Video: Kirstie Alley Enters Celebrity Big Brother 2018 and Is Made 'President of the House'

The veteran award-winning actress Kirstie Alley entered the U.K. edition of Celebrity Big Brother Thursday night and was made "president" of the house by producers as the show got underway.

Alley rose to fame in the 1980s. She starred in Cheers alongside Kelsey Grammer and Ted Danson as well as a number of films, including Look Who's Talking with John Travolta and Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan with William Shatner.

The twice Emmy-winning 67-year-old was the first to enter the house this series, which has the theme "eye of the storm" because all housemates have experienced notable trials and tribulations.

She is a committed Scientologist, donating millions of dollars to the controversial church, which critics accuse of being a manipulative and dangerous cult. Alley has also battled weight and drug problems, including a cocaine addiction that almost killed her.

"I will put on a show like you've never seen in your life," Alley said in a video before she entered the Big Brother house. "I act a lot wilder, and I do a lot of things that I wouldn't do in the United States. You sort of feel uninhibited when you're in another country. So bring it."

As she entered and the door closed on the cheering crowd, Alley laughed and said: "Oh lord, what have I signed up for? Oh dear."

She was immediately ordered into the diary room and given a task by Big Brother. She was made president of the Big Brother house with "special powers and privileges," but ordered to keep it secret from other housemates until they were all inside.

Among those privileges is private sleeping quarters in a "mini White House."

The public later voted for British soap star Ryan Thomas to be Alley's vice-president. Thomas was second to enter the house behind Alley. When he saw her, he said: "Well, look who's talking now!"

Other housemates include the disgraced former British investment banker Nick Leeson, whose rogue and fraudulent trading collapsed Barings Bank, the institution for which he worked, before he went on the run; and the so-called "human Ken doll" Rodrigo Alves.

But one name touted ahead of the series' beginning did not make an appearance—Stormy Daniels, the adult film star who alleges she had an affair with President Donald Trump. There is speculation she may enter the house at a later date, though she denied on Twitter that she will take part in the reality series.

Kirstie Alley Celebrity Big Brother 2018
A contestant Kirstie Alley arrives at the house as the reality show 'Celebrity Big Brother' starts, in Elstree, near London, Britain August 16, 2018. REUTERS/Henry Nicholls

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