Stars are paid vast amounts to wait as stand-ins for ITV's I'm a Celebrity.
Olivia Attwood was this year's first causality as she was forced to exit the jungle due to "medical issues." Though specifics are yet to come to light, the Love Island star said she was devastated to be leaving so early and begged to stay.
Not everyone has shared Olivia's interest in the jungle as some have legged it just days into the show. Causing a ruckus for producers to deal with, there has been a long list of celebrities that have tapped out either due to the food, trials, living conditions, or generally because they just weren't feeling it.
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Gemma Collins sensationally quit after just three days, while Spencer Matthews was told to leave two days into his jungle experience, later admitting he had a steroid addiction. Last year, Richard Madeley had to depart after being rushed to hospital in the middle of the night and breaking the strict Covid bubble.
There is usually a standby ready to go - and they get paid a staggering amount of money even if they don't make it into the jungle. Used predominantly in the early series of the show, the standbys would be flown on a first-class flight out to Australia so they could be drafted in at short notice.
The replacement celebrities would stay in a hotel near the jungle camp in case someone decided to quit or was ejected before the voting stage. It would be assumed that the standbys would be relatively minor celebs, but bosses still managed to reel in some very famous faces.
One of the original backup campmates was legendary TV presenter Keith Chegwin, who kept bumping into hosts Ant McPartlin and Dec Donnelly around the hotel.
Cheggers, who sadly passed away in 2017 at the age of 60 after struggling with lung disease idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis, was drafted in as a standby contestant during the very first series.
Sadly, the much-loved entertainer never actually made it into camp, which is a shame as he would have been a hilarious addition to the show. During the special recap show, I'm A Celebrity... Jungle Story, Ant said: "We had stand-bys in those days, Keith Chegwin, just in case anybody pulled out."
Ant said: "He never got on, he just hung around the hotel with his camcorder filming the cast, poor Keith Chegwin." The standbys are very well paid for the time - as they get a generous fee as well as having an all expenses paid holiday Down Under.
Former campmate Nicola McLean lifted the lid on the behind-the-scenes secret that is put in place in case one of the contestants has to leave early, Speaking in November 2020, the model claimed backup stars still get paid a hefty £20,000 alongside a first-class flight to Australia.
Nicola said: "Aside from the two latecomers, other celebrities are on standby in case anyone gets injured or ill – but get sent home once the voting starts, as then it doesn’t matter if someone leaves. They travel first class, stay in a hotel and get paid £20,000."
It was reported that Timmy Mallett had flown out to Australia to replace John Lydon if he decided to quit the show back in 2004. Nicola claimed Timmy was waiting to get on the show for a whopping three years before he actually entered the jungle with her in 2008.
She said: "Timmy Mallett did that for three years before he got in, but that’s rare because most don’t go in the show."
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