CHRISTOPHER STEVENS

I’m A Celeb’s a doddle compared with some shows, says the Mail’s critic

No travel agent would offer a holiday experience promising bone-chilling cold, bug infestations, starvation, the threat of physical injury and a guarantee that they’ll be roundly mocked for complaining. But that’s the deal facing some celebrities as they struggle to maintain their profile. The surest way to ensure we don’t forget them is to submit to torture and misery.

The original and best of these, I’m A Celebrity... Get Me Out Of Here, is back on ITV, with Boris Johnson’s dad Stanley, Corrie’s Jennie McAlpine and football WAG Rebekah Vardy among those who signed up to take part in the infamous bushtucker trials. And there are no shortage of similar formats... some of which make I’m A Celeb look like a five-star resort.

Most gruelling of all is Celebrity Island With Bear Grylls on Channel 4, in which ten actors, popstars and ex-sports heroes are dumped on a remote rock in the South Pacific and left to survive for a month. Bear stocks the island with animals and equipment, including tools for fishing and building shelters. But you get the impression that if these celebs could cope with practical challenges like that, they wouldn’t be on this show.

This year’s series seemed to come dangerously close to doing away with some of the castaways. Faint from hunger, comedian Shazia Mirza slipped on rocks, knocking herself unconscious. And former Olympic sprinter Iwan Thomas blundered into the swamp in search of crocodiles, in the small hours, and got utterly lost. He sent an SOS signal but it was almost dawn before Bear’s safety team could establish radio contact with him.

Meanwhile, sloshed Gogglebox hoteliers Steph and Dom Parker looked on the verge of heart attacks after spending two days on the run in Celebrity Hunted, also on Channel 4. In a bid to raise cash for charity, the couple – both in their 50s – raced from one bolthole to the next as ex-spyhunters and police specialists hacked their phones and strong-armed their friends. For a duo known for lounging on a sofa with a drink or three, this was a potentially catastrophic level of exertion – Dom was puffing like a steam train from the start. If they wanted to help a charity, surely they’re flush enough to just send a cheque?

There’s no doubting the entertainment value of watching performers push themselves to the limits. But if the stakes keep climbing higher, someone could be seriously hurt. Compared to these shows, eating bugs in the jungle isn’t so bad.

I’m A Celebrity... Get Me Out Of Here airs nightly at 9pm (except tonight, 9.10pm) on ITV.