Denise Welch refuses to say Matt Hancock's name as…

Denise Welch refuses to say Matt Hancock's name as Charlene White returns to Loose Women

Charlene White returned to Loose Women for the first time since her I'm A Celebrity stint - and the presenter seemed keen to avoid mentioning her fellow campmate Matt Hancock after her relationship with the politician sparked a furious reaction from one of her co-stars.

The showdown that many viewers had been expecting with co-star Denise Welch was nowhere to be seen, even after Denise hinted that she would confront Charlene over her friendliness to the former Health Secretary in the jungle. Denise made no secret of her disdain for the MP's decision to sign up to the ITV show, saying on Loose Women after the news was announced: "I am fuming, and I am disgusted, and I cannot find any humour in this appointment at all."

As Charlene and Matt were forced to work together in camp and appeared to grow closer, Denise was asked by one fan on Twitter if she planned to tell her co-star exactly what she thought of the situation. "What do you think??" she replied - but if the Tynemouth-born presenter did have words with Charlene, it certainly didn't happen on screen.

Charlene received a warm welcome from her co-stars, Denise, Carol McGiffin and Linda Robson, who were all quick to say that they missed her while she was Down Under in the jungle. As Linda demanded that Charlene spill all the "gossip" from camp, Charlene coyly replied: "There's lots to tell."

Denise then chimed in - but refused to mention the MP's name live on air. "To be honest, I just think because a certain person whose initials are MH has had so much publicity - undeserved in my opinion - I just want to hear that gossip backstage. I just want to celebrate you, and how thrilled we are that you're back."

Charlene said that she was 'so glad' she took part in I'm A Celebrity, despite 'constantly worrying' over Matt Hancock (ITV)

While Denise kept her opinions about Charlene and Matt to herself for the rest of the show, she did hint at her feelings towards the situation as the discussion moved on to the subject of crying. There was an awkward moment as Denise admitted to Charlene: "I cry a lot because I'm angry about things - your jungle stint being a case in point", before swiftly moving the conversation along.

Charlene went on to say that going on I'm A Celeb was a "once in a lifetime" experience, and steered clear of mentioning Matt altogether as she looked back on her time in the jungle - despite previously saying that his appearance in camp put a dampener on her time on the show. However, she did admit to having "emotional moments" as footage played of her getting upset about having to sleep in an RV with Matt when he elected her as deputy camp leader.

Charlene has previously admitted after becoming the first contestant to be voted out of camp that she feared losing her job when Matt came into the jungle. The presenter admitted that she was "constantly worrying" whether she would "still be taken seriously" in her day job after being in close quarters with the politician.

"Being there and having a laugh and having a joke – that kind of finished when Matt came," Charlene revealed. "As soon as he walked in I thought, 'I'm going to be walking a tightrope here.'"

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