Katherine Ryan slams I'm A Celeb as she boycotts the show
Topics: Celebrity, Katherine Ryan, TV And Film, Im A Celebrity
Jess Hardiman
Featured Image Credit: Instagram/@kathbum/ITV
Topics: Celebrity, Katherine Ryan, TV And Film, Im A Celebrity
Katherine Ryan has slammed I’m a Celebrity, saying she’s boycotting the show this year for a very specific reason.
This year we’ve got a mixed bag of contestants, with everyone from Britney Spears’ sister Jamie Lynn through to British TV stars like Josie Gibson, Sam Thompson and Fred Sirieix all living it up in the jungle.
Sadly, food critic Grace Dent had to call it quits on ‘medical grounds’ a few days ago, telling her campmates that she felt heartbroken over the shock departure.
A letter from Grace was read out to her former campmates, with Hollyoaks actor Nick Pickard telling them on her behalf: "My Dear campmates, I'm so sorry to let you down. I have left the camp for medical reasons.
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"My heart is broken, I have loved and enjoyed getting to know you all. You've held me up and it's been a pleasure being your friend through this experience.
"Leaving you all at this stage will be one of the saddest things in my life. I love you all. Your friend, Miss Grace Dent."
It then looked like celeb numbers were dwindling even further when Nella had to be seen by a medic, but thankfully ITV confirmed she’d be returning to camp.
However, the star-studded lineup hasn’t been enough to convince comedian Katherine Ryan to watch – in fact, it’s done the exact opposite.
Speaking to the Metro, she revealed she’d actually been approached to appear on the show previously, but decided to turn the opportunity down as she had commitments as a parent.
"They've checked my availability in the past maybe, but I've always had small children and I wouldn't be away from them in Australia for 30 days, I just wouldn't,” she explained.
Katherine went on to slam the show for using divisive political figures like Nigel Farage, a contestant in this year’s series, and Matt Hancock, who went into the jungle in 2022.
“I vehemently am against glorifying people like Matt Hancock and Nigel Farage and reducing them to light entertainment fodder when I think that they’re very dangerous people who have directly hurt lots of families,” she said.
“I don’t think that’s a joke, for me, so I wouldn’t be watching. I didn’t watch last year. I take politics quite seriously.”
She wasn’t the only person kicking off about Farage’s appearance this year, with ITV forced to release a statement on the matter ahead of the show’s launch.
The channel said: "I'm A Celebrity has always featured a diverse cast from all areas of public life and has a history of featuring political figures throughout its 20 years on screen.
"As with any camp mate, viewers are invited to form their own opinions when the show begins on Sunday."