I’m A Celebrity Winners: Where are they now?
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There has been a series of I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here! on our screens annually for the past 19 years, each of them giving us either a King or Queen of the Jungle. Winning the show often propels these stars onto bigger and better things. The 2020 series will begin very soon, albeit from Wales rather than Australia. In honour of the show’s return to our screens, we’ve looked back at the previous winners to see what they’re up to now and to see if spending their time living in the Australian jungle actually paid off for them.
Tony Blackburn
The first King of the Jungle was veteran disc jockey Tony Blackburn. The former host of two 1960s pirate UK radio stations has recently been caught up in controversy. In February 2016, he was sacked by the BBC after he failed to fully co-operate with the Jimmy Saville inquiry. However, he returned to the BBC in 2016 and aged 76, he is still broadcasting for them, presenting Sounds of the 60s on BBC Radio 2.
Phil Tufnell
“Tuffers” retired from cricket after the 2002 professional season ended in order to participate in the second series of I’m a Celeb. Since then, he has been enjoying his retirement, appearing regularly on TV and radio. Since 2008, Tufnell has been a team captain on A Question of Sport, the most recent permanent addition to the roster, opposing Matt Dawson. He regularly appears on BBC Radio’s Test Match Special and is part of the Tuffers and Vaughan Cricket Show, with Michael Vaughan. In 2015, Tufnell also competed in ITV’s Get Your Act Together and The Jump on Channel 4.
Kerry Katona
One of the original members of Atomic Kitten, Kerry Katona has had plenty of ups and downs since winning I’m a Celeb in 2004. She starred in a reality TV series, named after her, which was shown on MTV and ITV2 from 2007 to 2010. Most notably, she reunited with the other members of Atomic Kitten in series one of ITV2’s The Big Reunion. She’s been declared bankrupt twice since appearing on the show and she’s had numerous personal issues and legal battles too.
Joe Pasquale
The jungle king in series four, English comedian Joe Pasquale, perhaps best known for his high-pitched voice, has seen an increase in screen time since his appearance on the show. Most recently, Pasquale narrated Greatest Celebrity Wind-Ups Ever! on Channel 5 and played the part of Smee in Peter Pan at the Theatre Royal Nottingham
Carol Thatcher
Daughter of Margaret, Carol Thatcher walked into a contributory role on the BBC One magazine programme The One Show after being crowned Queen of the Jungle. She held the position for three years until the BBC removed her for ‘racist’ remarks she had made about Jo-Wilfried Tsonga while at the 2009 Australian Open.
Matt Willis
Like Kerry Katona, Willis has since reunited with his former bandmates after a stay in the jungle. Busted released their first single in 12 years in March 2016. The group also joined forces with McFly to tour as McBusted. He’s also hosted various ITV shows, played a part in Eastenders and married Emma Griffths since leaving the jungle, he’s been a busy boy!
Christopher Biggins
The infectious Christopher Biggins has seen success mostly in theatre since winning the seventh series of I’m a Celeb. He performed, most notably, in Wolverhampton’s 2010 Aladdin pantomime and as star guest narrator in The Rocky Horror Show throughout the UK in the same year. Biggins has recently taken part in Celebrity MasterChef on BBC One, as well as making appearances on Catchphrase and Celebrity Big Brother. He was removed from the CBB house after some of the comments he made were deemed to be highly offensive.
Joe Swash
Since being crowned King of the Jungle in 2008, Joe Swash has presented I’m A Celebrity: Extra Camp as well as plenty of other shows. Essentially, if you turn on ITV during the daytime, there’s a very, very good chance that you’ll see Joe Swash! Joe is now dating Stacey Solomon, and the pair of a baby together.
Gino D'Acampo
The celebrity chef from Italy perhaps owes much of his commercial success to I’m a Celeb. After winning the show in 2009, he has appeared regularly on ITV’s This Morning and found further success, pairing with Melanie Sykes, presenting the daytime cookery programme Let’s Do Lunch With Gino and Mel. Gino has released plenty of books, opened more restaurants and been all over TV since winning in the jungle.
Stacey Solomon
Only a year after finishing third on X-Factor in 2009, Stacy Soloman found herself winning I’m a Celeb. The former Queen of the Jungle took her time when it came to making music. She released her debut album, Shy, in spring of 2015 and has most recently released her second single off the album, My Big Mistake. She is also on board to host the newest series of I’m A Celebrity: Extra Camp with her boyfriend Joe Swash, and she’s a regular on the Loose Women panel too.
Dougie Poynter
Another member of a band! As well as continuing with his music, Poynter also made his breakthrough onto the fashion scene, making his runway debut in January 2016. He has also served as a guest fashion writer for Vault Magazine, where he was able to provide an insider’s perspective and even modelled in the February issue of Glamour alongside his then-girlfriend Ellie Goulding.
Charlie Brooks
Charlie Brooks, aka, Janine from EastEnders, as you probably know her, won people over in the twelfth series of I’m a Celeb, showing us that, unlike her on-screen character, she had a friendly and likeable side. After a brief spell back in Eastenders, Charlie has been part of a few theatre productions, she has narrated Botched Up Bodies on Channel 5 and released her own fitness DVDs.
Kian Egan
Westlife’s Kian stole the hearts of many and was crowned King of the Jungle in 2013. In 2015, along with Angela Griffin, Kian presented Fat Pets: Slimmer of the Year on ITV. Just before that, though, and not long after leaving the Jungle, Kian released his debut solo album in 2014. The album was a relative success in the UK and Ireland. He’s now back working with Westlife.
Carl Fogarty
Carl “Foggy” Fogarty swapped his leathers for a gown as he received an Honorary Fellowship from the University of Central Lancashire. Foggy added the illustrious award to his MBE, four World Superbike titles and, of course, his crown from his time in the jungle. In the summer of 2016, Fogarty also took part in a trek through Iceland to raise money for children’s charity NSPCC.
Vicky Pattison
After spending three years on Geordie Shore, reigning I’m a Celeb champion Vicky Pattison spent the summer of 2016 as a panellist on the ITV daytime chat show Loose Women. In September, she left the role and announced that she would be presenting I’m A Celebrity: Extra Camp. Pattison was also a team captain on the Channel 5 show It’s Not Me, It’s You and even returned to the jungle to appear on the Australian version of I’m a Celeb.
Scarlett Moffatt
Since winning the 16th series of I’m a Celeb, Scarlett Moffatt has kept busy. She has had a regular role on Ant & Dec’s Saturday Night Takeaway, amongst her other TV presenting duties.
Georgia "Toff" Toffolo
Georgia Toffolo aka Toff, released her first book’ Always Smiling’ in September 2018. She is now a regular on ITV’s This Morning.
Harry Redknapp
Since winning in the jungle two years ago, Harry Redknapp has popped up on TV quite a bit. Amongst other things, he’s advertised a variety of products and was part of “Harry’s Heroes: The Full English”, an ITV show where he managed a group of ex-England players in a bid to help them get fit again.
Jacqueline Jossa
Since becoming Queen of the Jungle last year, actress Jacqueline Jossa has kept busy with a clothing range. She’s recently announced that she’ll be making her West End debut in A Christmas Carol.
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