Eviction favourite Nicky's stand-up task

Big Brother yesterday asked Nicky to prepare a two minute stand-up comedy routine for other housemates, without telling them it was a task.

Gallery: Big Brother trashes the house

Gathering the housemates in the garden, she started by saying: "Let's all have a bit of a laugh.

"Right classic jokes, you know when you had your audition and you had to tell jokes. I've got one. Two men in a pub, one says to the other, my mother-in-law is an angel.

"And his mate replies, 'you're lucky, mine's still alive'."

There was little laughter from housemates and, during Nicky's next joke about a man who takes a moaning ostrich into a pub, Charley Uchea even walked away.

"We'll have to wait now," said Nicky, knowing that she would not pass the secret task if Charley was not there to hear the punchline.

The crowd was getting restless by the time Charley returned but Nicky gamely continued: "So the barman says 'why have you come into the pub with that?' And the man says 'on the way to the pub I met this genie and he told me I had one wish. So I asked for a bird with long legs'."

"I've heard that before," said Brian Belo.

"It's funny dammit," snapped Nicky. "Can't you just laugh at it? My jokes are hilarious."

Everyone eventually laughed and Nicky was later told she had passed the task, earning the housemates a takeaway.

Greek housemate Gerry Stergiopoulos, who is facing Nicky in the public vote, later earned them some alcohol by correctly answering questions on grease, Grease and Greece.

Bookmaker Paddy Power has odds of 1-150 that Nicky will be evicted tomorrow night while Gerry is 18-1.

Punters can also get odds of 500-1 that the show's presenter Davina McCall will fall asleep during Nicky's eviction interview and odds of 4-1 that Nicky will tell Davina she regrets complaining so much.

The bookmaker is also taking bets on what Nicky will do next. Recording a tape of bedtime stories is favourite at 8-1, posing naked for Playboy is 10-1 while a role in EastEnders is 40-1.