Jul 5 2005
icnewcastle
Last week, Bedlington beauty Jayne Middlemiss was voted the winner of Celebrity Love Island. Chief Features Writer Beth Neil found out how she was coping with all the attention.
Jayne Middlemiss has just bumped into Ant and Dec. The three Geordies share the same agent and the boys have been glued to Celebrity Love Island.
"They just looked at me and said, `Bloody Hell, Middlemiss!'. Then they burst out laughing," she says.
Their laughter probably stems from the shock of seeing their old pal laid bare on national television. Middlemiss' antics on ITV1's surprise hit show gripped five million reality TV addicts. Over the five weeks, we saw her break down in tears 27 (27!!) times, forge firm friendships, make sworn enemies and, of course, we watched her get "binned off" as she so eloquently puts it.
When Middlemiss, slightly tiddly, approached ex-footballer Lee Sharpe to tell him she fancied him, his reaction wasn't the one she was looking for. He didn't return the compliment and later confided in Abi Titmuss and Rebecca Loos he had never liked Jayne in "that way." Ouch.
It was the start of a turbulent relationship which included a disastrous boat trip when Middlemiss broke down after yet another rejection and ended in the pair spending the final night on the Fijian island agreeing to be friends forever. Job sorted, discussion over.
Only it wasn't. Middlemiss still wanted more than a platonic relationship and while she couldn't bring herself to tell Sharpe for fear of another slap in the face, she did reveal all to the beach hut cameras. Through tears she admitted the strength of her feelings for him and vented her frustration at his blissful ignorance.
When Sharpe was shown the clip after he got booted out he was genuinely shocked and more than a little embarrassed. He squirmed in his seat. "This makes things a bit tricky," was about all he could muster.
Middlemiss went on to win the show and scoop one half of the £100,000 prize. She's utterly delighted, of course, but strangely reluctant to talk too much about CLI. Her reticence stops her from either becoming embroiled in a discussion about Sharpe or even mentioning a fellow contestant by name.
"I'm still coming to terms with it, really," says the 34-year-old. "It's all a bit mad. We had absolutely no idea how the show was being received back home. But when I found out I'd won it meant so much to me."
She hasn't watched the episodes back. There hasn't been much time (Middlemiss is a woman in demand), but there's also the cringe-factor. Some of the clips weren't her finest hours and won't make comfortable viewing.
"I've seen bits and pieces on the internet," she says. "It's a bit like an itch that you can't help scratching. I had a few 12-year-old girl moments which might not be too great to watch. But I know what my experience was, I don't need to watch it to remind myself. It will stay with me for the rest of my life."
Despite falling head over heels for Sharpe, Middlemiss insists she didn't go on the show looking for love. In fact, today she appears to be back-pedalling furiously when asked about her feelings for the former Manchester United star. It could be damage limitation.
She doesn't go as far as to say she 'never fancied him anyway so there', but there's a definite attempt to play it down.
By the end of the show, Sharpe had hooked up with Titmuss (pictured below) and the pair are reportedly now sunning themselves on a romantic holiday away from the cameras.
Once Titmuss got her claws out (and everything else), Sharpe and Middlemiss were never on the cards.
"Honestly, honestly, I never thought anything would happen," she says. "But it was a massive eye-opener. I think because you're in a confined space, feelings, everything, is exaggerated, everything is heightened. The cameras are everywhere and on you 24/7. You're away from home, you're with these people and that's your whole world."
Will she be keeping in touch with any of her fellow islanders?
"Most of them, I think," she says matter-of-factly. "We'll always be connected."
And Lee?
"I'd like to see him again, yes."
And that's as much as she'll say on the subject.
"You saw the show, yeah?" she says a little sharply. "Well, then you saw how I felt. You saw exactly what was going on. I can't keep things in, I've never been like that. Express it, move on. It's done."
End of story and she's not budging. If Middlemiss doesn't want to talk about something, she doesn't have any qualms about letting you know.
When the Celebrity Love Island line-up was announced, many people were slightly surprised to see her name among the failed popstars, bit-part actors, wannabe glamour models and kiss and tell queens. She was already an established presenter having started off on music show The O-Zone 10 years ago.
She went on to front a string of hit shows including Top of the Pops, She's Gotta Have It, Holiday - You Call The Shots and The Games. So, with apparently nothing to prove, why on earth did she agree to take part?
"I'm addicted to reality TV and I've always wanted to see how I'd cope. It was also an opportunity to show the real me. In the past I've been restricted by the shows I've worked on. I'm seen as a niche presenter, something a bit edgy.
"This was my way of saying, `No I'm not! I'm actually a little girl'. I wanted people to see that. I'm a little bit mad, but I'm also very grounded. Now I can go round being a bit mental and that's what people expect of me, which is great."
Her game plan seems to have worked. Since arriving back in the UK she's been locked in talks with ITV about future jobs. She co-hosted cd:uk this weekend and the Press are hailing her as the possible saviour of ITV1's flagging Saturday night entertainment bill. Max Clifford has predicted she'll make £1million in the next 12 months.
"I've always dreamed of being on ITV in a big studio on Saturday nights," she says excitedly. "I hoped that's what would come out of the show.
"Hopefully people would see me and perhaps they might like me. It's very flattering what's being said and if I get some jobs from it, then that's a bonus. I wouldn't be so arrogant to presume anything but when I heard ITV wanted to see me, it blew my mind. Wow."
An appearance on Richard and Judy last week sent her nerves sky high. Bemused viewers watched a hyperactive and shrieking Middlemiss throw herself behind the sofa as R&J screened some highlights from CLI.
"It was Richard and Judy!" she gasps. "They're the king and queen of TV. My agent was telling me to calm down and I was downing Rescue Remedy by the gallon."
Don't rule out a fitness video either. Her daily yoga sessions and enviably slim figure make her perfect fodder for the tried and tested celebrity money-spinner, see also Davina McCall, Angela Griffin, Jade Goody.
"Yoga has been a huge part of my life for the last nine years," she says. "I draw strength from it all the time, and it kept me calm while I was on the island."
She stops herself, realising that last statement doesn't exactly ring true considering the tears and the tantrums.
"You might laugh when I say that," she adds. "But it's true. Yoga is about the mind as well as the body. Sure, it tones you up but that's just a nice by-product."
Middlemiss might not exude the natural warmth of Ant and Dec, but she's obviously doing something right. She's come a long way since her days at Whitley Memorial Primary School, Meadowdale Middle School and later Bedlington High School. But she credits her straight-talking, no-nonsense personality to her humble upbringing in Northumberland.
A big homecoming is planned this weekend at her mum and dad's. Retired factory worker Janet and former miner Tom have spoken of their pride for their daughter. Younger sister Allyson, a health visitor who lectures on breastfeeding, will also be at the gathering.
"I can't wait, I've missed them all so much. Especially towards the end when I got the Brad Pitts. I was miserable and just wanted to go home. Then I thought of all the Geordies in the North East thinking, `Howay man, Middlemiss, pull yourself together!'. And I thought of the Tyne Bridge and it got me through.
"I'm so proud of being from the North East. It's the best place in the world. And Northumberland is the most beautiful part of the country. I'm looking forward to going out on the Quayside, maybe popping into the Malmaison if I'm feeling posh."
Middlemiss' mother wasn't too impressed to see her smoking so much.
"Oh get over it," she exclaims. "Seriously, get over it. Basically, I'm an ex-smoker, but in those conditions when your emotions are all over the place, sometimes you cave in."
The general reaction from people since leaving the island, she says, has been very positive. Her confidence is through the roof at the moment, and it shows.
"Everyone has been lovely and lots of girls have come up to me and been really nice. People have told me they voted for me so it's been good to get the chance to thank them."
After donating some of the dosh to charity, she plans to treat her parents to a new car with her £50,000 fortune. Apparently the old banger they have at the minute is a deathtrap. It all sounds very modest but then Middlemiss has never been one for the celebrity lifestyle.
You'll not see her falling out of Chinawhites at 3am. She's at her happiest when sat in her local, surrounded by her non-celeb friends.
"I've never been into that side of showbiz," she says. "I love dressing up and having a bit of a night, but I don't like any sort of falseness. Obviously I'm proud of my roots and I just want to thank everyone in the North East who voted for me."
The gratitude doesn't extend, however, to taking 10 minutes out to pose for a picture with the Chronicle back on Tyneside.
"Absolutely not," she says, firmly when asked. So firmly, in fact, she leaves no room for a comeback.
Middlemiss might have shown her vulnerability on national TV, but don't be fooled completely. That's not who she really is. There's another side to her, a tough, determined, savvy, not-quite-as-down-to-earth-as-she'd-have-you-believe side. She knows exactly what she wants out of life. And she's probably more than capable of getting it.
I'm addicted to reality TV and I've always wanted to see how I'd cope. It was also an opportunity to show the real me"
I can't wait to see the family, I've missed them all so much. Especially towards the end when I got the Brad Pitts"
I think i lourve her 
