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Nadia Almada (born January 28, 1977) is a Portuguese woman, best-known for being the first transsexual winner of the reality show Big Brother UK, in 2004.
She was born on the Portuguese Island of Madeira, under the name of Jorge, but she was known as Carlos. She moved to England in 1996 and worked in a department store in Woking, where she lives. She has also managed a children's bookstore. Before entering the Big Brother house she worked as a cashier in a well-known bank.
She became the first transsexual woman in the Big Brother house, competing in the 2004 series in the UK. After 71 days in the house she emerged as the winner, securing 74% of the overall vote and winning £63,500.
Winning the programme was of great importance to Nadia, not because of the prize money, but for the chance to be accepted by society as a woman. In the house she kept her past a secret from her housemates, although the production team and the audience knew, as did a housemate who entered the house some weeks into the competition. Some housemates suspected it, such as Marco Sabba and Jason Cowan, but said nothing to Nadia. Nadia heard people outside the house discussing it, which upset her, but no other housemates had heard.
Nadia's popularity with the audience no doubt came from her dress sense, her gentle but also volatile nature and her comedy - such as extreme use of brooms, and showering in her 6-inch high heeled sandals. She also consistently voted for the 'Jungle Cats'.
She felt that that she would be voted off at the earliest opportunity due to her past, but this too endeared her to the public.
Her father, Luis, didn't know his child was transsexual until The Sun newspaper tracked him down and revealed the story. Her mother hadn't seen her for a year, since before transitioning, but was there to welcome her back into reality. Her mother then told Nadia how proud she was of her.
Since Big Brother, Nadia has released a music single called, A Little Bit Of Action and has also made a guest appearance in the soap opera Hollyoaks.
External links
- Big Brother profile (http://bigbrother.channel4.com/bigbrother/housemates/housemate_more_profile.jsp?id=39)
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