winner Phil Tufnell has waded in on whether politicians should be on the ITV reality show, saying he “doesn’t particularly perceive politicians as celebrities.”
The former English cricketer, who won the show in 2003, spoke exclusively with Express Online on behalf of and had his say on why the likes of Matt Hancock and have appeared on the show.
“Yeah, that’s a bit of a tricky one isn’t it. I’m not 100% sure. I’m not sure about politics, it’s quite personal. I suppose they can pick anyone to go in can’t they, it’s a free country,” he admitted.
“But I don’t particularly perceive politicians as celebrities. I see them as working Members of Parliament. To be fair, perhaps they should be working on the country instead of spending their time in the jungle.”
Last year, Nigel made headlines when it was revealed that he’d been paid £1.5 million to enter the Australian jungle.
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Nigel Farage appeared on the show last year and came in 3rd place (Image: ITV)
He lasted right up until the final, where he came in 3rd place. Nigel was roughly paid £68,180.00 per episode, which is a whopping £2,840 per hour.
Former health secretary Matt Hancock took part in the 2022 series and was paid £320,000 to appear on the show. It was later unveiled that he donated 3 per cent of his TV fee to charity.
Meanwhile, Coleen Rooney is reportedly being paid a record £1.5 million fee for her appearance on this year’s edition of the jungle reality show, following her infamous Wagatha Christie battle with Rebekah Vardy.
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Former health secretary Matt Hancock appeared on the show in 2022 (Image: ITV)
Coleen was unsuccessfully sued by Jamie Vardy’s wife Rebekah, 42, in the ‘Wagatha Christie’ libel showdown.
It came after she named her account as the source of leaked stories to the press from her private account and Rebekah was ordered to pay 90 per cent of Coleen’s legal costs.
Speaking about the trial in a documentary in Disney+, she said: “It caused anxiety and there were lots of tears. I have reactive arthritis. I’ve had it previously, but this situation brought it on a lot more.
“It stripped me of my character, and I didn’t want to socialise with people. I was completely in my own world. It was not a nice place to be.”