Matt Hancock said he found a challenge involving word play “really hard” because of his dyslexia on I’m A Celebrity…Get Me Out Of Here!
The former health secretary undertook the latest Deals on Wheels challenge with ex-rugby player Mike Tindall in which they needed to solve an anagram.
The pair, both 44, found 99 red balloons strung up which they had to pop using a spike on top of their helmets.
Popping balloons earned them letters which they had to decipher before the sand time ran out to earn dingo dollars and a treat for camp.
Hancock said: “I’m terrible at anagrams, I’m dyslexic, so all the letters are already in an anagram, so it’s on you (Mike).
“Being dyslexic I find anagrams really hard. All I could see was the word tiny.”
After successfully completing the challenge spelling the word 99, their fellow campmates failed to correctly work out the combined total of Adele’s albums, missing out on the chance to win chocolate chip cookies.
Earlier in the series, Hancock shone a spotlight on the learning difficulty by discussing his own dyslexia diagnosis with his campmates in the jungle.
He previously opened up about being diagnosed as dyslexic, telling comedians Babatunde Aleshe and Seann Walsh: “The moment I was identified as dyslexic at university it was ‘Ahh so actually I am OK with language, it’s just my brain works differently and I can work on that’.”
Hancock has introduced a bill to bring in universal screening for dyslexia in primary schools, and a spokesperson for the politician has said: “By going on the show, Matt hopes to raise the profile of his dyslexia campaign and will use the platform to talk about an issue he really cares about in front of millions of people.
“Matt is determined that no child should leave primary school not knowing if they have dyslexia.”
Wednesday’s episode also saw former Lioness Jill Scott volunteer to take part in the Chitty Chitty Bang Bang inspired Bushtucker trial renamed Critty Critty Fang Fang.
The ex-football star, 35, had to search around for stars while hanging in the air on a flying car.
Scott said: “The car is amazing. I am actually scared of heights, I should have said that.
“I’ve just got Owen’s face in my head and he’d kill us if I didn’t get these stars.”
Having scored a full house of stars for her campmates, she added: “I did actually feel the pressure coming into this. It’s all on you to get stars for camp.
“The lads are so hungry and you know you can ruin like six people’s days. I was so scared. I hate heights, honestly I hate them.”
I’m A Celebrity…Get Me Out Of Here! continues on ITV1 at 9pm.
