Kelly Brook’s Six-Day Fail on BGT: Amanda Holden’s Comments Sparked Feud with Ant and Dec

When Kelly Brook entered the I’m A Celebrity Jungle on Sunday night it wasn’t the critters, skydive or measly portions she was dreading the most… it was a reunion with Ant and Dec. 

For Kelly has made no secret of the fact she still holds a grudge against the show’s presenters Ant McPartlin and Declan Donnelly, following a 16-year feud that was sparked by her short-lived stint on Britain’s Got Talent. 

She was famously on the judging panel for just six days in 2009 before it was alleged Ant and Dec got her fired because she didn’t know what they did on the show, leading to a ‘clash of egos’.

The model and actress insisted they had thwarted her career, saying after the axing: ‘There was nothing I could do in this country after Britain’s Got Talent. 

‘The people at ITV were telling me that I had upset Ant and Dec and that was it.’

However, while Ant and Dec have been blamed for her getting the axe, fellow judge Amanda Holden hinted that the writing was already on the wall for any young females who were put forward to join herself, Simon Cowell and Piers Morgan on the judging panel. 

Speaking to the Mirror about the lineup before Kelly was appointed, she admitted: ‘I love that it’s just me and the boys. There’s lots of flirting – they’re two naughty boys. 

‘I said to Simon, “If you ever wheel in anyone younger than me, I’ll kill you! I’d rather leave the show.”‘ 

Yet mere weeks after making the comments, Simon hired Kelly – who is nine years Amanda’s junior – making her the first ever fourth judge. 

When she was let go, it was claimed it was because having four judges made the format ‘too complicated’.  

Three years later, Alesha Dixon joined the panel, with Amanda seemingly making a dig at Kelly’s intelligence. 

Discussing Alesha’s new role, she mused: ‘You’ll have to talk to Simon about Alesha, he booked her, but I think she’s probably got something else – a brain.’

Yet there seems to be no bad blood between Amanda and Kelly, who now work together on Heart FM. 

The same cannot be said for Kelly and Ant and Dec, however.  

In their 2010 autobiography, Dec was candid about the feud – insisting he could not understand why Kelly had been recruited on to BGT.

He wrote in his memoir, Ooh! What a Lovely Pair: Our Story: ‘Kelly looked nervous, so I told her it was going to be great fun and to just relax…

‘She nodded, then looked at me and said, “And what do you do on the show?”, I looked at Simon, who was sat next to me, he turned to Kelly and said, “Kelly, you have seen the show, haven’t you?” To which she replied, “Yeah… well, bits”.’

‘I don’t want to sound like an egomaniac, but the last person who said, “And what do you do?” was the Queen when I met her at the party for ITV’s fiftieth anniversary.’

Further on in their book, the duo confessed they were ‘annoyed’ they hadn’t been consulted about Kelly joining the show. Dec wrote: ‘We had two questions: “Why is there a fourth judge?” and “Why is it Kelly Brook?” None of them could answer us…

‘Obviously, as hosts of the show, we have to justify that kind of thing to the audience, and no one could give us a good reason why Kelly was on board.

‘The simple answer was that Simon, without talking to anyone, had decided it was a good idea. We didn’t agree.’

Kelly soon hit back saying: I would love to have stayed on the show…

‘I really felt it was working out. Ant and Dec had never been anything but pleasant to my face but, clearly, they didn’t want me on the show.

‘Their egos are such that they were saying to themselves “How dare she think she can come on to our show?”, and since then they’ve been very vocal about their displeasure at me being there.’

She also took a swipe at the duo for writing about her in their book, writing: ‘As for Ant and Dec, good luck to them. They are rich and they are happy, but they won’t be in my autobiography, even if I am in theirs!’ 

Kelly later went on to target Simon for his behaviour when she was on the show, accusing him of being ‘disrespectful’.

Speaking to the Sunday People, the British model explained: ‘He’d just rock up whenever he wanted to, it was his party and he did what he wanted… It was a joke, it was so disrespectful to me, Amanda and Piers.

‘I’ve always wanted to be an actress, not a judge on a reality show. So when Simon told me that was it, I was like “fine”. I took my money and came back to America.’

‘Everyone thought I chased Simon, desperate to be on the show but that couldn’t be further from the truth,’ she added. ‘He called me the day before and asked if I’d do it.’

On Monday, Piers broke his silence on the scandal, sharing a throwback of himself on the panel with Kelly. 

He wrote: ‘As Kelly Brook goes into the I’m A Celebrity jungle, a throwback to when she very briefly appeared as a judge on Britain’s Got Talent.. for just two disastrous days! 

‘Be interesting to see how she interacts with Ant and Dec given she still blames them for being fired so fast and ruthlessly.. which isn’t far from the truth.

‘They weren’t happy they hadn’t been consulted by Simon Cowell about Kelly’s sudden hiring – and even less happy when she asked them what they did on the show…’

I’m A Celebrity continues at 9pm on ITV and ITVX