A mischievous prank orchestrated by football manager Harry Redknapp on I’m A Celebrity… South Africa almost led to singer Sinitta and TV personality Gemma Collins abandoning the show. The ITV reality series is set to return to screens on Monday, featuring an all-star line-up including Olympian Sir Mo Farah, former Gogglebox star Scarlett Moffatt, and Pussycat Dolls singer Ashley Roberts, all vying for the coveted title of king or queen.
The series, which is pre-recorded, nearly saw Collins quit the series early after falling for a practical joke and declaring the infamous phrase, “I’m a celebrity get me out of here”.
Recalling the prank at a press roundtable, Sinitta said: “I think we’d done really hard trials all day, or some sort of game, so we were physically exhausted.
“We got back and we’re all relieved (that) nothing else can happen now, because they’ve exhausted us, it’s getting dark now it’s getting late, so that must be it, we can relax.
“And Harry (Redknapp) comes in and says, ‘guys, you’re not going to believe this’, and he’s got the board, and he starts reading this awful trial, I think it’s called something like the House Of Hell, Prison Of Hell, or something.”
She said Redknapp told his fellow campmates that the challenge would involve rats and being tied up among other things.
Sinitta continued: “We’re already broken (and) literally before he could finish reading it out, Gemma was like, ‘I’m a celebrity get me out of here’.
“I have to admit, my hand went up that I was like, ‘you know what? me too, I’m too exhausted, gotta go’ – and he was pranking us.”
The Only Way Is Essex star Collins famously appeared on the series in 2014, however, lasted only three days in the Australian jungle.
As a result, former boxer David Haye, who also appears in the upcoming series, did not have high hopes for Collins – however, he praised her for being part of some “real heavy challenges” in the upcoming series.
He said: “She was the one that I was told going into it, that she kind of flaked out the first time around, and I didn’t have high hopes.
“But of all the people watching her go through what she went through, she doesn’t have an ounce of quit in her at all.
“Whatever she did the first time round, she obviously looked back, a few years have gone by, and she’s like, ‘I’m going to give it everything’.
“Fortunately for the show, she did, because she was part of some real heavy challenges that she should be proud of herself.”
The series also stars comedian Seann Walsh, Red Dwarf’s Craig Charles, ex-footballer Jimmy Bullard, Coronation Street star Beverley Callard and actor Adam Thomas.
Hosted by Ant and Dec, the second series will give the public the power to cast their vote for the winner in a live grand final broadcast direct from London, crowning the “ultimate legend 2026”.
I’m A Celebrity… South Africa starts on April 6 at 9pm on ITV1 and airs every weeknight Monday to Friday.
