Out of Vorder
Countdown’s Carol clashes with ‘crass’ US model Janice over the Royal Family
EXCLUSIVE THE I’m A Celebrity camp was rocked by a royal row between Carol Vorderman and Janice Dickinson.
Viewers will see US model Janice, 68, lay into 62-year-old Countdown legend Carol’s views on the monarchy.
A source said fellow campmates Paul Burrell – an ex-royal butler – and Helen Flanagan leapt to Carol’s defence.
The insider said: “It was a really explosive bust-up… Janice was effing and blinding. The row began over the Royal Family – Janice believes it needs to go, while Carol is a supporter of the monarchy.
“Janice can be quite abrasive and things got very heated.
“She said Carol’s views were old-fashioned and dated while Carol hit back that Janice was crass and obnoxious. She and Carol are both strong women with strong opinions. It was a personality clash that was bound to explode.” Speaking last week about her jungle experience on ITV’S Lorraine, Carol said she had made firm friends with the cast. But when quizzed about Janice, she replied: “We’ll not talk about her so much.” Meanwhile, Janice revealed ahead of the launch: “Everything went on. There were ups, there were downs, there was lots of laughter and lots of tears.”
The show, which was pre-recorded in South Africa’s Kruger National Park last year, begins tomorrow night.
It will see celebs from previous series compete to be the first I’m A Celebrity Legend, supervised by Ant and Dec.
But Janice, who took part in the jungle show in 2007, had to quit when she ended up in hospital after falling in the dark on her way to the dunny.
Our source went on: “The camp was a much calmer place after she left. Janice is great telly but she did rub people up the wrong way.”
Tonight will see Janice, Paul and Shaun Ryder take on the Trees of Torment challenge – floating on a raft while trying to retrieve stars from holes full of critters.
Carol, Jordan Banjo and Amir Khan will walk the plank 50 metres above ground in the Deadly Drop.
And Helen Flanagan, Fatima Whitbread and Phil Tufnell will tackle Newton’s Cradle, in which one celebrity has to turn a load of giant red balls into a bridge for the others. ITV last night declined to comment on the bust-up.
HAPPY Mondays star Shaun Ryder was left screaming in agony after his hip popped out in the jungle and he had to push it back in – with the help of campmate Paul Burrell. Shaun, who has one artificial hip and another that needs replacing, said: “I woke everyone up. It was 2am and everybody heard, ‘Boom!’ It was me getting out of f***ing bed and my hip had come out. “I thought, ‘I’m either being rushed out by helicopters or I’ve got to get this f***ing thing back in. So I pushed it back in and that was another ‘Boom!’ The pain… I was like, ‘Owww!’” Shaun also doesn’t have a thyroid and is on medication but forgot to take it in the jungle, which sent him over the edge. He said: “My f***ing nut went. I couldn’t look anyone in the eye.”
FORMER royal butler Paul Burrell almost walked away from the ITV show – because the Queen died hours before his jungle entrance, filmed last year. A source said: “Paul was deeply upset. The Queen played a big part in his life for many years while he was in royal service. “He was considering backing out of the show and returning home but bosses were able to persuade him to stay.” Paul, a close confidant of Princess Diana, went on to become firm friends with former boxer Amir Khan in the South African jungle. The source said: “Paul and Amir were not the likeliest of pals, but Paul has always had a bit of a soft spot for Amir. “He was asking before going in if he’d be in there and once together, they got on like a house on fire.” Paul was runner-up on I’m A Celebrity in 2004, while Amir appeared on the show in 2017.
I’m A Celebrity... South Africa starts tomorrow on Virgin Media One at 9pm