Celebrity Big Brother legend Kim Woodburn has tragically died aged 83. Just a few months before, Samantha Masters interviewed her and was surprised by one off-camera moment

Kim Woodburn has tragically died aged 83, following a short illness. The Celebrity Big Brother legend garnered a reputation during her career as a no nonsense commentator, not afraid to attack anyone she felt wronged by.

So when I had the opportunity to interview her at the end of last year, I immediately told my colleague I was nervous. With some tricky questions in place that included bullying claims, I prepared myself to be in Kim’s firing line. It turns out nothing was off limits and, as expected, she had a lot to say about multiple famous faces who, she claimed, had rubbed her up the wrong way over the years.

In particular, the 84-year-old admitted she still wasn’t a fan of Coleen Nolan, following a fall out between them on Celebrity Big Brother in 2017. At the time, Kim accused Coleen and some of their fellow housemates of bullying, though her co-stars denied this was the case.

She and Coleen went on to have a heated exchange on Loose Women after the series ended, which resulted in Kim shouting and storming off of the set live on-air.

Kim surprised me with one comment ( 
Image:
Getty Images)
Another enemy of Kim’s was Phillip Schofield, who she famously argued with on This Morning while discussing her experience on the reality show. Reflecting on this moment with me, she went on to spill that she also wasn’t a fan of his former co-star Holly Willoughby.

As part of her rant, she shared: “When I was interviewed by him he was rude, he was opinionated, he was on the edge of the sofa looking at me. [He said] Well, why did you go in?’ I mean, that’s not what a presenter does.”

She went on to say about Holly: “What did she ever do on the show? She was 14 years of Phillip Schofield, money for old rope, she didn’t do anything. She sat there when he was arguing with people, or questioning people on something serious and when it turned out, what did Holly do?

“Or when he was rude to someone, did she once ever say in 14 years, ‘Phillip, I think you’re wrong you know, no, come on’. Not once!”.

I was later invited back for another chat with her. This time around, she ranted even more, taking issue with the likes of Rebekah Vardy and Coleen Rooney.

But it was what she said after the interview ended that has stuck by me. Not realising I was still on the call, the reality star told the PR that my colleague and I were “really nice”, something I never thought I’d hear from Kim.

Kim and I speaking over Zoom ( 
Image:
SAMANTHA MASTERS)
It shows that despite her tough-talking demeanour, the much-loved TV star had a softer side behind the glare of the cameras. Following the news of her death, many have paid tribute to the former How Clean Is Your House? star on social media.

A statement from her manager reads: “It is with immense sadness that we let you know our beloved Kim Woodburn passed away yesterday following a short illness. Kim was an incredibly kind, caring, charismatic and strong person.

“Her husband, Peter, is heartbroken at the loss of his soulmate. We are so proud of the amazing things Kim achieved in her life and career. We kindly ask that Kim’s husband and close friends are given the time and privacy they need to grieve. We will not be releasing any further details.”