{"id":415071,"date":"2026-05-06T20:11:10","date_gmt":"2026-05-06T20:11:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/415071\/"},"modified":"2026-05-06T20:11:10","modified_gmt":"2026-05-06T20:11:10","slug":"i-didnt-think-id-like-it-on-celebrity-treasure-island","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/415071\/","title":{"rendered":"I didn’t think I’d like it on Celebrity Treasure Island"},"content":{"rendered":"

Veteran broadcaster Simon Barnett<\/a> didn\u2019t sign up for Celebrity Treasure Island expecting to enjoy it. He did it to push himself into a new chapter of life.<\/p>\n

The 59-year-old\u2019s time on the show came to an abrupt end in last night\u2019s episode, after tearing his calf during a challenge. <\/p>\n

He was one of two to leave the show yesterday after sustaining injuries, alongside comedian David Carreos who became injured in the same challenge. <\/p>\n

Injuries are becoming a theme this year – media personality Polly Gillespie<\/a> exited the show last week after suffering a damaged knee. <\/p>\n

For Barnett, the experience was never just about competition.<\/p>\n

“I wasn\u2019t expecting to enjoy it, to be honest. I sort of thought I\u2019d be doing it under self-forcing almost,” Barnett told 1News.<\/p>\n

He said stepping back into the show was ultimately part of a bigger personal goal, following the tragic loss of his wife Jodi<\/a> in 2023 to brain cancer. <\/p>\n

After being told by a counsellor he needed to \u201ccreate a new life\u201d, the broadcaster said he had made a conscious, but hesitant<\/a> effort to embrace new challenges. <\/p>\n

“I said, I don\u2019t want one, and he said, you don\u2019t have a choice,” he recalled.<\/p>\n

\u201cSo that was essentially the reason I did it \u2014 to push myself out there.”<\/p>\n

The radio host likened the experience of\u00a0being on Celebrity Treasure Island to being “in prison” because of how quickly the cast bonded with one another.\u00a0 (Source: Breakfast)<\/p>\n

That purpose also shaped the cause he chose to represent. Competing for the White Matter Brain Cancer Trust, Barnett said he felt a strong responsibility to do well.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey\u2019re an amazing organisation, so I wanted to win the cash really badly for them,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

His early exit from the show was, by his own admission, \u201creally disappointing\u201d, particularly as someone who prides himself on giving everything his full effort.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m a competitive person. Everything I do I pretty much give it 100% and see where it ends up,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Still, he said his experiences over the past two years have changed how he views setbacks.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen you\u2019ve been through what my family\u2019s been through, you have to remind yourself it\u2019s a television show. It\u2019s not life or death.” <\/p>\n

He said the process to rebuild his life had not been easy without Jodi, who he described as his biggest supporter. <\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s the one aspect I\u2019ve really struggled with\u2026 not having that support from her,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cNow my children have taken up the slack. They love seeing me on TV.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2018I became very fond of them very quickly\u2019<\/p>\n

\"Simon<\/p>\n

Simon Barnett with Team Kahu on Celebrity Treasure Island. (Source: TVNZ)<\/p>\n

One of the biggest surprises for Barnett was the close connection he formed with his teammates on the island.<\/p>\n

He recalled becoming \u201ccompletely enamoured\u201d with his team Kahu, describing a group of very different personalities who quickly formed a close bond.<\/p>\n

\u201cEvery single one of them, we just got on. We really liked each other,\u201d he said. \u201cI became very fond of them very quickly.\u201d<\/p>\n

That sense of camaraderie had continued well beyond filming, Barnett said, with the group still in regular contact.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s a WhatsApp group and we still message every day.” <\/p>\n

Though his time on the show was cut short, Barnett said the experience reinforced why pushing outside his comfort zone mattered.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m thrilled that I did it,\u201d he said. \u201cAnd I\u2019d absolutely be open to doing something like it again.\u201d<\/p>\n

Celebrity Treasure Island airs Monday to Wednesday at 7.30pm on TVNZ2 and TVNZ+.<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Veteran broadcaster Simon Barnett didn\u2019t sign up for Celebrity Treasure Island expecting to enjoy it. He did it…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":415072,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[42,43,417,40,38,41,39],"class_list":["post-415071","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-headlines","tag-headlines","tag-news","tag-television","tag-top-news","tag-top-stories","tag-topnews","tag-topstories"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/415071","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=415071"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/415071\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/415072"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=415071"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=415071"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=415071"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}