Rylan Clark
Contents |
Shows
Big Brother (5* coverage)
Celebrity Big Brother (winner)
Celebrity Masterchef (participant)
Eurovision Song Contest (BBC Three/Four coverage / commentator; radio)
Eurovision: You Decide (judge)
Signed by Katie Price (participant)
Strictly Come Dancing (BBC Two coverage)
The X Factor (participant and ITV2 coverage)
Biography
Born Ross Richard Clark on 25th October 1988 in Essex, Rylan first appeared on TV in 2011 on Sky Living's modelling contest Signed by Katie Price in which he finished as runner-up. However it would be the following year before he came to wider public attention, when he auditioned for the ninth series of The X Factor. He's best remembered for his very emotional reaction when told by mentor Nicole Scherzinger that he was going through to the live shows (see Trivia below). He would ultimately finish in fifth place, however not before irritating judge Gary Barlow every week with his performances.
Following The X Factor, Rylan participated in the eleventh series of Celebrity Big Brother, which he would go on to win. Since leaving the Big Brother house he has developed a career as a television presenter, starting with small roles on ITV's This Morning and Daybreak. He joined the presenting team for Big Brother spin-off programme Big Brother's Bit on the Side, from June 2013, alongside main show host Emma Willis and AJ Odudu. Rylan became the sole presenter of Bit on the Side from summer 2015 until the show ended in 2018.
In November 2015, Rylan married Dan Neal, a contestant on Big Brother in 2013, after the two met on Bit on the Side. Following this he began being credited as Rylan Clark-Neal. They split in June 2021.
Trivia
One of Rylan's X Factor performances had to be blocked from ITV1+1 after he sang "Rylan style" instead of "Gangnam Style", which the producers weren't expecting, and therefore hadn't attempted to scour permission for. The backing dancers for that performance, Saera and Alix, would later turn up as contestants on a Twin Special of Rylan's Supermarket Sweep.
