The first one is I’m a Celebrity…Get Me Out of Here! The star shares her true thoughts on presenters Ant and Dec after many viewers claimed Ant was “harsh” towards her
Dean McCullough shares how Ant and Dec consoled him off-camera (Image: ITV/REX/Shutterstock)
A former I’m a Celebrity…Get Me Out of Here! After a tough experience in the jungle, the contestant has revealed what Ant and Dec are really like behind the scenes. Radio host Dean McCullough appeared on the show last year and faced six grueling bushtucker trials in a row.
Throughout the series, some viewers criticized Ant for being overly critical of Dean after he struggled to complete certain tasks.
Ant later admitted to being “quite unprofessional” regarding his response, but Dean has now clarified that there are no hard feelings between them.
Recalling his time on the programme, he said: “Look, it was a joke and I thought it was funny and that’s why I was playing a joke on them.
“When you see it on TV, the banter we had during the test was real because I don’t know what’s going on outside.
“As far as I’m concerned, Ant is just being hard on me because I mess up and sometimes you just have to say to someone, ‘Get on with it’.
“And I respond really well to that, so knowing he was being a bit hard on me, I said, ‘I really want to prove to Ant and my camp mates that I can do this.’
Speaking further on the Not My Bag podcast, Dean said that although he would have appreciated “a little more compassion” from the duo, he reiterated that he “enjoyed” their humor.
While praising the presenting duo, the broadcaster said that there were also some cozy exchanges from the hosts which the viewers did not get to see.
Recalling one of his challenges, where he was placed in a confined box, he remembered experiencing a “complete panic attack” with Ant and Dec.
“Ant and Dec were holding my hand and saying, ‘You’ve got this, you’ll be okay’ and ‘You don’t have to do this’ and whatever,” he recalled.
“They couldn’t get me in the box before the filming started, they couldn’t even put me in it. I went into the box twice before the filming started, so they caught it, they knew I was really scared.
“But I think all the stuff out there is just clickbait, they needed something to talk about. The rift was the rift,” he added.
This year, a new line of famous faces will take to the jungle in hopes of claiming Danny Jones’ crown.
Celebrities who have traded their luxuries for camp life include; Kelly Brook, Martin Kemp, Alex Scott, Jack Osbourne & Ruby Wax, Lisa Riley, Aitch, Angry Jinz, Shona McCarty and Eddie Cuddy.
For the 2025 series, bosses have come up with a new rule that means celebrities can only face two back-to-back tests before being exempted from the next challenge.
A spokesperson explained: “Show bosses are keen to give all campmates the chance to shine in the Bushtucker Trials this year and are introducing a new rule that once a celebrity has been voted off for two trials in a row, they cannot be voted off for one the next day.
“This new rule means that the responsibility for winning meals is shared between more camp mates.
“More camp mates will get a chance to step up and play their roles, the audience will get a chance to get to know them more, it’s a chance for them to shine.”
I’m a Celebrity…Get Me Out of Here! Starts tonight at 9pm on ITV and ITVX