I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here! 2024 begins with dancer Oti Mabuse and N-Dubz singer Tulisa Contostavlos drinking a blended smoothie made of animal parts.
The contestants are among the famous faces taking part in this year’s series of the ITV Australian-based reality show, along with Coleen Rooney, former Irish boxing champion Barry McGuigan, McFly’s Danny Jones and Coronation Street actor Alan Halsall.
Mabuse, who is a judge on Dancing On Ice and former Strictly Come Dancing professional, will be first to arrive during Sunday’s launch episode as she meets Contostavlos, BBC Radio 1 DJ Dean McCullough, Loose Women panellist Jane Moore, and singer Jones at a poolside villa.
As McCullough arrives, he hugs Mabuse and Contostavlos and tells them: “I’m shaking.”
After the show’s presenters Anthony McPartlin and Declan Donnelly arrive at the villa in a helicopter, they tell the contestants they are competing to become the first leaders of the camp – which will exempt them from the first bushtucker trial.
They are then told to drink cocktails of blended bull penis and fish eyes, with a garnish made from vomit fruit, to determine the order in which they will skydive from helicopters.
First to finish his drink is Jones, with Contostavlos second, Moore third, McCullough fourth and Mabuse in fifth.
“It has taken many, many years but I’m finally doing it. And I’ve always said if I was going to do one – then it would be this show.”
— I'm A Celebrity... (@imacelebrity) November 15, 2024
⭐️ Coleen Rooney
📸 TV Personality
Coleen starts her Jungle adventure Sunday at 9pm #ImACeleb pic.twitter.com/uUI8aJIN2r
After their skydive, they meet McGuigan, podcaster and Loose Women panellist GK Barry, Halsall, BBC Radio 1 DJ Melvin Odoom, and Rooney, who arrived separately on a Gold Coast beach, where they must form teams of two.
The pairings of McGuigan and Jones, Halsall and Contostavlos, Moore and Barry, McCullough and Rooney, and Odoom and Mabuse then travel to a river where they must find the keys to unlock their boats by putting their hands into “hell holes” which are likely to contain insects, snakes or other animals.
The winning pair earns the right to sleep in the comfort of the leaders’ lodge in their jungle camp.
Before the show airs, ITVX released the Disney+ documentary Coleen Rooney: The Real Wagatha Story on its streaming service.
The wife of former England footballer Wayne Rooney follows Rebekah Vardy - with whom she was embroiled in a high-profile libel battle - into the jungle.
Rooney was dubbed Wagatha Christie when she accused Vardy, who is married to Leicester City striker Jamie Vardy, of leaking her private information to The Sun in a viral post on social media.
In July 2022, a judge at the High Court found the post was "substantially true".
Earlier this week, Vardy spoke to The Sun saying she "had no intentions of talking about" the case, and claiming Rooney "clearly can't let it go".
The 42-year-old said: "We've done a book, we've done a documentary, we're going into the jungle.
"I think she always wanted my life, she's following in my footsteps."
She added there are "no hard feelings" towards Rooney for appearing on the same reality shows as her, but "the hard feelings are still there for what she caused".
During her stint in 2017, Vardy became the third celebrity to leave, saying the series helped her become more tolerant after having confrontations with campmate and broadcaster Iain Lee.
Rooney, 38, said of being in the jungle: "I have been in the public eye for over 20 years now and people take what they want from it.
"I do think people will get a better idea of what kind of person I am."
This year, there have been no politicians announced or reported to be taking part, after former health secretary Matt Hancock and Reform Party leader Nigel Farage joined the show in the last two years.
Mr Hancock, who competed in 2022, and Mr Farage, who took part in 2023, became finalists, getting to the final episode of their seasons.
There have been reports that Love Island star Maura Higgins and the Rev Richard Coles - a former BBC presenter, ex-member of The Communards and author - will join at a later stage.
I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here! returns on Sunday at 9pm on ITV1, STV and ITVX.
