Who is Derek Acorah? Celebrity Big Brother 2017 contestant profile

Twitter: @derek_acorah

Best known as: a spiritual medium who you might have seen on TV attempting to chat to the dead. As you do.

Bio: Born in Bootle in 1950, Acorah (real name: Derek Francis Johnson) rose to fame during the 1990s by making psychic predictions on show Psychic Livetime. However, his big break came in 2002, when he appearance on Living TV’s Most Haunted being possessed by a variety of spirits, all coincidentally having a habit of staring at the floor and huffing.

But it was in 2009 when he reached peak Acorah, holding a live séance for the late Michael Jackson. Sadly Acorah didn’t channel Jackson’s voice or whistle a bit of new material, but he did offer a hello to Quincy Jones. Swings and roundabouts, eh?

The psychic also popped up in Doctor Who episode Army of Ghosts, complaining that nobody needed him thanks to the apparent appearance of undead spirits throughout the globe. Luckily for Acorah, these silver figures turned out to be a legion of Cyberman intent on destroying the earth.

In recent years, Derek has been touring across the country with his psychic show, promising to connect people with their loved ones in the spirit world. However, he’s had to take a break from his Whispers from Heaven tour to take part in CBB.