First it was Matt Hancock and then Nigel Farage which prompted Ant and Dec to call for a break from politicians on I’m A Celebrity after their appearances divided viewers.
And it appears the ITV flagship show has learnt from its mistakes as it reaps the rewards of a ‘fun’ and non-controversial line-up with praise being heaped on from staff and viewers.
As ratings beat last year and hit more than 8million in three days, fans are sharing online that they can, ‘finally watch again now they’ve learned not to put divisive politicians in the jungle’.
A show insider told the Mail: ‘Everyone was just so pleasantly surprised at how fun the cast was to speak to this year before they went in because that isn’t always the case.
‘It’s made such a difference to the show both on camera and in production, behind the scenes.
‘Everyone is over the moon with how relatable they all seem and it’s the perfect combination of people for the kind of year they were hoping for this time around.’
First it was Matt Hancock and then Nigel Farage which prompted Ant and Dec to call for a break from politicians on I’m A Celebrity after their appearances divided viewers (Nige Farage pictured on the 2023 series)
And it appears the ITV flagship show has learnt from its mistakes as it reaps the rewards of a ‘fun’ and non-controversial line-up with praise being heaped on from staff and viewers (Matt Hancock pictured on the 2023 series)
In the first three episodes alone, viewers cried after Barry McGuigan opened up about the loss of his daughter, Danika, to breast cancer and laughed at McFly’s Danny Jones getting a snake in his trousers.
ITV is said to be very pleased with the show’s trajectory as Coleen Rooney, who is reportedly being paid £ 1.5 million to appear on the show, has appeased fans by addressing the Wagatha Christie trial.
One viewer wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter: ‘It’s nice to have a series without any politicians. It’s much more watchable.’
Another added: ‘We can watch again, now you have stopped supporting vile politicians like Farage.’
It comes after a long-standing executive producer on the show, Olly Nash, told the Mail their hopes of ‘recreating the show’s golden year’ of 2018 which didn’t have any politicians in its lineup.
After the first episode, the show’s host Ant McPartlin said: ‘Compared to last year, it’s just fun. There is no one cynical this year.’
Last year, the Reform UK leader, Nigel Farage, 60, appeared on the show and longtime hosts, Ant and Dec, both 49, called for a break from politicians.
The controversial former UKIP leader, who was reportedly paid £1.5million to appear on the show, made it no secret he was there to target a new audience.
A show insider told the Mail: ‘Everyone was just so pleasantly surprised at how fun the cast was to speak to this year before they went in because that isn’t always the case (Tulisa pictured)
‘It’s made such a difference to the show both on camera and in production, behind the scenes’ (Coleen Rooney pictured)
‘Everyone is over the moon with how relatable they all seem and it’s the perfect combination of people’ (Dean McCullough pictured)
But ITV ran into problems with allies of Mr Farage, while he was in the Jungle, who grew increasingly angry at ‘insane diary tricks’ against him on the show and said they were consulting lawyers over his treatment.
The Mail on Sunday revealed his aides sent a letter of complaint claiming the network had broken an ‘indecency’ clause in his contract by showing him naked.
After placing third, Mr Farage accused the ITV boss Kevin Lygo of making his life ‘quite unpleasant’ while in the Jungle.
Since leaving the show, Mr Farage claims he was deliberately censored and that ITV reduced his airtime and chose to show him naked, which the network has denied.
