I’m a Celeb winner Sam Thompson has reacted to reports that Nigel Farage received a whopping £1.5 million for his stint in the jungle, admitting he ‘didn’t have a clue’ what others were getting.
When it was announced that Nigel would be appearing on this year’s series of the ITV reality show, reports soon surfaced that he’d also be landing a mammoth £1.5m pay cheque for his efforts.
While ITV usually remains tight-lipped about celeb payments, sometimes details leak out – like the time The Only Way Is Essex star Gemma Collins was rumoured to be earning £100,000 back in 2014.
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However, after she quit the show just three days in, a representative for the star later revealed she only got a small portion of the fee due to a rule from I’m a Celeb – and that this was ultimately donated to Save the Children.
"I can confirm that the £4,800 fee was the full and final fee that Gemma received for her participation in last year's I'm A Celebrity,” the rep said at the time.
“The show is three weeks long and Gemma was in Australia for five days, therefore she will receive a percentage based on that.”
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Speaking to The Times after returning to the UK, Sam said he didn’t know how much Nigel was supposedly being paid, and struggled to hide his shock as he revealed he’d have happily done the show for nothing.
The Made in Chelsea star said: “Mate, I would have done it for anything! I would have been a very, very easy negotiation. I would have paid them to be on it.
“It wasn't monetary, or a career move, I genuinely wanted to go and eat camel's penis. I wanted to meet Ant [McPartlin] and Dec [Donnelly], they're my heroes, the most iconic people of my life.”
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When he learned about Nigel being paid £1.5m, he added: “Was he? Bloody hell! I didn't have a clue. You could buy five houses for that!”
Despite worrying about ‘annoying’ other contestants with his ‘high energy, Sam said he ‘never had a down day’ while on the show, having won fans over with his upbeat approach.
He added that his victory left him feeling like a ‘competition winner’, having experienced ‘massive imposter syndrome’ alongside his success.
Topics: TV And Film, Celebrity, Im A Celebrity, Sam Thompson
Jess Hardiman