Former Gogglebox families: where they are now – from tragic deaths and prison to bitter off-screen feuds – The Sun

GOGGLEBOX has entertained the nation over these past eight years with a lovable cast – many of whom have become household names. 

Today it was announced that five more stars will drop out of the Channel 4 show after three deaths of Mary Cook, Pete McGarry and Andy Michael.


Gogglebox's executive producer Victoria Ray told the Daily Star: "Their loved one won't be taking part in the show for the moment. Understandably, they want their privacy."

Bristolian Marina Wingrove is among those temporarily pulling out after her co-star Mary, who appeared in the show from 2016 onwards, died at the age of 92 in August.

That same month, Andy died after a "short illness" at the age of 61 and now the former UKIP member's family Carolyne, Alex and Louis will take a break from the show.

Linda McGarry, whose husband Pete died from bowel cancer in June at the age of 71, will also not appear this season.

Gogglebox drew in more than five million views last December and without question, its success is down to the roster of lovable characters.

But what happens to the stars when they leave the show? We look at some of the ex-Gogglebox families to find out where they are now.

Sandra Martin, Chanchez Martin and Sandi Bogle

The hilarious Brixton duo are certainly part of the Gogglebox Hall of Fame.

They became known for always eating Pot Noodles and takeaways.

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But the pair were torn apart in 2016 when Sandi decided to quit the show, leaving Sandra to continue with her daughter Chanchez.

However in 2017, Sandra quit the show too saying it wasn't the same without Sandi.

Sandi has since taken part in reality shows such as Celebrity Big Brother, Famous And Fighting Crime and Celebrity Fat Fighters.

The star has also been a huge campaigner to put a stop to knife crime after she lost her nephew Bjorn Brown, 23, in 2017.

In 2016, she also released her debut single "Casanova" on DeeVu Records and also has her own album, Independent Woman.

Her partner in crime Sandra has also gone on to more reality TV fame taking part in First Dates and 100 Years Younger In 21 Days.

She tweeted: "100 Years Younger In 21 Days was the next best thing in my life after Gogglebox. That's one of the reasons it was good to leave Gogglebox so I can so that experience trip." 

The reality favourite was reportedly close to becoming homeless after quitting Gogglebox – and was axed from Celebrity Big Brother after revealing she was going into the house.

Sandra also revealed in March 2020 that her sister-in-law died of coronavirus.

Her heartache didn't stop there as she lost four other people close to her due to the deadly bug including her friend, friend's dad and her uncle.

Meanwhile, Chanchez has continued to work as a beauty therapist and has launched her own cosmetics line.

Steph and Dom Parker

The bubbly-loving pair are best known for their witty one-liners, making them firm favourites of the original cast.

Steph and Dom starred on the show for four years, before leaving to continue running their bed and breakfast.

Afterwards, they starred in reality TV shows such as Four In A Bed, Celebrity MasterChef and The Jump.

They even took to the stage for 2017's Let's Sing and Dance For Comic Relief to perform Dead Ringer For Love by Meatloaf and Cher.

In March 2020, the husband and wife duo revealed the sad news that they were shutting the doors to their £5million hotel after it went bust. 

The Moffatts

Scarlett Moffatt is the biggest name to come out of Gogglebox.

After two years on the show, Scarlett left County Durham to head to the I'm A Celebrity jungle.

She was crowned Queen of the Jungle during the 16th series and joined Ant & Dec's Saturday Night Takeaway as a presenter.


Moffatt has appeared in Celebrity Juice, First Dates, Through The Keyhole and in 2018 guest-hosted an evening radio show on Heart.

In 2019, the whole family were back on our screens for controversial Channel 4 series The British Tribe Next Door, where they lived alongside the Himba tribe in Namibia for four weeks.

She also appeared in The Great Stand Up to Cancer Bake Off 2020, ITV's new series Celebrity Karaoke Club and a recent episode of Supermarket Sweep alongside fellow Queen of the Jungle Jacqueline Jossa.

The Gilbeys

Mum Linda Gilbey and step-dad Pete McGarry shot to fame in series two of Gogglebox with their son George Gilbey.

However, they were kicked off the show in 2014 when George broke the rules about going on other TV shows and went into the Celebrity Big Brother house.

However, the Essex family returned to the show in 2016.

Later that year George and his girlfriend Gemma welcomed their first child together, Amelie, into the world.


In October 2019, George was jailed for three months after being found guilty of drink-driving.

During an appearance at Chelmsford Magistrates' Court on October 1, Gilbey, 35, pleaded guilty to a charge of driving a motor vehicle with an alcohol level above the legal limit.

He was jailed due to the fact he was already serving a community punishment for attacking his ex-girlfriend in a drunken rage.

In the wake of the coronavirus crisis, the reality TV star got a job stacking shelves in his local Morrisons.

The Tappers

Mum Nikki, dad Jonathan, and siblings Josh and Amy make up the Tapper family.

However, Josh left after only a short stint as he had been given a place on the Government Communications Apprenticeship scheme.

In October 2018, Amy also quit the show to take part in Celebs Go Dating.


The coronavirus pandemic nearly had a devastating impact on the family as dad Jonathan was left fighting for his life.

While his wife Nikki and children Amy and Josh also came down with coronavirus, Jonathan was left seriously ill and forced to self-isolate away from then.

The family have all fortunately made a full recovery and Amy puts it down to the fact that between herself and dad Jonathan, they managed to shed a whopping six stone between them. 

Both Amy and her dad look unrecognisable to when they first hit our screens after taking part in Do The Unthinkable Diet with Muscle Foods to lose some weight.

Leon and June Bernicoff

The nation's favourite grandparents were two of the most popular stars of the Channel 4 show.

Leon and June were best known for their banter and good sense of humour.

Unfortunately, 83-year-old Leon passed away in December, 2017.

Two months after Leon died there was a special tribute show in his honour and the following year June wrote a memoir about their 60-year love story.


Sadly, June also died on May 5, 2020, following a short illness.

Channel 4 issued a statement on behalf of her family, confirming the sad news.

It said: "As the first couple to be cast for Gogglebox back in 2013, June and her husband Leon were a huge part of the programme's success.

"Their warmth, wit and contrasting personalities endeared them to the nation during the course of the first 10 series."

Viewers were left in tears as the show paid tribute to her.

Reverend Kate Bottley

The Church of England minister and husband Graham shot to fame during their five series on the show.

After leaving in 2016, Kate went on to become a journalist, TV presenter and radio pundit.


She regularly presents the Pause For Thought segment on the Radio 2 Breakfast Show and has fronted the Prayer For The Day on Radio 4.

Rev Bottley has also has taken part in 8 Out of 10 Cats, Celebrity MasterChef, BBC1's Impossible and won Richard Osman's House of Games.

During the UK's first lockdown The TV star, 45, decided to get in shape and in July revealed her incredible transformation.

Chris Ashby-Steed and Stephen Webb

The hairdressing duo from Brighton had viewers in stitches every week.

Unfortunately, the pair split up, but the two remained civil on-screen and carried on filming until Chris stepped down.

Stephen's mum Pat replaced Chris for a series of the show.


Chris revealed to The Mirror that he has suffered from severe depression since falling out with Stephen, telling the publication: "There have been times where I’ve felt so low that I think, ‘How can I kill myself?’"

He now lives in his beautiful home in Hove with his partner Tony.

For the latest series of the Channel 4 show, Stephen is now joined by his husband Daniel Lustig.

The Woerdenwebers

Mum Viv, German-born dad Ralf, Eve and her boyfriend Jay are from The Wirral.

Jay Makin was known as "Silent Jay" as he was never heard saying a word on the show.

Gogglebox viewers were often left in hysterics as Jay sat in silence while the family discussed the shows on-screen.


However, Jay disappeared from the Woerdenwebers' sofa after he split up with Eve in 2015.

Jay now keeps a low profile on social media but was working at Baa Bar Fleet Street in Liverpool after leaving the show

The former reality star, who has since chopped off his long locks, lists himself as a ‘bar associate at Wetherspoons’ on Facebook and is dating again. 

Viv ran a shop called Twilight, while Ralf worked for German electronics company Bosch and was also the drummer in a heavy metal band, Citizen Zen.

Eve, meanwhile, was studying drama at university.

The Johnson-Aleys

Vernal, Shirley and Olivia enjoyed had short-lived fame on Gogglebox after only appearing for two seasons until 2017.

The family, who were from the Wirral, in Merseyside, were seen enjoying bottles of red wine during their time on the show. 


Prior to appearing on Gogglebox, daughter Olivia went viral after the rapper Coolio came to her student accommodation and hung out with her flatmates. 

The Gangsta’s Paradise singer performed his iconic track and also cooked a three-course meal for students after bumping into them on a night out.

Since leaving the show, she continued to work in retail in management roles at Ted Baker and Selfridges, now according to LinkedIn, she’s a fashion stylist. 

The Delaney-Ellwoods

It wasn’t long before the Dorset family – consisting of parents Toni and Jeffrey and teen daughters Jessica and Elizabeth – came under fire during their first season on Gogglebox in 2016. 


Viewers vented on Twitter after Jessica expressed excitement over her “new chopping board”.

She said: “I can’t wait to use it, I’m going to buy a nice-looking sourdough to cut…”

One fan of the show said they “instantly disliked” the family and another tweeted: “Ffs get this posh family talking about chopping boards off my screen.”

They appeared on the show until 2017 and on Twitter shared snaps of themselves on sunny holidays, attending Royal Ascot and more until 2018.

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