Tax bill put me in jungle, admits Cliff
MINTY from EastEnders has admitted he is far from minted in real life – which is why he signed up to be in the jungle.
Actor Cliff Parisi, who found fame as the popular character in the BBC soap, has revealed he originally turned down an offer to be in I’m a Celebrity – before a tax demand landed in the post.
Cliff, 59, said: “What made me sign up? The taxman.
“Like everyone at this time of year, you go, ‘Oh no! I thought I paid that’. So here I am.”
The father of four quit
EastEnders in 2010 and now plays handyman and gardener Fred Buckle on hit BBC drama Call The Midwife.
He will go into the ITV show as a late entry tomorrow, alongside Coronation Street actor Andy Whyment.
He said: “It could be an amazing experience. What is the worse case scenario? A big snake is going to bite you or the taxman is going bite you. Which do you want?” Cliff added: “I obviously like my food, so you know, this might be a bit of a struggle for me. But I like challenges, so let’s just see. I could do with losing a few pounds and I’m getting paid to do it. So I’m going to grasp it with both hands and enjoy it.”
Grinning Cliff, who got to cuddle a koala as he landed Down Under said his former soap pal Steve McFadden (Phil Mitchell) would think he was “a mug” for doing the show.
But he revealed he has not watched EastEnders since leaving.
He said: “I loved working there but I think that in life you’ve got to try and move forward and do different things.
“And although I do miss the people there, I’m happy doing what I’m doing.
“I love Call The Midwife. It’s a new family. It’s a bit like being a foster child being an actor.
“You kind of get passed around from family to family and at the end of the day, when you move from a job, you don’t go back.
“No one goes back to the old job do they?”