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Bankrupt Bez can turn it around
Neal Snowdon

BEZ: Financial headaches
BEZ may have won £50,000 on Celebrity Big Brother but he is unlikely to get his hands on much of it.

The former Happy Mondays dancer and part-time DJ came out of the BB house on Sunday telling the media how desperately he needed the money.

He won 54 per cent of viewers' votes ahead of Blazin' Squad rapper Kenzie, but what he may not know is he will be lucky to receive any cash because he is a bankrupt.

His new fortune will be handed to those he owes.

Tax bill

He will get only what is left after all his debts have been settled.

The 40-year-old father of two, real name Mark Berry, was made bankrupt last year.

The Inland Revenue went to Tameside County Court over an outstanding tax bill. He also faced problems when it came to living on the income he earned as a DJ.

He earned £40,000 as winner of the reality TV programme and another £10,000 for completing a task he was set while in the house.

The cash will be used to pay what he owes so he can come out of bankruptcy. His name will then be removed from the Department of Trade and Industry's register of people declared bankrupt. When he came out of the Big Brother house Bez said: "The money's bailed me right out of trouble. I was in it like you wouldn't believe.''

Although Bez may be disappointed he cannot get all the cash, he will be glad to know that coming out of bankruptcy will mean he can start earning money like anyone else.

Any income he did earn came under the control of his trustee Joanne Wright, at Manchester-based financial recovery specialists Begbies Traynor.

She would allocate him some of his income to live off while the rest had to be set aside to pay creditors. Ms Wright said: "I think it's admirable he has been able to use this as a way of helping to pay his creditors.

"Although he will not receive all the prize money, this will have a positive effect on him. After all, he could have sat around and done nothing about the debts that he had. At least now he can come out of bankruptcy.''

Proceeds from the money raised by the Big Brother phone voting, which totalled £262,000, will go to the tsunami appeal and the celebrities' chosen charities