Owen Warner’s brother Louie has said the Hollyoaks star was apprehensive going into the jungle because he was worried his campmates on would not know who the former soap star was.
The 23-year-old entered the I’m A Celebrity…Get Me Out Of Here! jungle as part of the 2022 line-up and has quickly become a fan favourite and is now in the running to be crowned the ITV show's King of the Jungle.
Owen, known to soap fans as Romeo Nightingale on Channel 4 ’s Hollyoaks, is now the audience choice to win, according to 10-11 odds from Coral.
Owen’s brother and mum Polly called into Good Morning Britain on Wednesday morning from sunny Australia to reflect on his bid to be crowned by hosts Ant McPartlin and Declan Donnelly.
Louie told hosts Susanna Reid and Richard Madeley in the ITV studio: “I can’t begin to imagine what’s going through his mind right now.”
He continued: “He went in there and we all didn’t know what to expect. We knew lots of people in there, but we weren’t sure – Owen’s not been in Hollyoaks long – so we weren’t really sure who would know who he was.”
He added: “The fact that he’s still in there is a true testament to who he is as a person. He’s been able to capture the audience.
“I think he’s going to be really touched and it’s going to give him a lot of confidence. To finally believe how much of a good person he is, like we tell him day to day.”
Susanna went on to ask Owen’s mum Polly what it would mean to the notoriously hungry campmate to be crowned King of the Jungle.
She replied: “I think he’ll be so amazed at everybody’s reaction to him anyway. When he was little, the kids always watched the show. So to actually be on it is a dream come true.
“I think he’s already achieved a massive dream. But when he comes out anyway and realises how much he’s loved, he’s going to be blown away.
“If that crown were put on his head – oh my goodness, I just can’t even imagine it.”
Although he has not previously been at the top of the betting lists, Owen has been edging out fellow contestants in the past few days.
Coral’s Lewis Knowles said: ‘’Jill Scott has been our favourite to win it for much of the show, but punters have certainly come for Owen Warner in recent days, and he’s now taken top spot in that market.’’
‘’As the odds would suggest, it looks a two-horse race at this stage, and we’ve seen very little in the way of support for any of the other contestants in recent days,’’ added Knowles.
