Anyone eagerly tuning into I’m A Celebrity, Get Me Out Of Here! (ITV) hoping to see much-maligned politician Matt Hancock choking on an unsavoury part of a kangaroo’s anatomy was in for a disappointment. The former Health Secretary isn’t expected to arrive in the jungle until midweek – at which point, the resident cockroaches, rats and snakes will presumably leave in disgust.
Instead the headline acts for this live launch show were pop royalty in Culture Club frontman Boy George and actual royalty in retired rugby international Mike Tindall, husband of the King’s niece Zara. They were joined around the campfire by the usual random selection of panto cases and publicity seekers.
For its 22nd series, the reality franchise returned to the Australian bush after two years in the marginally less exotic setting of a draughty Welsh castle. To mark its Queensland comeback, an elaborate welcome sequence saw contestants arrive by Rolls Royce and speedboat. Stilted meet-and-greet sessions were followed by daredevil challenges involving skydiving (likeable Love Island alumna Olivia Attwood was relieved her “boobs and veneers” survived intact), walking a vertiginous plank and boarding a “Critter Cruise”.
The unflappable Tindall volunteered to dive underwater, reasoning: “I’m the only one without hair.” A huge spider duly crawled over his follicle-free head. “Fear is a choice,” he shrugged stoically. “Magic Mike” also proved adept at bushcraft, lighting a campfire with ease.
Boy George is the highest-paid contestant ever, trousering £800,000, but looked decent value. Comedian Babatúnde Aleshe was terrified of everything and could be in for a long three weeks. England Lioness Jill Scott, already a potential winner, fell out of her hammock. Hosts Ant and Dec jollied proceedings along with their trademark wit and warmth.