THE appearance of divisive right-winger Nigel Farage on ITV’s I’m A Celebrity has sparked a storm of controversy and calls for a boycott of the show.
But he is just the latest in a long line of politicians who have swapped the corridors of power in return for sometimes more fame, sometimes a small fortune … and sometimes complete derision.
George Galloway
THE appearance by the once Labour MP, now leader of the Workers’ Party of Britain, on Celebrity Big Brother 2006 included a scene which has rightly topped polls of the “cringiest” reality TV moment of all time. Galloway threw his all into pretending to be a cat, purring and pretending to lick cream from actress Rula Lenska’s hands. A scene sadly never to be forgotten by anyone who has seen it.
Ann Widdecombe
IT seems like there isn’t a reality TV show this former Tory minister hasn’t appeared on. The long list includes Celebrity Big Brother, Celebrity Fit Club, Celebrity Antiques Road Trip and Sugar Free Farm. Her attempts on Strictly Come Dancing in 2010 polarised public opinion as she was dragged around the dancefloor each week and she was voted off with the withering comment from a judge it was like watching a “Dalek in drag”.
Nadine Dorries
AS the first MP to take part in I’m A Celebrity in 2012, the former culture minister faced a barrage of criticism from within her own party, had the whip removed and was censured by parliamentary standards watchdog for failing to declare the £82,000 fee. Then Home Secretary Theresa May said at the time: "Frankly, I think an MP's job is in their constituency and in the House of Commons”. Dorries probably wished she had heeded that advice when she had to munch on a baked spider, an ostrich anus, lamb testicle and a camel toe during one eating challenge.
Penny Mordaunt
THE leader of the House of Commons could have been Prime Minister in a parallel universe after throwing her hat in the ring for the Tory leadership contest in 2022. Despite a political career which included becoming the UK’s first female defence secretary in 2019, at the beginning of the leadership race one tabloid said she was best known for appearing in the reality diving show Splash in 2014 - helpfully pointing out it was “in her swimsuit” - while the moment she suffered a painful bellyflop on the show resurfaced and went viral.
Matt Hancock
ANOTHER storm was triggered when former UK health secretary Hancock announced he was going into the jungle in 2022. His appearance on I’m A Celebrity earned him a hefty £320,000 fee – and also a suspension from the Tory Party for taking time off his parliamentary duties to appear on the show, resulting in him having to sit as an Independent MP. Handily, one of his campmates was an ITV journalist who took the opportunity to grill him over breaking coronavirus rules by having an affair with a colleague - the incident which led to his ministerial downfall.
