My years with fierce Kim Woodburn felt like walking a tightrope… but she's one of the bravest people I know, says Aggie

The Sun

5 hours ago

IT'S hard to believe Kim Woodburn is gone. She died yesterday, aged 83, after a short illness — and though we hadn't spoken for years, it's still shocking to know that she's no longer alive.
We had one of the strangest, most intense working relationships I've ever known. For six years, from 2003 to 2009, we shared the screen on How Clean Is Your House? — scrubbing, scouring and sparring our way into the nation's living rooms.
13
13
13
13
We bickered like an old married couple, and plenty of it was real. But I also respected her. And understood, perhaps more than most, what she'd come through just to be standing.
Kim didn't just have a tough start in life — she had one of the worst you can imagine. I knew fairly early on in our partnership that she had demons.
The public saw the bouffant hair, the frosty stare, the withering one-liners — 'scrub, don't tickle' became a national catchphrase. But behind all that was a woman carrying an enormous amount of pain.
She was born into violence. Her childhood, as she later described in her autobiography, was marked by relentless abuse — physical and emotional, from those meant to protect her.
At 16, she left home for good. She had no safety net, no one to catch her. She cleaned houses to survive, slept on floors, endured even more suffering. And she kept it all in for decades.
How Clean is Your House & Celebrity Big Brother star dies aged 83 after short illness
This is the last picture of Kim Woodburn with her husband before she died
Her husband Peter is "heartbroken at the loss of his soulmate"
Tributes have today flooded in for the reality TV star, calling her an "icon" and a "diva"
Kim's touching last video was on Valentines Day
Her death comes weeks after cancelling work commitments due to health concerns
Kim gave reality TV fans an iconic moment with her legendary Celebrity Big Brother row
Inside Kim's lifelong health battle with TV icon off air for months
Where is co-star Aggie MacKenzie now?
How brave Kim overcame dad's horrific sex abuse & heartbreaking secret health battle
When she finally spoke out — on TV, and later in print — it was one of the bravest things I've ever seen.
But just because you speak your truth doesn't mean the pain disappears. Kim was always battling something. She could be bright and brilliant one minute, then stormy and defensive the next. That wasn't entirely diva behaviour. That was also trauma.
There were moments — even on set — when I'd catch a glimpse of that frightened, furious young toddler whose needs had never been met.
She had incredible strength, but no real sense of safety. And so she fought. Fought the world, fought me, fought herself, I think.
Still, what we did together was extraordinary.
How Clean Is Your House? was a surprise hit. People tuned in for the dirt, sure, but they stayed for us — this strange pairing of two middle-aged fairy godmothers elbow-deep in filth, with rubber gloves and very different energies.
I was methodical, she was theatrical. I'd explain the science of mould, she'd tell a grown man he was living like a pig. But it worked
And more than that, it mattered.
We helped people — not just the families on-screen, but the viewers at home who felt overwhelmed by life, by mess, by depression. Kim had a real instinct for those people.
She might shout or scold, but she never judged. She knew what rock bottom looked like.
13
13
13
That empathy came from experience. Kim had known what it meant to be homeless, powerless, voiceless. She built herself back up, bit by bit, often with nobody cheering her on. That takes guts.
Of course, it wasn't all sunshine. We clashed, often.
There were days filming together that felt like walking a tightrope.
And by the later series, I'll be honest — our relationship had almost completely broken down. We barely spoke off camera.
And over time, the anger faded.
What remains now are the memories: of her booming laugh when something truly tickled her, of the fierce way she defended the underdog, of how completely she threw herself into that role as 'Queen of Clean'. She became a household name — and rightly so.
Kim wasn't easy. But she was real. And in this business, that's rare.
In the years after our show ended, she stayed in the public eye — I'm a Celeb, Big Brother, panel shows, even Cameo videos for fans.
She always made an impact. But I sometimes wondered if it gave her peace. I'm not sure she ever truly found that, this side of life.
I hope she has now. I really do. Because for all her sharp edges, she could be kind in ways no one ever saw — sending private messages of support to people who'd suffered abuse, calling out injustice long before it was fashionable.
There's a line I keep coming back to, from her own mouth: 'I survived because I had to.'
That sums her up. Kim Woodburn survived. But now, at last, she can stop fighting.
Rest easy, my old sparring partner. You were fierce, complicated, maddening — and unforgettable.
I hope wherever you are now, it's spotless. And peaceful.
13
13
13