I'm a Celebrity, Get Me Out of Here - just the facts
I'm a Celebrity, Get Me Out of Here! is a UK reality television show in which celebrities live in jungle conditions with few creature comforts. A sixth series of the show, which is filmed in Australia, finished on December 1st on ITV1 in the United Kingdom. Matt Willis is the most recent celebrity to be crowned "King of the Jungle". It is sponsored by UK supermarket chain Iceland, which sees Kerry Katona (series 3 winner) advertising it.
ABC aired one season of an American version in February & March 2003. Two series have also been aired in Germany - entitled Ich bin ein Star - Holt mich hier raus. There are also French & Dutch versions of the show called respectively Je suis une célébrité, sortez-moi de là! & Bobo's in de bush.
The main UK show is hosted by Ant & Dec, with a subsidiary behind-the-scenes show hosted by Mark Durden-Smith. In the US John Lehr presented proceedings, the German hosts are Dirk Bach & Sonja Zietlow. In return for their appearance on the show the celebrities are asked to nominate a charity to which the producers, Granada Television, make donations. The celebrities themselves are also paid a fee (reported to be £25,000 for UK competitors) to compensate them for possible loss of earnings while they are in the jungle. The producers of the show keep the precise details of the celebrities' contracts very private, prompting much speculation from the tabloid media. The money is raised by allowing viewers to vote by phone, text message or the "red button" (a colloquialism popular in the UK for the major satellite TV platform's interactive service) for the celebrity they would like to complete a "Bushtucker Trial"—a physical task usually involving snakes, spiders or other creepy-crawlies found in the jungle—and, later in each series, to vote for the celebrity they would like to see win the show. The last remaining celebrity after all others have been evicted is the winner of the show.
Winners of the show include Tony Blackburn, Phil Tufnell, Kerry Katona, Joe Pasquale, Carol Thatcher, Matt Willis (UK), Cris Judd (US), Costa Cordalis & Désirée Nick (Germany), Richard Virenque (France), Walter Nudo, Sergio Muñiz & Lory Del Santo (Italy).
Popularity
& criticism
The show is undoubtedly popular, at least within Europe. The
finales of the second & third UK series were seen by 12.5 & 15.3 million
people respectively—well over half of all people watching television in the
country at the time of day in both cases. The show also helped singer Peter Andre
resurrect his music career in 2004. However, it has come under fire from some
critics on two counts:
The first complaint is that the show is trashy TV,
consisting of has-been or never-were celebrities trying to revive their careers.
The UK's Secretary of State for Culture at the time, Tessa Jowell, was the most
high-profile person to criticise the show. In an interview with the Financial
Times during the second British series, she said, "If they weren't mostly—save
their blushes—has-been celebrities, there might be more interest [...] I
think that if we saw many more programming hours taken over by reality TV, I hope
you'd begin to see a viewers' revolt."
The second criticism of the show
is that it pretends to be more wild than it actually is. Audiences are left with
the impression that the celebrities are in the Australian Outback far from any
major settlement, whereas they are actually close to a luxury hotel & about
30min drive to the Gold Coast, Queensland. Further, the camp site in which the
celebrities stay appears to be open to the elements but is largely covered by
sheets above the view of the cameras. In an episode of the British show, a celebrity
had to swim in a swamp apparently infested with crocodiles. Marksmen were shown
ready to shoot the animals if they attacked.
Controversy over voting arose during the sixth series of the show when Toby Anstis was eliminated. It was revealed that both he & Eastenders actor a Dean Gaffney had polled the bottom two amount of votes & that viewers had to vote again to save their favourite of the two. However many fans argue that this was not made clear. In the following days The Sun ran an article that revealed Toby's eviction had been the result of a mix-up which happened on the interactive "red button" vote - people normally use this to keep their favourites in the show, but it asked which one they wanted to vote out instead of in. When ITV bosses realised their mistake, they shut the service down, but Toby's eviction has already sparked fury amongst fans.
CBS,
broadcaster of the popular American reality show Survivor, unsuccessfully sued
ABC & Granada TV over the programme, alleging similarities. Given the poor
ratings of the show in America, leading to only a single U.S. series being produced,
the failure of the lawsuit proved moot.
UK participants & series notes
Series 1, 8 contestants, August 25, 2002 - September 8, 2002:
Tony Blackburn (winner),
radio DJ First I'm a celebrity winner,
Tara Palmer-Tomkinson (runner up), It
Girl
Christine Hamilton (third), wife of disgraced Tory MP Neil Hamilton &
self confessed battleaxe
Nell McAndrew, model
Rhona Cameron, comedian
Darren Day, singer, actor
Uri Geller, "mind magician" ,
Nigel
Benn, boxer
Memorable for:
Arguments involving Nigel Benn, Darren Day,
Tara Palmer-Tomkinson, Christine Hamilton & Rhona Cameron.
Cameron's 'Sometimes'
speech.
Tony Blackburn's obsession with logs.
Tara & Darren's relationship.
Uri Geller's fondness of the ladies.
Series 2, 10 contestants, April 29, 2003 - May 12, 2003:
Phil Tufnell (winner), cricketer
John Fashanu
(runner up), ex-footballer
Linda Barker (third), presenter of DIY television
programmes
Wayne Sleep, dancer
Antony Worrall Thompson, TV chef
Toyah
Willcox, 80s pop star
Catalina Guirado, model
Chris Bisson, actor
Danniella
Westbrook, actress (walked out)
Siân Lloyd, TV weather forecaster
Memorable
for:
Eight contestants brought up to ten.
Camp threatening to walkout
of the actual show over lack of food.
John Fashanu's numerous Bushtucker Trials.
Wayne Sleep falling through his bed & hurting his ankle.
Drunken antics
amongst certain celebrities at night. Phil Tufnell being a annoying, in my view
Series 3, 10 contestants, January 26, 2004 - February 9, 2004:
Kerry Katona (winner),
ex-Atomic Kitten singer & TV presenter
Jennie Bond (runner up), former
royal correspondent for the BBC
Peter André (third), singer
Lord
Brocket, aristocrat
Jordan (Katie Price), glamour model
Alex Best, estranged
wife of the late ex-football legend George Best
Neil Ruddock, ex-footballer
John Lydon, ex-Sex Pistols & Public Image Ltd frontman (walked out)
Diane
Modahl, athlete
Mike Read, disc jockey
Memorable for:
Jordan &
Peter's relationship beginning.
John Lydon's living up to his image, saying
the "c" word live on national television, a couple of days before walking
out.
Lord Brocket's fondness of the ladies: when he washed down Alex Best
after her trial.
Conflicts between Lord Brocket & Jennie Bond.
Peter
Andre's insania song.
Series 4, 11 contestants, November 21, 2004 - December 6, 2004:
Joe Pasquale (winner), comedian
Paul Burrell (runner up), butler
to Diana, Princess of Wales,
Fran Cosgrave (third), nightclub owner, ex-boyfriend
of Atomic Kitten singer Natasha Hamilton & model Jodie Marsh
Janet Street-Porter,
journalist & TV producer
Sophie Anderton, model
Sheila Ferguson, Three
Degrees singer
Antonio Fargas, actor
Vic Reeves, comedian (late arrival)
Nancy Sorrell, model, wife of Vic Reeves
Brian Harvey, ex-East 17 singer
(walked out)
Natalie Appleton, All Saints & Appleton singer (walked out)
Memorable for:
Natalie Appleton's fear of trials & jungle life.
Known for fearfully crying "I touched a tree".
Joe Pasquale's relationship
with the camp emus.
Janet Street Porter's relationship with the former Butler
Paul Burrel.
Paul Burrel's Bushtucker Trials.
The first time a celebrity
has been added a few days into the running of the show (Vic Reeve's entered camp
on the fourth day).
Series 5, 12 contestants, November 20, 2005 - December 5, 2005:
Carol Thatcher (winner), journalist & daughter of Margaret
Thatcher
Sheree Murphy (runner up), actress most famous for Emmerdale (Tricia
Dingle) & marrying Harry Kewell
Sid Owen (third), actor most famous for
EastEnders (Ricky Butcher)
Jimmy Osmond, television presenter & singer,
brother of Donny
Bobby Ball, one half of a comedy double act with Tommy Cannon
(late arrival)
Antony Costa, former Blue singer
Jenny Frost, Atomic Kitten
singer
Kimberley Davies, actress most famous for Neighbours (Annalise Hartman)
(left due to injury)
David Dickinson, television presenter
Jilly Goolden,
food & drink critic
Tommy Cannon, one half of a comedy double act with
Bobby Ball (late arrival)
Elaine Lordan, actress most famous for EastEnders
(Lynne Hobbs) (left due to illness)
Memorable for:
Carol Thatcher urinating
in camp during the night & not admitting to the act.
Sheree Murphy's persistent
embarrassment of husband Harry Kewell.
Elain Lordan's & Kimberley Davies'
removal from camp due to medical problems.
Late arrival of Tommy Cannon &
Bobby Ball.
Jimmy Osmond's teddy-bear stuffed with contraband.
Series 6, 12 contestants, November 13, 2006 - December 1, 2006:
Matt Willis (winner),
former member of pop group Busted.
Myleene Klass (runner up), classical pianist,
TV presenter, & former member of the British reality TV pop group Hear'Say.
Jason Donovan (third), Australian actor & singer, most famous for appearing
in Neighbours.
David Gest, American television producer & concert promoter,
ex-husband of Liza Minnelli
Dean Gaffney, played Robbie Jackson on EastEnders
(late arrival)
Jan Leeming, TV presenter & newsreader.
Malandra Burrows,
played Kathy Glover on Emmerdale (late arrival).
Phina Oruche, actress in
Footballers' Wives.
Lauren Booth, Former model, journalist & sister-in-law
of UK prime minister Tony Blair .
Faith Brown, actress, comedienne & impressionist.
Scott Henshall, Fashion designer.
Toby Anstis, radio presenter & former
CBBC presenter.
Memorable for:
Camp being split into two separate camps
by gender & then competing against each other in the Bushtucker Trials.
The
camp's frustration over Jan Leeming's complaints.
Jan Leeming being constantly
voted to do the trials.
Scott Henshall's & Phina Oruche's fight over the
'Celebrity Chest'.
David Gest's tall stories & sense of humour, proving
surprisingly popular with the public.
Dean Gaffney's late arrival & his
live Bushtucker Trial, which caused him to continually scream & almost vomit
several times. (Some critics complained that sending him in to this, with no warning
or preparation, was cruel).
Matt Willis' final trial, where he ate a Kangaroo
anus & a Crocodile penis, as well as 3 other jungle delicacies. This trial
was largely considered to be what swung the final vote in his favour, having entered
the final as the outsider with bookmakers.
Myleene Klass showering in a bikini.
Series 7, Ant & Dec have expressed interest in returning to the jungle for the seventh series of I'm A Celebrity Get Me Out of Here in late 2007.
International
participants
US series 1, 10 contestants, aired nightly February 19, 2003 - March 5, 2003 on ABC. John Lehr was host.
Cris Judd (winner), dancer,
former husband of actress/singer Jennifer Lopez
Maria Conchita Alonso, actress
Tyson Beckford, male model, actor
Downtown Julie Brown, television host,
former MTV VJ
Bruce Jenner, Olympic decathlon champion
Robin Leach, television
host
"Stuttering" John Melendez, television personality
Melissa
Rivers, television personality, daughter of comedienne Joan Rivers
Nikki Schieler
Ziering, model
Alana Stewart, former wife of actor George Hamilton & singer
Rod Stewart
German series 1, Ich bin ein Star, holt mich hier raus!
The first series aired in 2004 on RTL. Sonja Zietlow & Dirk Bach hosted. There were 10 contestants:
Costa Cordalis (winner), singer
Antonia Langsdorf,
TV astrologer
Carlo Thränhardt, former high jumper
Caroline Beil,
television presenter
Daniel Küblböck, singer
Dustin Semmelrogge,
actor
Lisa Fitz, comedian
Mariella Ahrens, model
Susan Stahnke, former
television news host
Werner Böhm, singer
German series 2 The second series aired in 2005 on RTL. Sonja Zietlow & Dirk Bach hosted. There were 10 contestants:
Désirée Nick (winner), comedian
Carsten
Spengemann, television presenter & actor
Dolly Buster, former porn star
Fabrice Morvan, singer, one half of Milli Vanilli
Harry Wijnvoord, television
presenter
Heydi Nunez Gomez, model
Isabell Varell, actress & singer
Jimmy Hartwig, former soccer player
Nadja Abd el Farrag, former long-time
girlfriend of musician Dieter Bohlen
Willi Herren, actor
French series 1, Je suis une célébrité, sortez-moi de là! is the French version. It featured French celebrities living in jungle conditions with few creature comforts. The first series of the show was broadcast live in prime time from Teresópolis Brazil, & aired on TF1, starting on April 14, 2006.
The French show was hosted by Jean-Pierre Foucault & Christophe Dechavanne.
12 contestants, April 14, 2006 - April 28, 2006:
Richard
Virenque (winner)
Filip Nikolic (runner up)
Loana (third)
Marielle
Goitschel
Prince Charles-Philippe d'Orléans
Benjamin Bove
Indra
Omar Harfouch
Satya Oblet
Delphine de Turckheim
Agnès Soral
Sonia Dubois
Bushtucker trials Every day one of the celebrities is chosen to do a bushtucker trial. The bushtucker trials give the celebrities a chance to win food for the camp by collecting stars in various challenges. In most cases, each star is worth one meal for the camp. These challenges have included: Eating Aboriginal delicacies (such as tomatoey grubs), eating kangaroo genitalia, getting covered in various bugs & Paragliding whilst trying to catch stars. One of the most famous events on the UK version is when Paul Burrel put his hand thorough the many different holes in his bush tucker trial catching bugs & stars in the 2004 edition. Many people who do badly on the trials feel bad for their group, ashamed that the group is hungry. However, series 6 contestant Scott was defiant, apparently not caring at his abysmal trials, although his group went hungry. Occasionally, e.g. on Thursdays in UK Series 6, there were two Bushtucker Trials on the same day. The last 3 celebrities to remain in the jungle, all have to do a Bushtucker Trial on their last day.
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My poem
i ma celebrity get me
i ma celebrity get me out of
here
im a celebrity
i ma celebrity get me out of here 2005
i ma celebrity
get me out of here 2006
i ma celebrity uk
itv i ma celebrity