruel boos from some of those in the crowd outside. Viewers watching at home were sickened by the cruel backlash.
It wasn’t just viewers who were taken aback by the reaction, as Trisha’s daughter Billie was also left saddened. Speaking to The Mirror about the unfortunate series of events, Billie shared her theory that cruel Twitter trolls had encouraged eviction crowds to boo her ill mum.
“I mean, it’s pure pantomime isn’t it. I had seen some hateful accounts on X encouraging people in the crowd to boo mum, so I was personally prepared for that,” she told. “I do think that reaction is a very poor reflection of certain parts of our society though.
“To boo at a woman living with incurable cancer because you didn’t like how she appeared on a heavily edited reality TV show – whilst she is receiving treatment – is pretty sad. You can disagree with someone or dislike someone without being hateful or hurtful. I actually feel really sorry for those people – it can’t be nice carrying all of that hate and bitterness around.”
Despite the negative reaction, Billie also saw a lot of love and light when her mum left the house. She told us: “I think it’s important to note that there was some pretty epic chanting and cheering for mum too. I’m immensely proud of mum. She did incredibly well in challenging circumstances – and she really enjoyed it – which makes me so happy.”
Trisha is now back to reality and will be undergoing more treatment straight after leaving the house. Before entering the iconic house last week, she told hosts AJ Odudu and Will Best: “So my oncologist is my biggest cheerleader and is working with the Big Brother team. I’ve got a special therapist who’s happy to work with the medic on the show.
“My palliative care team – and when I say that word everybody screams and runs away, but it’s symptom treatment – is working with the team here too. And then when it comes to my treatment, I had one infusion on Monday, so I’ve got to jump on a plane and go straight back to have the next one as soon as the show is over.
“I’ve got a bag full of meds that I normally have which will be with me in the house. So my oncologist has planned my treatment around the production schedule.”
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