BIG BROTHER - JOHN LOUGHTON NAMED WINNER OF BIG BROTHER: CELEBRITY HIJACK

Young politician John Loughton has won Big Brother: Celebrity Hijack and a £50,000 prize.

The chairman of the Scottish Youth Parliament beat circus performer Emilia Arata to the prize, grabbing 53.9 per cent of the vote to her 46.1 per cent.

John, 20, from Edinburgh, had been the early favourite for the show after passing the task set by celebrity hijacker Matt Lucas on launch night.

After enduring a series of embarrassing challenges - including claiming he had written the score for The Sound of Music, dancing an impromptu Irish jig and feigning an attack of cramp - John was awarded immunity from eviction and a free pass to the final.

As John and Emilia sat on the sofa, presenter Dermot O'Leary revealed the outcome of the reality show, with Emilia screaming: "You've won John!"

Talking to Dermot after his win, John admitted the way in which he had earned his free pass to the final had been "cringeworthy"

And when quizzed about being viewed as a 'mole' by some of his fellow housemates, he added: "I took it on the chin.

"The whole thing is meant to be a head screw but at the same time I thought people would see me, rather than as a part of the game," he added.

"I think I've grown much more as a person," he went on. "I realised how much I respect and need my family, actually. When I get out of here I need to strike a much better work-life balance."

When asked about his plans for the future, John added: "I think the achievement was just getting here. That's what I'll be most proud of, walking through the doors in the first place."

Conceptual artist Amy Jackson came third with 21.9 per cent of the vote and 19-year-old Anthony Ogogo, a boxer, was fourth with 21.6 per cent.

Racing driver Jeremy Metcalfe finished in fifth, with 15.6 per cent of the final vote while Mobo-nominated singer Nathan Fagan-Gale took 5.4 per cent, with the pair leaving the Big Brother house together.