Who is Patsy Palmer? Celebrity Big Brother 2025 housemate and actress
Patsy is one of two soap stars in this year's line-up.
It's been over a week since a new group of famous faces headed into the Celebrity Big Brother house, and following Michael Fabricant and Mickey Rourke's exit, the numbers are depleting.
And that shall continue, with another live eviction taking place tonight (15th April)!
Up for eviction are Jack P Shepherd, Trisha Goddard and Patsy Palmer, after the latter received six nominations from her fellow housemates.
With her time in the Big Brother house now numbered, what is there to know about Patsy and what has she said about taking part in Celebrity Big Brother 2025? Read on for more!
Who is Patsy Palmer?
Age: 52
Job: Actress and DJ
Patsy Palmer is an actress and DJ, best known for her portrayal of Bianca Jackson on EastEnders.
Palmer first appeared on the BBC soap in 1993 before leaving six years later. She then returned in 2008 before leaving again in 2014. Since then, Palmer has had guest appearances on the soap and is currently on air following the dramatic events of the 40th anniversary.
She is no stranger to taking part in competition shows either, having appeared on Strictly Come Dancing, The Masked Singer and Dancing on Ice.
What is Patsy Palmer's real name?
Celebrity Big Brother viewers were left stunned after learning that Patsy Palmer is not the former EastEnders star’s real name during last night’s episode (Tuesday 8th April).
Patsy's fellow contestant Donna Preston was star-struck to be talking to the soap legend, telling her: "It’s crazy that I’m talking to you, Bianca. Patsy Palmer, obviously. Great name. Really great name."
But she was even more stunned when Patsy replied: "My name’s not really Patsy Palmer, though. It’s Julie."
That's right, folks: Patsy's real name is Julie Anne Harris; her married name is Julie Merkell.
During an appearance on This Morning in 2019, Patsy opened up about her real name, saying: "They [the fans] don’t know me [in America], and I have another name.
"My name is Julie, really, so I thought, 'I’m going to get back to calling myself my real name.'"
She added: "But I actually get so confused myself that sometimes I’ll say Patsy, and sometimes I’ll say Julie.
"So now, in Malibu, they call me Patsy Julie.
"Julie Anne Harris was my name; my married name is Julie Merkell."
Why is Patsy Palmer taking part on Celebrity Big Brother?
As Patsy Palmer steps into the Big Brother house, the soap star is “really looking forward to walking through the iconic doors and meeting a group of brand-new people”.
She continued: “It’s a fascinating experience and that’s one aspect that excites me. I’m also looking forward to having a break from technology. We all spend so much time on our phones etc so having no access to that will be incredibly refreshing.”
How to follow Patsy Palmer on social media
Fans can keep up to date with Palmer via her Instagram channels. She can be followed @patsypalmerofficial, along with her DJ account @godmuthas.
Celebrity Big Brother airs Sunday to Friday on ITV and ITVX at 9pm.
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Authors
Katelyn Mensah is the Senior Entertainment Writer for Radio Times, covering all major entertainment programmes, reality TV shows and the latest hard-hitting documentaries. She previously worked at The Tab, with a focus on reality TV and showbiz news and has obtained a BA (Hons) in Journalism.
