Get all your news in one place.
100’s of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
Manchester Evening News
Manchester Evening News
Entertainment
Mark Jefferies & Ellie Kemp

Chris Moyles arrives in Australia as first confirmed I'm A Celebrity contestant

Chris Moyles has touched down in Australia ahead of this year's series of I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out Of Here!

The radio DJ commented that "it should be nice" in the jungle as he posed for photos in sunglasses. The hit ITV programme has returned to Australia after filming in Wales for the last two years due to Coronavirus restrictions.

Asked if he was looking forward to spending time down under, Chris said: "It should be nice, fingers crossed anyway." Quizzed if he was scared of things in the jungle like snakes and spiders he joked: "There's lots of everything in this country, like sport and beer and I am not scared of sport of beer. So I think I will be alright," reports the Mirror.

Read more: ITV Good Morning Britain viewers brand Susanna Reid 'rude' for shouting questions to MPs outside No 10

He then added: "I have absolutely no idea what my family and friends would think of me doing a show like I'm A Celebrity. I have never asked them. But I think they would be much more nervous about me doing Antiques Roadshow."

Hosts Ant and Dec said they wanted to see Moyles as a campmate back in 2012 when Moyles was still a huge star on Radio 1. But he said in a radio chat with pal Vernon Kay he would not make a good campmate.

Chris touched down at Brisbane Aiport (Mirror Star Express/Tim Merry)

Speaking on his Radio X breakfast show, Chris told Vernon it only hit him how bad his vertigo was when he took girlfriend Tiffany Austin’s niece to Go Ape. “I papped myself and I realised I’m more scared of heights than I actually genuinely thought I was,” he said.

But pal Vernon, who took part in the first Welsh version in 2020, insisted he would have a great time. He said: “I honestly had a blast, and anyone who gets asked to do it, I would say to them now ‘don’t hesitate’.

“Yeah, it’s awful, as in the cockroaches, creepy crawlies, spiders and snakes and all that palaver, but as an experience it’s probably one of the best I’ve ever had in telly.”

Moyles has arrived around 10 days before the start of the series, which is much earlier than usual. ITV has asked campmates to arrive around a week in advance so they can isolate and also be tested for Covid.

If they were to be unfortunate and pick up coronavirus on the flight over, it is hoped there might be enough time to isolate and still test negative before the series starts. An ITV source said: "The celebrities are arriving earlier than previous years to isolate and test for covid before entering camp."

The radio DJ was seen wearing a bracelet with the words “Chris Get Me Out” on as he arrived in Australia (Mirror Star Express)

I'm a Celeb will return to our screens on Sunday, November 6. It's reportedly starting earlier than usual due to the World Cup, which kicks off in Qatar on Sunday, November 20.

Other stars thought to have signed up for the jungle next month include 1980s pop icon Boy George, comedian Seann Walsh and former Love Islander Olivia Attwood. In September, ITV officially confirmed that I’m A Celeb would be making a much-welcomed return to Australia.

For the last two years Ant and Dec headed to Gwrych Castle in North Wales to host the hit series, due to Coronavirus travel restrictions.

Read today's top stories here

Read next:

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.