Gypsy Wedding star Paddy Doherty wins Celebrity Big Brother

My Big Fat Gypsy Wedding star Paddy Doherty has been crowned the surprise winner of Celebrity Big Brother.

After the former bare-knuckle fighter left the house, he said: "No way did I think I would get this far."

From a generation of travellers, the 52-year-old said he had been a "fish out of water" while on the show.

Ex-Atomic Kitten star Kerry Katona was voted the runner-up, while Irish pop duo Jedward, who had been the favourites to win, came third.

Katona told host Brian Dowling she had made some "solid friends" during the reality TV show, singling out Doherty as being "the main one" who would become a "friend forever".

Doherty said he had become a "father figure" to the singer and had struck up a great friendship with fellow finalist, paparazzo Darryn Lyons.

However he added he had been "tortured" by the Irish twins, who had been voted the most annoying housemates.

"I wanted to pick them up, throw them away," he said.

The other housemates who made it through to the final day were The Only Way Is Essex star Amy Childs, actor Lucien Laviscount and model Bobby Sabel.

The regular version of the series is scheduled to start on Friday night, with 14 housemates set to go into the house alongside Baywatch star Pamela Anderson.

Show performance

The series has had a solid run on Channel 5, frequently attracting more viewers than Channel 4, the show's former home.

On its opening night, it attracted some 5.27m viewers, but audience figures have declined over the series' run.

Jedward, who were the favourites to win, were crowned the "most annoying" housemates

Channel 4 decided to end its commitment to Big Brother in 2009, after 10 years.

It broadcast its final series last summer, after which Channel 5 signed a two-year deal with the makers of the programme, in the hope it would generate new audiences for the network.

Speaking at the Big Brother launch last month, Channel 5's director of programmes Jeff Ford, said: "This will allow us to connect to a younger audience, and very importantly, we will continue to serve the viewers who love us."