Nearly 20 years after taking on the Australian jungle, Paul Burrell is returning to I'm A Celebrity to battle it out with other former campmates to be crowned the ultimate legend. Princess Diana’s former butler is part of a brand new all-star cast heading into the South African bush for the special edition of the ITV series.
Paul made it to the final of the fourth series of I'm A Celebrity in 2004, narrowly losing out on the top spot to comedian Joe Pasquale. He took on four bushtucker trials including the memorable Hell Holes, in which his facial expressions and terrified whimpering left presenters Ant and Dec in stitches.
Reflecting on his famous trial ahead of the new series, Paul said: “If I have to do the Hell Holes trial again, then I know I am going to be really scared.” He added: “It’s such a weird thing to do wondering if whatever is in there is going to bite you or not. I will never get over the fear of the unknown”.
READ MORE: I'm A Celebrity South Africa - line-up, start date and what to expect
During his time in Australia, Paul also took on one of the bushtucker eating trials, which he said was "not as easy as people think". He told ITV: "You have to consume testicles, eyeballs and that’s not easy. Doing the eating trial is like going to the dentist. It is over in three minutes. All you have to do is focus and get on with it.”
After 18 days in camp, Paul went up against Joe and nightclub owner Fran Crosgrave in the final - but missed out on the jungle crown by a two per cent margin. His other campmates included journalist Janet Street-Porter, model Sophie Anderton, actor Antonio Fargas, singer Sheila Ferguson, comedian Vic Reeves and his wife Nancy Sorrell and popstars Natalie Appleton and Brian Harvey.
Paul said he enjoyed the company of his fellow campmates, telling ITV: "I loved the camp camaraderie so much. I realised what matters is people are stripped down to their essentials. You can have an interesting conversation without any distractions."
Since his first stint in the jungle, Paul has taken part in the Australian version of the show in 2018. He has also been in other celebrity shows such as Stars In Their Eyes, Celebrity Big Brother and Australian Princess.
Paul came out as gay in 2017 following his divorce from Maria Cosgrove, his wife of 32 years, who he shares two sons with, and later announced he was marrying his partner Graham Cooper. In January this year, the former butler disclosed he had been diagnosed with cancer on ITV’s Lorraine.
Paul will now be taking on a new batch of celebrity contestants, for his third shot at I'm A Celebrity. He will be up against a handful of other runners-up who reached the final during their jungle UK stint, including Corrie star Andy Whyment, singer and presenter Myleene Klass and Happy Monday singer Shaun Ryder.
Other stars heading to South Africa include former King of the Jungle Phil Tufnell, former professional boxer Amir Khan, javelin thrower Fatima Whitbread, TV personality Janice Dickinson, Corrie's Helen Flanagan, Diversity star Jordan Banjo and Countdown legend Carol Vorderman.
Asked if he would like to win the new series, Paul admitted he was ecstatic to come in second place the first time round. “It would be ridiculous to think I could win this," he said. "I am only here to have a good time, to entertain people and to make everyone laugh.”
I’m A Celebrity… South Africa will air on ITV1 and ITVX on Monday at 9pm.
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