We caught up with lovely Brummie, PJ Ellis and it was like chatting to an old friend. So much so, we forgot we were interviewing him…

When Big Brother was a genuine social experiment, PJ Ellis graced our screens alongside Alison Hammond and Kate Lawler who both remain close friends as well as the late Jade Goody. It was one of the classic series before social media and before the clamour to be famous at any cost got going. PJ says: “In that world I had this fleeting Z list celebrity thing. I was 22-years-old and we had security and police escorts. It was mad. I’m amazed people still remember that.”

Since that surreal episode, PJ has thrown himself into many different roles with gusto such as marketing, media, charity, radio, podcasting and event hosting among others. The one constant is Birmingham. Born and bred here PJ went to a footballing school in Chelmsley Wood where he used to retreat to the library. He says: “I’ve calves that could kickstart a ferry, but I never made it in football and went on to study law at the University of Birmingham.”

Deeply attached to this city, PJ’s often striving to make Birmingham better. He’s full of ideas about collaboration – people, agencies and businesses coming together for the greater good. He wants everyone to feel safe here and he wants the city to thrive. Like the rest of us, he’s fed up with the ‘rats as big as cats’ narrative of the bin strikes and he’d like to change the record.

Positive by nature he seems like a solutions person, someone who gets stuff done. And consequently, sometimes he’s taken on too much and has had to pull back. There are times when he’s missed out on family stuff because he’s had too much going on work-wise but he’s learning to get the balance right not least prompted by the sad loss of his mom in 2024.

MOMMY’S BOY

PJ says: “It happened very quickly. It was the most difficult time of my life but bizarrely coincided with the most exciting opportunity.” He’s referring to the call from the BBC which came from nowhere. PJ is regularly on the radio now at BBC WM as well as doing voiceover work which he’s leaning into. The death of PJ’s mom led to him launch charity Mommy’s Boy with the aim of helping men open up about their feelings after the death of a parent.

PJ says: “Mom died really quickly aged just 66 and it was horrendous. I’d never been in the grief club before.” He adds: “Weirdly two of my best mates lost their moms within three months. We went for walks and just talked. It was cathartic, just sat in the mud with someone going through the same thing. There are lots of mental health charities for drugs and drink but not so much for grief specifically.” PJ found that he had hundreds of calls from people when he launched the charity but they tended to be from sisters and partners rather than the men who needed help as they didn’t want to talk about it themselves.

Even now with Mommy’s Boy, PJ says it looks like nothing’s happening but there’s loads going on behind closed doors because men don’t want to talk about their grief openly or publicise it. The community PJ has built is special though. They walk and go fishing and crucially talk about how they’re feeling.

GOOD SPORT

As well as Mommy’s Boy you might remember PJ helping launch Love Brum back in 2015 which has supported thousands of local projects. He’s stepped back from that now, but the charity continues to thrive. PJ also played in Netball Aid at the Utilita last year having known nothing about netball. He says: “The BBC WM crew asked me if I’d like to play. I didn’t know what to expect and I had no clue what I was doing. I turned up and there were 5,000 people at Utilita! This year will be bigger and better.” Think Soccer Aid but for netball.

Last year PJ told one of the other players that, ‘she was ever so good at netball’ and it turned out to be Serena Guthrie MBE who’s played for England over 100 times! There’s chat about PJ playing centre which is one of, if not the most physically demanding positions on the court. He says: “No way!” We’ll see. The event raised over £40,000 for Children in Need in 2025 and this year the money raised will go to Shelter.

POWER OF A PODCAST

PJ loves a chinwag, so it’s no surprise he launched a podcast with his mate Andy Dawson. Called Wit + Grit the podcast explores what it takes to thrive in a world of AI, constant pressure and curated perfection and has interviewed some impressive guests. They take a look at how to build confidence and resilience as well as emotional connection. While the podcast is positive and upbeat it’s not necessarily offering definitive solutions, just exploring how to navigate these events. It’s a conversation rather than a lecture and an enjoyable listen. Wit + Grit is recently commercialised which PJ’s thrilled about.

In terms of what’s next for PJ, he’s been asked to do more TV and hosting which he loves. He’d also love to do a TV series on fishing which he says is splendid on so many levels and something he does with his dad. “I’m more equipped to deal with being in the public eye now. I think I care less what people think and I credit my mom with giving me more perspective.”