I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here! (often shortened to I'm a Celebrity or I'm a Celeb) is a British survival reality television show broadcast on ITV. It was created by London Weekend Television (LWT) and is produced by Lifted Entertainment. The format sees a group of celebrities living together in uncomfortable conditions with few creature comforts. Each member undertakes challenges to secure additional food and treats for the group, and to avoid being voted out by viewers during their stay, with the final episode's votes nominating who wins a series. Celebrities are paid for their participation.
The programme's first series debuted on 25 August 2002 and was filmed within Tully, Queensland, Australia. From the second series in 2003 until 2019, it was filmed around Murwillumbah, New South Wales, Australia. The 2020 and 2021 series were filmed at Gwrych Castle in Conwy County Borough, Wales, owing to the COVID-19 pandemic, before returning to Australia in 2022. Celebrities participating on the programme nominate a charity to receive a donation from ITV, with the money raised from charges on voting via text, phone or interactive services. Each series has been hosted by Ant & Dec, with the sole exception being the eighteenth series in 2018 when Ant McPartlin suspended his TV appearances for a year, so Declan Donnelly was joined instead by Holly Willoughby.
I'm a Celebrity is often a ratings winner for ITV, attracting on average more than 9 million viewers each series, with its success spawning an international franchise of the same name. The main show was accompanied by a sister show from 2002 until 2020 and again from 2024 on ITV2, now entitled I'm a Celebrity: Unpacked, which features behind-the-scenes footage and discussions on celebrities voted out of the latest episode, and clips of the next episode. Over the years the programme has been frequently nominated for, and won, several television industry awards. For example, in 2022, the show won in The Sir Bruce Forsyth Entertainment Award category at the National Television Awards.
A spin-off series, I'm a Celebrity...South Africa, featuring celebrities who had previously competed in the show, began airing in 2023 and returned for a second series in 2026. This is to be followed by a pairs variation of the format, entitled The Wild Frontier, which is set in Canada and will debut in 2027.
In December 2025, Ant & Dec signed a new three year contract with ITV, leading to I'm a Celebrity being recommissioned under the deal until its twenty-eighth series in 2028.
Contents
Format
The celebrities have to complete challenges to earn food for camp; else they have to survive off a diet of basic rations, this consists of a small measured portion of plain rice and dried haricot/navy beans for each celebrity per day. These rations should be consumed together as they provide complementary nutrients and form a complete protein. If the celebrities struggle with the lack of food, the medical team may provide them with some electrolyte drinks and glucose in order to avoid serious medical emergencies.
A wide range of personal and everyday items, including any outside food or drink and extra clothing, are prohibited and must not be brought into camp. Essential items are limited, with a matching uniform also provided by the production team that must be worn as mandatory. A single luxury item is allowed and are usually given out as a reward for completing tasks. If celebrities are caught with these banned items, this may result in them being punished individually or as a whole group. They are also not allowed any time-keeping devices, or to simply know what the time is, in order to heighten the experience and maintain a sense of disorientation. In the first series of the show, deodorant was banned and tobacco smoking was not allowed anywhere in camp as the rules on this were much stricter but have since been relaxed. Vaping has more recently been permitted, if a doctor's prescription is provided, but this must now also be done off-camera.
In return for their appearance on I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here!, in early series of the show, the celebrities are asked to nominate a charity to which the producers, ITV Studios, make donations. The money is raised by allowing viewers to vote by phone or text for the celebrity they would like to complete a "Bushtucker Trial" – a physical task usually involving snakes, spiders or other creepy-crawlies found in the jungle – and, later in each series, to vote for the celebrity they would like to see win the show. The final remaining celebrity is declared the winner of the show, and is branded the "King" or "Queen" of the Jungle/Castle. The show's title refers to a phrase celebrities can use to quit jungle trials or even leave the show altogether.
Ahead of the 2025 series, premium-rate phone and text voting was discontinued in favour of continued app and online voting. A portion of the profits made from each phone or text vote was donated by ITV to a nominated charity or campaign; over the years, this has included Malaria No More UK, Make-A-Wish Foundation UK and more recently ITV's Britain Get Talking.
Bushtucker trials
Bushtucker trials are used throughout the show to allow the contestants to gain more diverse, locally sourced food, typically a range of exotic meats, fruits and vegetables (but does not include basic ingredients) that they prepare and cook in camp for dinner each evening; they can do this by collecting or earning gold stars. The number of stars available usually corresponds to the current number of campmates. A live trial was first held in the third series and was an annual feature in subsequent editions until its removal in 2021. It returned after a five-year absence in 2025.
The Bushtucker Trials feature one, sometimes two or more, of the celebrities taking part and are held daily; they appear in two formats: eating trials, or physical/mental tasks. Some trials, typically at the start and end of a series, require the participation of all campmates; usually in the first half of the series, viewers make the selection in a nightly vote and later, as the series progresses towards the final week, the campmates decide amongst themselves with viewers from that point now starting to vote out the celebrities in camp. Some may be excused for certain trials due to "medical grounds". Any task can be stopped by shouting "I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here!", causing the celebrity to forfeit the collected stars. Occasionally a celebrity may decide to withdraw or stop a trial before it has commenced. For the 2025 series, ITV introduced a new rule in which the same celebrity cannot be voted to take part in a bushtucker trial on more than two consecutive days. In more recent series, instead of winning stars, the final trial usually involves the last remaining celebrities competing in a multi-part individual or group trial to win a luxurious, fully prepared final banquet dinner in camp with starters, mains, desserts and drinks of their choice. Treats and rewards include letters from home, a visit from loved ones and, in more recent series, also a trip to the "Jungle Arms" where they can enjoy an evening of drinks, snacks and karaoke, all of which feature as key segments in one of the nightly highlight episodes.
In the eating trials, contestants are required to eat a variety of different "jungle" foods. Each dish successfully eaten will gain the contestants one star, which equals one meal for camp (although the number of meals per star can vary). The foods that are required to be eaten can include: crickets (in a variety of forms, such as cooked into biscuits, blended into drinks or eaten dead), green ants, mealworms, witchetty grub, roasted spider or tarantulas, genitals of various animals, cockroach (prepared in various ways such as being cooked into biscuits, blended into drinks, eaten alive or dead). Other past foods include beach worms, bull's tongues, the anus of various animals, vomit fruits, cooked pigs' brains, various animal testicles, raw fish eyes, sheep eyes, blended rats or mice tails. Prior to the airing of the nineteenth series in 2019, ITV announced that eating trials would no longer contain live bugs.
Deals on Wheels challenges
Another way that contestants can earn treats is to do what is known, since series 22, as the "Deals on Wheels Challenge" (formerly the "Dingo Dollar Challenge"), which replaced the original "Celebrity Chest" from the twelfth series onwards. This involves two or more celebrities going into the jungle on certain days to undertake a typically more enjoyable and simple task, that releases an item to open a container with an amount of dingo dollars.
Once that has been completed and the dollars have been retrieved, it is taken to a small woodshack shop elsewhere to purchase a snack option (formerly campmates were able to pick between two options) from shopkeeper Kiosk Keith, and in Series 18 onwards, Kiosk Kev that is on display. Before receiving their prize, the campmates back in the camp must answer a general knowledge or survey question posed by Kiosk Kev over the telephone. If the campmates answer correctly, the pair at the location receive the treat, which they must later share with their other campmates; if they answer incorrectly, the kiosk operator slams the shutter shut down, and the celebrities must return to camp empty-handed. In the original version, the chest is brought back to camp and opened to reveal the question and the two possible answers, with the treat/prize found inside the section of chest labelled with the correct answer and sometimes a joke, consolation prize in the other.
In the 2020 series, as a result of not being able to film in Australia owing to the COVID-19 pandemic, and the 2021 series owing to the country's borders remaining shut, this challenge was replaced by a "Castle Coin Challenge", in-keeping with the theme of being at Gwrych Castle in Wales, rather than in the Australian Jungle. Other than that, the basic format of the challenge is the same. The only other format change to note is that Kiosk Kev has been replaced by his Welsh counterpart, Kiosk Cledwyn.
Production
Filming locations
The first series of the show in 2002 was filmed on a smaller site that was once part of King Ranch (officially El Rancho del Rey) in Kooroomool, near Tully, Queensland, in Australia.
Since the second series the following year, the programme has been filmed around Springbrook National Park, near Murwillumbah, New South Wales, Australia. The camp and filming studios are located in Dungay on Creek Road. The area is on the edge of a site that is technically classified by the local council as a lowland subtropical rainforest, rather than a jungle as referred to in the show. For the fifth series in 2005, there were reportedly plans to relocate the show to the coastal town of Cardwell in Queensland; however, this did not happen owing to logistical problems and time constraints in building the new set and required infrastructure.
Inside the entrance to the filming location is an open area allocated to buildings which accommodate on-site medical facilities, containers for the storage of props, and other backstage facilities. Families and friends of the celebrities are housed here each morning during evictions. From this area, a restricted access road climbs to the site of the studios. The road then descends into a valley via four-wheel drive access to the set of the show. The camp is connected to the studio building via a series of suspension bridges and a drawbridge, the latter of which was installed after contestants from the second series left camp in protest over the small amount of food they received after a trial. A retractable canopy positioned high above the central part of camp can be used to protect the contestants and filming equipment from rainfall but is not completely weatherproof. It is also used to facilitate the delivery of food that is won in bushtucker trials. Some of the scenery in camp is artificial but was designed to blend into the natural environment, e.g. a rock wall that is used to conceal cameras and other production equipment, an area with a pond and a small pump-powered waterfall feature.
Before they enter and after leaving the jungle, the celebrities stay at a luxury hotel that is featured in the Coming Out episode at the end of the series. Since the show's return to Australia in 2022, the hotel used is the JW Marriott Gold Coast Resort & Spa, located in Surfers Paradise, Queensland; this replaced the Palazzo Versace which was originally used for the show. Paramedic Bob McCarron, known informally as "Medic Bob", and his team of assistants are responsible for the medical care and wellbeing of the celebrities and crew. McCarran was usually seen during Bushtucker Trials when medical assistance was required. In September 2022, it was reported that McCarron had decided not to return for that year's series due to scheduling conflicts with other projects and was replaced by another medic/doctor off screen. McCarron did not appear in the 2020 and 2021 series filmed in Wales due to COVID-19 travel restrictions.
Music
The show's theme music is credited to Grant Buckerfield and contains samples of "Africano" by Earth, Wind & Fire and "Get Out of the House!" by Boom Crash Opera.
Controversies and criticism
In 2006, ITV apologised after confusion over instructions for telephone and red-button interactive voting led to allegations in the media that the wrong person had been evicted in the run-off vote between Toby Anstis and Dean Gaffney in the sixth series.
In November 2006, the series was forced to enhance its procedures after Ofcom found that it had breached Rule 1.16 of the Broadcasting Code for airing bad language before the watershed. An episode broadcast on 30 November 2006 was ruled to have breached Rule 2.2 of the Broadcasting Code after an investigation launched as part of the wider UK television public voting controversy. Owing to late running, seven percent of phone and text votes for that episode of the show were not counted, although this did not affect the result.
Sarah Matravers blamed the series for the breakdown of her relationship with contestant Marc Bannerman after he flirted with Cerys Matthews in the seventh series. Matthews and Bannerman later alleged the footage had been edited by ITV.
Former Sex Pistols manager Malcolm McLaren, who was due to appear on the seventh series but pulled out at the last minute, alleged that the show and the choice of winner was fixed, and the trials posed no real danger. He alleged that the show doctor told him that "Things are so safe, I would send my own kids in to do the show. There is nothing bad in there. They're hoodwinking the public".
In 2009, ITV apologised for not having properly advised the contestants in the ninth series of the relevant Australian legislation regarding animal cruelty. Gino D'Acampo and Stuart Manning were charged by New South Wales Police after RSPCA Australia complained over their killing and eating of a rat during the show.
In 2012, the decision by Nadine Dorries to enter the show was the source of criticism, which led to her suspension from the Conservative Party owing to allegations she did not seek permission from the party whip Andrew Mitchell, resulting in an inquiry by the Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards.
The fifteenth series saw Ferne McCann eat a live water spider as part of a bushtucker trial. Ofcom reportedly received 694 complaints from the public over allegations of "animal cruelty for entertainment". ITV also received 500 complaints. In January 2016, it was reported no further action would be taken.
Series overview
Ant & Dec have presented every series since it began in 2002, with the exception of the eighteenth series in 2018 when, due to McPartlin taking a break from television presenting duties, Declan Donnelly instead co-presented with Holly Willoughby. The first series of the programme was broadcast in the summer, the second of which followed in the spring of 2003 before a third and fourth were aired in 2004. Since the latter series, it has retained the November slot in the ITV schedules. The series originally ran for roughly two weeks (15 days) but was later extended to run for three weeks (21–23 days).
Key
Winner – King or Queen of the Jungle/Castle
Runner-up
Third place
Walked/withdrew or withdrawn by producers
Medically discharged
Late arrival
Series 1 (2002)
The first series consisted of 8 contestants, and was broadcast from 25 August to 8 September 2002.
Series 2 (2003)
The second series consisted of 10 contestants, and was broadcast from 28 April to 12 May 2003.
Series 3 (2004)
The third series consisted of 10 contestants, and was broadcast from 26 January to 9 February 2004.
Series 4 (2004)
The fourth series consisted of 11 contestants, and was broadcast from 21 November to 6 December 2004.
Series 5 (2005)
The fifth series consisted of 12 contestants, and was broadcast from 20 November to 5 December 2005.
Series 6 (2006)
The sixth series consisted of 12 contestants, and was broadcast from 13 November to 1 December 2006.
Team Base Camp
Team Snake Rock
Series 7 (2007)
The seventh series consisted of 11 contestants, and was broadcast from 12 to 30 November 2007.
Team Croc Creek
Team Snake Rock
Entered after contestants were brought together
Series 8 (2008)
The eighth series consisted of 12 contestants, and was broadcast from 16 November to 5 December 2008.
Home Camp
Away Camp
Entered after contestants were brought together.
Series 9 (2009)
The ninth series consisted of 13 contestants, and was broadcast from 15 November to 4 December 2009.
Base Camp
Camp Exile
Left before camp was split
Series 10 (2010)
The tenth series consisted of 13 contestants, and was broadcast 14 November to 4 December 2010. This was the first series to air on ITV HD.
Camp Sheila
Camp Bruce
Entered after contestants were brought together
Series 11 (2011)
The eleventh series consisted of 13 contestants, and was broadcast from 13 November to 3 December 2011.
Team Snake Rock
Team Croc Creek
Entered after contestants were brought together
Series 12 (2012)
The twelfth series consisted of 12 contestants, and was broadcast from 11 November to 1 December 2012.
Team Snake Rock
Team Croc Creek
Entered after contestants were brought together
Series 13 (2013)
The thirteenth series consisted of 12 contestants, and was broadcast from 17 November to 8 December 2013.
Team Snake Rock
Team Croc Creek
Entered after contestants were brought together
Series 14 (2014)
The fourteenth series consisted of 12 contestants, and was broadcast from 16 November to 7 December 2014. On 11 November, the full list of celebrities was confirmed by ITV.
Team Croc Creek/Rescuer
Team Celebrity Slammer
Entered after contestants were brought together
Series 15 (2015)
The fifteenth series consisted of 13 contestants and was broadcast from 15 November to 6 December 2015.
Red Team (Leader: Tony Hadley)
Yellow Team (Leader: Susannah Constantine)
Entered after contestants were brought together
Series 16 (2016)
The sixteenth series consisted of 12 contestants, and was broadcast from 13 November to 4 December 2016.
Jungle Celebs
City Celebs
Entered after contestants were brought together
Series 17 (2017)
The seventeenth series consisted of 12 contestants, and was broadcast from 19 November to 10 December 2017.
Team Snake Rock
Team Croc Creek
Left before camp was split
Series 18 (2018)
The eighteenth series consisted of 11 contestants, and was broadcast from 18 November to 9 December 2018. On 9 August 2018, McPartlin confirmed that he would not be presenting the series as he continued to receive treatment after being admitted to rehab in March. On 29 August, ITV confirmed that Holly Willoughby would replace McPartlin as co-presenter alongside Donnelly. The lineup was confirmed on 12 November.
Team Snake Rock
Team Croc Creek
Entered after contestants were brought together
Series 19 (2019)
The nineteenth series consisted of 12 contestants, and was broadcast from 17 November to 8 December 2019. McPartlin rejoined the series as co-presenter, following a one-year hiatus.
Team Snake Rock
Team Croc Creek
Entered after contestants were brought together
Series 20 (2020)
The twentieth series of the show was confirmed in July 2020. This series was held in Gwrych Castle in North Wales owing to travel restrictions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, affecting travel to Australia. Two weeks prior to the start of the series, all participants, crew, and presenters were isolated to ensure that social distancing was not needed during filming. The line-up was announced on 8 November 2020 during I'm a Celebrity: A Jungle Story.
Series 21 (2021)
As with series 20, due to COVID-19 travel restrictions, the series was filmed at Gwrych Castle in Abergele, Wales.
Team Castle Clink
Team Main Camp
Entered after contestants were brought together
Madeley was forced to withdraw from the series after being taken to hospital due to an unspecified illness, and therefore breaking the show's COVID bubble.
Series 22 (2022)
In March 2022, it was reported that the series would return to Australia for the first time since series 19 following reopening of Australia's borders for international visitors in February 2022, which coincided with the show's 20th anniversary.
Series 23 (2023)
Home Team
Away Team
Series 25 (2025)
Team Win City
Team Doomsville
Spin-offs and specials
A number of various one-off compilation and retrospective programmes have been aired over the years on ITV2 but have since been discontinued, with the exception of the annual Coming Out special, retitled A Castle Story for the 2020 series, which followed the third series but was moved to the main ITV channel from the fourth series onwards and is still being produced as of 2025. This episode documents the immediate aftermath of the campmates leaving the jungle, often showing them reuniting with their loved ones, their first meals, reflections on their time in camp before a final reunion party.
ITV2 companion shows
A companion show, I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here! NOW!, was broadcast on ITV2 following every episode between 2002 and 2015. It had been aired since the first series, and featured a variety of presenters. The show was renamed and given the title I'm a Celebrity: Extra Camp in 2016.
The renamed companion show, I'm a Celebrity: Extra Camp was broadcast on ITV2 following each episode from 2016 to 2019. On 9 January 2020, it was announced that the series had been axed owing to high production costs.
On 20 October 2020, ITV announced that an online spin-off show called I'm a Celebrity...The Daily Drop would be aired alongside the 2020 series hosted by Vick Hope on ITV Hub. In October 2021, it was confirmed that The Daily Drop would not return in 2021.
In October 2024, it was confirmed that the show's spin-off would return, 4 years after being axed, and was given the new title I'm a Celebrity: Unpacked. It is presented by Joel Dommett, Sam Thompson and Kemi Rodgers.
I'm a Celebrity...South Africa (2023, 2026)
The spin-off series featuring celebrities who had competed in the show before, began airing on 24 April 2023, with the first series concluding on 12 May 2023. In April 2025, it was confirmed by ITV that the spin-off would return for a second series in 2026.
I'm a Celebrity: The Wild Frontier (2027)
In May 2026, media outlets began to report that ITV were planning a new spin-off series to mark the show's 25th anniversary. The Wild Frontier is expected to feature pairs of first-time contestants, such as celebrity duos or a famous name paired with a personal friend or family member, competing in trails and challenges as well as living together in the Canadian wilderness. Filming of this will reportedly take place in September within the Callaghan Valley which was home to the Whistler Olympic Park.
Books
Busk-Cowley, Mark (2014). I'm A Celebrity, Get Me Out Of Here!: The Inside Story. London: Bantam Press. ISBN 978-0-593-07348-3.