![\"Ant](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/SEI_178891625-9b8a-e1756490229852.jpg\")
\n\t\tI\u2019m A Celebrity is one of the most successful television formats of the century (Picture: ITV\/Charlie Sperring\/Shutterstock)<\/p>\n
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\n\t\tI\u2019m A Celebrity is one of the most successful television formats of the century (Picture: ITV\/Charlie Sperring\/Shutterstock)<\/p>\n
I\u2019m A Celebrity<\/a>:\u00a0South Africa\u00a0should have been one of the golden moments in television when it launched in 2022.\u00a0It was essentially an all-stars season of the hit-show.<\/p>\n What wasn\u2019t there to love? A brand-new location in South Africa. The ferocious Janice Dickinson<\/a> being every campmate\u2019s worst nightmare. Paul Burrell doing more Bushtucker Trials, despite the clear PTSD<\/a> he endured in front of millions last time. And an excuse to get Shaun Ryder<\/a> back on TV.<\/p>\n Even Gillian McKeith<\/a> \u2013 by far the most absurd, but entertaining camp mate of all time \u2013 returned (and with braided hair, no less). If it had been announced as a traditional I\u2019m A Celebrity line-up, it would be hailed as one of the best to date.\u00a0<\/p>\n But it just didn\u2019t land like it should have. It pulled just half of the viewers I\u2019m A Celebrity\u00a0managed\u00a0to attract\u00a0for its regular season that year\u00a0\u2013 although that was still a respectable 4.9million turning in at its peak.<\/p>\n So I was\u00a0a little surprised at the news we\u2019re getting a second all-stars season. Was the demand\u00a0really there?<\/p>\n \t\t\t\tGet personalised updates on I’m A Celeb\t\t\t<\/p>\n Wake up to find news on your TV shows in your inbox every morning with Metro\u2019s TV Newsletter.<\/p>\n Sign up to our newsletter<\/a> and then select your show in the link we\u2019ll send you so we can get TV news tailored to you.<\/p>\n I\u2019m A Celebrity\u2026 Get Me Out of Here! is one of the most successful television formats of the century. It\u2019s run for 24 series and has hardly changed a thing since the very first class of celebs were thrown into the jungle with no idea they\u2019d be force-fed a cow\u2019s anus or kangaroo testicle.<\/p>\n Almost a quarter of a century later,\u00a0the show\u00a0is still one of the TV events of the year. Not quite like it once was, but few shows today could ever reach the popularity of early-noughties reality television \u2013 a cultural phenomenon unlikely to ever happen on that scale again.<\/p>\n \t\t But its first-ever spin-off fell flat. Not because the casting wasn\u2019t exciting enough or because its temporary home in South Africa\u00a0due to lingering pandemic restrictions\u00a0didn\u2019t work (if I\u2019m A Celebrity can work in a leaky castle in Wales, it can work anywhere).<\/p>\n It didn\u2019t work because it wasn\u2019t live and because there was absolutely zero public participation.\u00a0Sure,\u00a0the moments at camp were fun \u2013 particularly with McKeith and Dickinson being outrageous \u2013 but it\u00a0just\u00a0wasn\u2019t enough.\u00a0<\/p>\n It was missing the\u00a0usual\u00a0spark, which was unexpected given how many similar shows \u2013 Bear Grylls: The Island and Celebrity Bear Hunt<\/a> \u2013 are pre-recorded. They often don\u2019t even have a winner and they still work immaculately.\u00a0<\/p>\n But they all come with real jeopardy. The Island feels so perilous, it\u2019s still unbelievable it made it onto television.<\/p>\n \t\t To me, the major problem was that\u00a0the fun of I\u2019m A Celebrity is winning the public vote.\u00a0So\u00a0knowing that, when Ant and Dec<\/a> skipped down the path to reveal the latest twists to campmates, it had all already happened weeks before\u00a0and\u00a0the winner was already chosen, the show just lost its edge.\u00a0<\/p>\n The show is a popularity contest; its winner often goes on to take their career to another league with their newfound fanbase. Backing a star and being part of their victory is a huge part of the I\u2019m A Celebrity experience.\u00a0<\/p>\n Myleene Klass<\/a> won the first series\u00a0of this all-stars format\u00a0and I\u2019d love to be able to say she was a worthy winner. But, by the end, I\u00a0had\u00a0switched off.<\/p>\n \t\t Klass has built a career by being incredibly warm, smart, and likeable. I\u2019m sure she was just that throughout.<\/p>\n But\u00a0would she have won a public vote? Can she really claim the title of an I\u2019m A Celebrity legend?\u00a0Maybe.\u00a0She came second in 2006, so it\u2019s not a stretch to crown her a winner. But ultimately, we\u2019ll never know.<\/p>\n Now, three years later, I\u2019m A Celebrity:\u00a0South Africa\u00a0is returning \u2013 and Ant and Dec have confirmed the critics have been heard. This time around, the public will get its say.<\/p>\n The\u00a0majority of the\u00a0series will still be pre-recorded, but the final will be live from the UK. And viewers will decide on the night who is crowned\u00a0the\u00a0winner.<\/p>\n It\u2019s a shame the next series will still be\u00a0mostly\u00a0pre-recorded and I\u2019m sure there\u2019s a logistical reason as to why that\u2019s the case, even if I can\u2019t see it. But this time,\u00a0I\u2019m hoping\u00a0viewers can actually be swept away in the journey, too.<\/p>\n I just fear that,\u00a0without a public vote, who is holding the celebrities to account?\u00a0I\u2019m sad\u00a0we won\u2019t be able to torture them with relentless Bushtucker trials.<\/p>\n This new series\u00a0will no doubt return with another blistering line-up. Gemma \u2018The GC\u2019 Collins<\/a> is widely rumoured to be taking part after quitting I\u2019m A Celebrity back in 2014 \u2013 lasting just three days and self-diagnosing herself with malaria. She did not have malaria.\u00a0<\/p>\n Should she actually head to South Africa and last more than 72 hours, I\u2019ll be almost as excited for\u00a0all-stars\u00a0as I am for Celebrity Traitors<\/a>, which barely leaves my mind.\u00a0<\/p>\n I\u2019ll wait to properly judge the show until I see it, but I\u2019m nervous about it. Still,\u00a0the promise of a live final and the chance for the public to get involved feels like such a clear steer in the right direction.\u00a0<\/p>\n But without the interactive element throughout, this could be another flop for me. Hopefully I\u2019m wrong and this new all-stars season is\u00a0the golden ticket it should have been\u00a0the\u00a0first time around.<\/p>\n Do you have a story you\u2019d like to share? Get in touch by emailing Ross.Mccafferty@metro.co.uk<\/a>.<\/a>\u00a0<\/p>\n Share your views in the comments below.<\/p>\n Arrow Arrow Arrow![\"Editorial](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/SEI_230400465-2071.jpg\")
\n\t\tI\u2019m A Celebrity has hardly changed a thing since the very first class of celebs were thrown into the jungle (Picture: ITV\/Shutterstock)<\/p>\n![\"'I'm](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/SEI_183602327_932db3.jpg\")
\n\t\tThe fun of I\u2019m A Celebrity is winning the public vote (Picture: James Gourley\/ITV\/Shutterstock)<\/p>\n![\"Strict](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/SEI_153863395-7e37.jpg\")
\n\t\tMyleene Klass won the first series\u00a0of this all-stars format (Picture: ITV\/Shutterstock)<\/p>\n
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