Featured Image Credit: Dan Kitwood/Getty Images/ITV
Topics: Celebrity, Im A Celebrity, Entertainment
Britt Jones
Topics: Celebrity, Im A Celebrity, Entertainment
Celebs have entered the jungle, and now that Coleen Rooney is taking on trials and challenges, her arch nemesis Rebekah Vardy is set to make the big bucks.
We all remember the 2019 scandal known as the ‘Wagatha Christie’ escapade, but for those of you who missed out on the absolute mayhem, here’s a run down.
Essentially, it all began when Rooney outed Vardy over Instagram and claimed that she had been leaking information on the former WAG.
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Because of her sting operation (which was genius), she was then dubbed ‘Wagatha Christie’, a play on the fictional character, Agatha Christie, who is a diddly old lass who solves crimes.
The pair then went on to take it to court, and in 2022, a judge ruled it was ‘substantially true’, ordering Vardy to pay 90 per cent of Rooney’s legal costs.
But even though it’s been a few years, the pair clearly still have bad blood.
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Well, Vardy does at least.
However, she will be making money from it, after it was rumoured that Rooney is the highest paid star to appear in I’m A Celebrity.
So, how will Vardy cash in on Rooney’s stint?
Well, she's been named as The Sun's newspaper columnist for this season of I'm a Celeb for starters, meaning she's being paid write about Rooney and co.
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Actively wanting Rooney to struggle, she told the paper that she wants to see her rival eat ‘penis or humble pie’.
Even though she’s in Dubai with her footballer husband Jamie, she’s going to be watching the show.
She said to the newspaper: "But if people really want us to meet up before that, then ITV should get me in that jungle as a special guest. What are they scared of? Confrontation? But isn’t that what the show’s all about? It’s about viewing figures."
Not only that but she’s also trademarked the term 'Wagatha Christie'.
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ITV could have to pay Vardy because of the "Wagatha Christie" trademark.
It was comedian Dan Atkinson who created the phrase when the drama was originally kicking off.
His reaction to her trademark was put forward in The Guardian last year: "When I found out I was initially dumbfounded. I wasn’t even aware it was possible to trademark a joke. If jokes start getting bought up then British humour has a bleak future."
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As per The Mirror, the trademark covers broadcast and maybe even some usage of the phrase.
Does this mean that any time someone calls Rooney ‘Wagatha Christie’, Vardy gets paid?
Maybe?
Ant and Dec notoriously made a Vardy joke minutes into the show, joking: "It’ll be nice for Coleen to face a trial that doesn’t involve Rebekah Vardy."
Dean McCullough also went on to call Rooney ‘Wagatha Christie’ after meeting her.
But Vardy didn’t seem bothered as she wrote online: "That feeling when you are living rent free in people's heads."
We’ll see what comes of Rooney’s stint and whether Vardy makes the big bucks.
Tyla contacted ITV for comment.