Celebrity Big Brother EXCLUSIVE: Kirstie Alley set to join Donald Trump’s nemesis Stormy Daniels in explosive new series

Cheers comedienne Kirstie Alley is to join Donald Trump’s nemesis Stormy Daniels in the Big Brother House.

Kirstie, 67, who has battled with her weight since leaving the US comedy, has signed an estimated £500,000 deal to appear on Celebrity Big Brother.

However, former Blue Peter presenter John Leslie has turned down a similar figure – despite passing Channel 5’s psychological test with flying colours.

A source told the MailOnline: ‘Channel 5 is looking for controversial characters to be on the show.

‘Kirstie is a larger than life personality and has overcome her fair share of problems. I’m sure she will be a great addition to the mix.’

Two months ago the Mail Online revealed that CBB was so keen on having Daniels in the house that they pushed the series back from June to August.

They believe that her appearance would boost ratings after the final of the last series ‘Year of the Women’ reached a record low with 1.5 million viewers.

A source told the Mail Online: ‘This year’s show is about people in the spotlight, who have hit a tough time in the public eye.

‘They are looking for people who have had dramas or issues in their life and are bouncing back.’

Kirstie, who is now a grandmother – she has two children William and Lillie by her second husband Parker Stevenson – has had a rollercoaster life.

Her mother Lillian was killed by a drunk driver in 1981, when she was 40, and her father Robert, who owned a lumber company, was seriously injured.

And her daughter’s fiance Nick Trela was killed in a motorcycle accident in Los Angeles in 2014.

She won an Emmy and a Golden Globe for her role as Rebecca Howe in the sitcom Cheers and was nominated for both awards for Veronica’s Closet.

She went onto land second place on the show Dancing with the Stars, earning a perfect score for her cha-cha-cha with partner Maksim Chmerkovskiy.

But her stellar career has been overshadowed by her support of the Church of Scientology and her battle with her weight.

She was last seen on British TV screens in 2015 slumming it as a servant on the reality TV show Time Crashers.

Explaining her decision to join the show, she said at the time: ‘We had a death in our family.

‘The person that passed away was a risk taker and dare devil. I wanted to carry on his legacy. Adventure was his first name.

‘I also felt that I had become a little less adventurous in my life, taking the same kind of roles.’