I'm A Celebrity - The Usual Suspects

The contestants for this year’s I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here, which starts this Sunday, have been revealed and as per usual they are a mixed bunch of former soap and chart stars, TV presenters and the odd glamour model or two. They fall into a variety of categories in terms of the word celebrity from ‘who’s your wan’ to ‘never saw him before in my life’ to ‘I thought he was dead’? We have trawled through the list and gathered all the important facts and figures so here we go.

George Hamilton (actor) If I am not mistaken Mr Hamilton was the original Gorgeous George – that is before someone truly gorgeous (Mr Clooney) stole that moniker. The 70-year-old Hollywood actor is probably best known on these shores for his perma-tan and his work on Dynasty but he has a long list of acting credits to his name including Godfather 3. I did mention his participation to a colleague, who I have a few years on, and she only vaguely had heard of him so he may struggle for votes come eviction time. Apparently he has not told any of his Hollywood friends that he is going into the jungle – they think he is on a yacht sailing around the south of France. He is thinking of sneaking a silk robe and a martini into the jungle with him. Good luck with that one George.

Lucy Benjamin (actress) This girl played one of the most miserable characters on ‘Eastenders’ for years so I reckon the jungle will be a walk in the park after being tangled up with Phil Mitchell. 39-year-old Benjamin played Lucy Fowler on the soap for five years but left in 2002 and returned briefly in 2003 to coincide with the temporary departure of Steve McFadden from the show. She previously dabbled with celeb reality television in 2006 when she won The X Factor: Battle of the Stars. A mother of one she is missing her daughter’s fourth birthday to take part in the show and says her greatest fears are flying insects, birds, butterflies and moths. Somebody has told her where she’s going I presume!

Gino D’Acampo (Chef) It must be mandatory for the programme to include a chef to work some magic with the beans and rice and this year it’s 34-year-old D’Acampo. He is a regular on Saturday morning cookery shows as well as This Morning. A specialist in Italian cooking he has his own range of pasta sauces and olive oils as well as his recipe books. I suspect his involvement will be limited to stirring the beans and praying the baskets being dropped in each night will include some decent ingredients.

Camilla Dallerup (pro-dancer) I am a major Strictly fan and was amazed that Camilla abandoned ship after winning the show last year with actor Tom Chambers but it looks as if the jungle invite came at just the right time for the 35-year-old. Apparently she is hoping to use her dancing skills to entertain her campmates but I imagine that could become very irritating very quickly. Newly engaged to actor Kevin Sacre the Danish dancer has also expressed a fear of creepy crawlies. Seriously ladies!

Samantha Fox (former glamour model) Former glamour model Sam was the queen of Page 3 during the 1980s making her Britain’s premiere sex symbol at the time. She then went on to have a short-lived career as a pop singer and she is remembered (for all the wrong reasons) for presenting the BRIT Awards in 1989 with Mick Fleetwood. She recently announced that she is to marry her long-time girlfriend and manager Myra Stratton.

Stuart Manning (actor)  Now this lad definitely falls into the category of WHO?? Hollyoaks seems to have an enormous cast because current and former members seem to turn up all over the place (there are two in Strictly currently!). They generally look amazing and are all planning a move from Hollyoaks to Hollywood! Manning has just left the series so watch this space to see if his jungle stint leads to bigger and better things.

 
Colin McAllister & Justin Ryan (TV presenters) Sorry lads you don’t justify separate entries yet! This real-life couple has featured in a variety of television shows going back to 2003. As far as I can figure out they are chiefly decorators who have featured in the ‘take a wreck of a house and make it fabulous’ genre of programming. I enjoyed their first outing ‘The Million Pound Property Experiment’. They have brought the concept of Good Cop, Bad Cop to decorating and anyone who has seen them in action will be left in no doubt as to who is the Bad Cop here. Expect plenty of minor domestics and drama to come.

Sabrina Washington (singer) I have never heard of her! Sorry Sabrina. Apparently she was a member of Mis-Teeq – now I have heard of them. Alesha Dixon was also a member and I am sure she could tell Sabrina a thing or two about what participating in a celebrity reality TV show can do to revive a flagging career. Who knows this time next year, 31-year-old Sabrina could be a judge on a prime-time Saturday night television show and embroiled in a row over ageism at the BBC. Having looked at the pics I fear Sabrina may have some difficultly maintaining her fabulous hair do!

 
Jimmy White (Snooker player) Can you believe Jimmy is only 47-year-old? He seems to have been hanging around the green baize of the snooker table for years now. He is one of the game’s most successful players in terms of titles won and he has been called a sporting legend. Apparently he is afraid of snakes so yet again he is in bother.

Kim Woodburn (Queen of clean) Kim will be bringing her zeal for domestic chores to the jungle. Either that or she will just say ‘what’s the point’ and embrace the muck. I’m betting on the latter. I will be intrigued to see how she will maintain her hairstyle in the jungle. I am wondering if that bun really is her hair or a solid object which she sticks on each day. Having seen her exploits on How Clean Is Your House?, I suspect she may prove a little bossy in the confines of the camp so they could be some fireworks ahead.

So that’s our lot currently although it is no secret that Miss Price is due to make her entrance a week later than the rest of the contestants. The fact that she is reportedly being paid truck-loads more cash than the rest should make for an interesting dynamic.

Let the games commence!

Bree Treacy