Cumbrian journalist India Willoughby is happy to have "started a debate" about gender issues during her time in the Celebrity Big Brother house.

Today she is expected to reveal more about her time on the show when she appears on Channel 5's The Wright Stuff, from 9.15am.

After becoming the first to be evicted, India, 52, was asked whether she had achieved what she had set out to do by entering the house.

India, a self-confessed superfan of Big Brother, said: "I think I have. At the very least I've started a debate."

Commentators had previously expressed during the reality show that India was only new on her journey as a transgender woman, having only fully transitioned in 2015.

India answered her critics on Celebrity Big Brother's Bit on the Side late-night aftershow on Channel 5.

She said: "Definitely guys, I'm a 15-year-old girl in here. I'm going through my adolescence in here. It is a new thing in some respects to me."

It is a point that has been echoed by Debbie Wood, who is a director of Outreach Cumbria - which supports the county's LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender) community - and Be North, an organisation which helps transgender and non-binary people.

Debbie, a trainee clinical psychologist, has not watched the show but has read reports of India's time in the house.

She said: "It is quite a common phenomenon for trans people who come out of the closet as it were when they start to express themselves and they have a developing stage of self-belief and it is a few years down the line that they have worked things out."

Debbie also believes that India's appearance on the Channel 5 show has "not moved forward" the debate as she'd hoped.

India - a former ITV Border journalist - had earlier said she felt that she "did not do herself justice" on the show.
India Willoughby is evicted from the Celebrity Big Brother house

India was also reunited with her mother Sandra - who echoed her view - after Friday night's eviction.

During her first post-eviction interview, India said: "I didn't feel I did myself justice to be honest and that is my one regret."

She added: "Did I give my best show? No."
She also admitted "loving" her 10 days in the house, living with 15 other people and watched by dozens of cameras.

India confessed that she "got it wrong" with her "early outbursts" and approach to transgender issues raised in the house.

Talking to presenter Emma Willis, India said: "I should've just waited for the questions to come and answer them one by one rather than burying people under a load of statements and viewed. Even I got bored of it."

She also said that people's "confused" opinions about transgender issues continue to "irritate" her.

Bookmakers had India as odds on favourite to be evicted.

This series of Celebrity Big Brother is celebrating "Year of the Woman", marking the 100th anniversary of women having the vote.

Eight women were the first to enter the house, before eight men joined several days later.

They are cut off from outside influences and live together, with round-ups of their daily antics broadcast in a one-hour show every night during the run.

India, who tips drag star Shane J/Courtney to win Celebrity Big Brother 2018, is Britain's first transgender newsreader.

Born Jonathan, she fully transitioned two years ago following gender reassignment surgery.

Since going public India has continued her work with ITV's local news programmes in the region and appeared on a series of high profile shows.

As she was greeted with applause after exiting, she looked surprised and said: "I expected a hail of bullets, thanks heavens that wasn't the case."