Danny Bird has expressed his disappointment that his “blossoming friendship” with Mickey Rourke was cut short.
The 2022 RuPaul’s Drag Race winner, 32, was holed up with the Hollywood hellraiser, 72, in the Celebrity Big Brother house, and had a front row seat for the older man’s string of faux pas and bust-ups. A few days after the series began, Rourke was removed from the CBB compound after making homophobic remarks at JoJo Siwa, 21, upsetting Towie’s Ella-Rae Wise, 24, and squaring up to Love Island star Chris Hughes, 32.
Speaking to the Mail Online about his experience on the ITV reality show, in which he came second, Beard explained that he wasn’t afraid of Rourke, and in fact thought he could have helped him become a more tolerant person.
He said: “Listen, I didn’t agree with everything the man said or did, but there’s a part of me that really saw into Mickey’s soul. And I think he just needed a bit of looking after.”
He then recalled how he spoke to Rourke after he made unacceptable comments to Siwa, explaining how he felt that there was an air of respect between them as he had approached him directly and not “pussyfooted around him”.
Beard added: “I think actually that was the start of a little blossoming friendship.
“Again, I don’t agree with everything he said or did, but had I gone in all guns blazing, we’d have gotten nowhere.
“In fact, when he was removed from the house, I felt like we were actually breaking through.
“I get he’s a grown man. I get he’s a Hollywood star, but I could kind of see through that a bit. And I really felt for him. I think he just was a bit lost.”
Beard made a huge impression on viewers of the show thanks to his open and honest conversations about gender identity and sexuality. But when it came down to the crunch, he was narrowly pipped to the post as the 2025 series winner by Coronation Street veteran Jack P. Shepherd who polled 2% more votes.
Sitting down for a candid post-finale chat with AJ Odudu and Will Best, Beard didn’t hold back when asked about cohabiting with controversial housemates like ex-Tory MP Michael Fabricant and the Hollywood legend-turned-liability.
He admitted to feeling conflicted. “Look, Mickey said some truly vile things,” he acknowledged. “But I couldn’t help seeing someone really broken underneath it all. Like a kid who never got the care he needed. And that maternal instinct kicked in.”
Rourke said he tried his “hardest” to leave Celebrity Big Brother shortly after his exit from the ITV series. The Bafta-winning star of The Wrestler, 72, left the ITV1 show on April 12 after “further use of inappropriate language” and “instances of unacceptable behaviour”.
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