Kate Lawler and GK Barry to Host New Big Brother Companion Show on ITV2
ITV2 has named Kate Lawler and GK Barry as co-hosts of Big Brother: The Group Chat, a new nightly companion show that will replace Big Brother: Late & Live when Big Brother UK returns for its 23rd season in autumn 2026. Deadline
The companion show — a secondary programme that airs straight after the main broadcast to dissect the episode and react to the housemates — will run Sunday through Thursday nights on ITV2 and the streaming platform ITVX, with simultaneous release on YouTube and all major podcast platforms. Big Brother: Late & Live had held that slot since Big Brother UK was revived on ITV2 in 2023, with AJ Odudu and Will Best as hosts. Deadline
For Kate Lawler, the assignment closes a 24-year circle. She first entered the Big Brother house in 2002, winning the third series of the show when it aired on Channel 4. She has been a regular television and radio presenter in the years since, but The Group Chat marks her return to the Big Brother franchise in a hosting capacity. Deadline
GK Barry, whose real name is Grace Keeling, has built a large following through her podcast Saving Grace and a fast-growing presence across social media. Pairing a former winner with a digital-native creator signals ITV2's intention to pull in both longtime viewers and younger audiences who find the show through clips and streams rather than linear television.
The programme was commissioned by Katie Rawcliffe, Director of Entertainment, Reality & Daytime at ITV, and David Smyth, Commissioner for Entertainment & Reality. Production is handled by Initial, a label within Banijay UK, with Jo Scarratt-Jones and James Carpenter of Made You Look Studios serving as executive producers — the senior creatives who oversee the show's format and tone. Deadline
The multi-platform release — linear channel, streaming service, YouTube, and podcast feeds — reflects how audiences now move between screens during a single evening. A viewer might watch the main show on ITV2, switch to ITVX for the companion programme, or catch it the next morning as a podcast on the commute.
No premiere date beyond "autumn 2026" has been confirmed. Series 23 of Big Brother UK will be the third to air on ITV2 since the revival, following the celebrity edition that aired earlier in the year. Deadline
