ITV I’m A Celeb’s Rev Richard Coles’s wild past from three-day bender to antics in Ibiza

As the final of approaches, only three contestants remain in the jungle, including Reverend Richard Coles. He joined the camp late alongside Maura Higgins.

Richard’s journey to the clergy was not straightforward. He first gained fame as one half of the synth-pop duo The Communards before finding his faith in the 1990s.

Born in Northamptonshire, Richard realised his sexuality while singing in a public school choir but didn’t come out until his late teens.

At 16, he came out to his parents, and after battling depression and a suicide attempt, he met Jimmy Somerville, then a member of pop band Bronski Beat. When Jimmy left Bronski Beat, he teamed up with Richard to form The Communards.

Their chart-topping hit Don’t Leave Me This Way was the best-selling single of 1986. Amidst their success, Richard and Jimmy indulged in a wild lifestyle filled with drugs and parties.

Frequent arguments led to the band’s breakup in 1988, but Richard continued his partying ways, especially in Ibiza.

He has shared tales of his past with his fellow campmates, including a story about buying a speedboat while intoxicated, which he never used and doesn’t know its whereabouts to this day.

After returning to the UK, Richard knew it was time to address his drug use. He recalled a pivotal moment: “One morning I was on the Tube after I’d been out for three days.”

With his appearance dishevelled from days without care, he said: “I was covered in dirt, smelt and looked a right state. People were looking at me with a mixture of pity and horror. Then I saw my reflection in the window opposite and thought, ‘Time to get a grip’.”

Despite his initial skepticism, a psychiatrist’s recommendation led him to speak with a priest, sparking curiosity within him about spiritual matters. “I suppose I’ve always had a very genuine curiosity about religion,” Richard admitted.

His exploration led him to write for the Catholic Herald and pursue a theology degree at King’s College London in 1990.

That very year, during a mass at St Alban’s church, he experienced a profound spiritual awakening, solidifying his faith. After spending 10 years as a Roman Catholic, he felt drawn back to Anglicanism by 2001.

His dedication resulted in his ordination into the Anglican priesthood four years later. In 2011, Richard embraced the role of vicar at St Mary the Virgin in Finedon, Northamptonshire, before retiring in 2022.

In his personal life, Richard started a relationship with David Oldham, also an Anglican priest, in 2007. The pair solidified their union with a civil partnership in 2010, with David adopting Richard’s surname.

Tragically, David died aged 42 in 2019, but Richard only disclosed two years later that the cause was alcoholism.

In his book, The Madness Of Grief: A Memoir Of Love And Loss, Richard shared the heart-wrenching details of his profound loss. He described the ordeal of watching David “destroy himself” as “tough” and recounted his exhaustive efforts to help him.

In June 2023, Richard disclosed on ITV’s Lorraine that he had found new love in actor Richard Cant, son of the beloved late actor and children’s TV host Brian Cant.