The ‘GC’ is back for the show’s spin-off after she quit I’m A Celebrity after 72 hours in 2014
Gemma Collins has already defended herself for crying ‘I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here‘ as she claimed a ‘dirty prank’ by one of her co-stars forced her into it as she returned to the hit show.
The reality star, who shot to fame on The Only Way is Essex, is among the former campmates who will all return to the jungle for the new series of spin-off, I’m A Celebrity…South Africa.
The ITV programme, which is returning for a second run and will be fronted by Ant McPartlin and Dec Donnelly, sees former jungle stars from the Australian version of the show take on even more challenges in another country and while they have all already proved they can survive the gruelling bushtucker trials of the jungle, in South Africa, the trials are even tougher.
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Gemma, who quit I’m A Celebrity after 72 hours in 2014, will be giving the challenge show, which has been pre-recorded, another go, will be joined by Olympian Sir Mo Farah, former Gogglebox star Scarlett Moffatt, champion boxer David Haye and actor Adam Thomas.
They’ve also recorded the show alongside football manager Harry Redknapp and soap actress Beverley Callard well as former Pussycat Doll Ashley Roberts, comedian Seann Walsh, pop star Sinitta, Red Dwarf star Craig Charles and ex-footballer Jimmy Bullard.
And following her short-lived stint in the Australian jungle, Gemma has already defended herself for shouting the show’s famous title as she almost quit again. “Harry played a dirty prank on me and I actually fell for it,” Gemma said at the show’s launch.
“He’s a fraudster, he’s so funny. I’m not going to say exactly what happened but I did get him back!” Sitting next to him at the event, she added: “This guy deserves an Oscar because I fully believed him… It led me to say, ‘I’m a Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here!’ He scared me so much, I was like, ‘Nah, I’m outta here! I’m out, that’s it!’”
The 45-year-old also revealed that after the show was announced by ITV today, she nearly pulled out of it but was put in her place by her make-up artist. “It didn’t work out for me the first time around in there and ever since it’s been like this black cloud hanging over my head,” she told The Sun.
“Obviously I’m older now and I just thought, I have to do this. It was one regret that I had that I left. I was absolutely bricking it. I was petrified. My makeup artist slapped me at Heathrow Airport because I actually said I don’t think I can actually go through with this.
“But do you know what? I took a deep breath. I went in strong. And to be honest, I think I shut it down. It’s not the GC in there. It’s Gemma Collins as you’ve never seen her before. You’ll see me vulnerable in there. I was so stripped bare going in there. And because I knew it was so disastrous the time before, I had no chance to back out of any of it.”