2 Soap Legends Have Joined The I’m A Celeb Lineup

After 35 years as Ian Beale in EastEnders, Adam Woodyatt walked away from Albert Square after Sharon Mitchell poisoned Ian in the New Year. Prior to entering the castle, Woodyatt told the Mirror that he has “no plans” on returning to the soap in the near future. He’s also looking forward to fans seeing him in a different light. “How big a difference that side is yet to be seen!” he exclaimed, adding that “it will be nicer for people to see” him as himself rather than Ian Beale.

Woodyatt has potential to win the series, too. Over the course of I’m A Celeb’s run, three of his castmates have ended up taking the crown. So hopefully the luck of Joe Swash, Jacqueline Jossa, and Charlie Brooks rubs off on Woodyatt, too.

Following the lead of his on-screen mum, Simon Gregson is repping Coronation Street this year after Beverly Callard’s appearance in 2020. Gregson and Callard aren’t the only Corrie stars that have appeared on the show – fans will definitely remember the drama that Nigel Havers brought to camp during his turn on the show in 2010, which resulted in an early departure from the actor.

Hopefully Gregson does his kids proud for his turn on the show, as his appearance was all their idea. “They were just like ‘come on dad, we’d love it,” he said. “So I just said ‘ok anything for you guys’.”

Former Saturdays singer and current Loose Women panellist Frankie Bridge swapped the warmth of the ITV studios for the castle in Wales, arriving alongside breakfast telly legend Richard Madeley. Her husband, former England footballer Wayne Bridge, was on the show in 2016 and finished in fifth place. She may also do a lot better than her husband who came fifth. Ladbrokes has said she’s the front runner to win with odds at 4/1.

Louise Minchin shocked BBC Breakfast viewers in Sept. 2020 when she announced that she’d be leaving the show after 20 years. It’s since been reported that she’ll be publishing a book with Bloomsbury Sport in which she’ll be “taking on some of the toughest challenges in sport.” Alongside exploring her new ventures, Minchin entered the castle as part of the I’m A Celebrity 2021 cohort.

Minchin isn’t the only veteran presenter who will be trying their luck in the bushtucker trials this year. According to The Sun, the Good Morning Britain presenter has signed a £200,000 deal to be part of I’m A Celebrity in 2021. Having already appeared on the show’s ITV 2 spin-off, Extra Camp, Madeley has made it very clear that he’s a big fan.

Radio 1 Xtra DJ Snoochie Shy is another presenter has taken a step back from their day job to touch it out in Gwrych Castle. Snoochie AKA Cheyenne Davide has been with 1Xtra for three years and will likely be wanting to channel some of fellow Radio 1 hosts Jordan North’s luck as he was the runner-up in the 2020 show. She’s known for serving some serious looks on her Instagram and will likely bring another level of glam to the camp.

You’ll likely recognise Arlene Philips as one of the original judges on Strictly Come Dancing. The ballroom pro will be hanging up her glitzy dresses and heels for walking boots and a fleece as she’s another celebrity who has entered the castle.

Matty Lee hit headlines around the globe this summer when he won a gold medal at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics alongside his diving partner Tom Daly. He’s absolutely no stranger to pressure but something tells me that nothing can quite prepare you for diving into a tub of snakes and spiders.

Kadeena Cox is a cyclist and track and field athlete. She’s competed in the Northern Athletics Championships, Paralympics, and IPC Athletics World Championships. The seriously decorated athlete has already got telly experience having appeared on Celebrity Gogglebox and Celebrity Great British Bake Off. In 2021 she was crowned the winner of Celebrity MasterChef. So it looks like she’ll be head chef in camp.

David Ginola is a former professional footballer. He follows the likes of John Fashanu and Ian Wright as another football star who is hoping that his skills on the pitch will translate to camp life in Wales. Before he retired in 2002 he played for Newcastle, Tottenham, and Everton. In 2016 he played in a charity football match when he suffered a cardiac arrest and was “clinically dead” for eight minutes before he received surgical attention.

Danny Miller is swapping the set of Emmerdale for the castle. He played Aaron Dingle periodically for over a decade. He became a father for the first time on Oct. 25 of this year and speaking to OK after the birth of Albert he said, “I was in bits. I was very emotional. It’s made me much more in love with Steph, too. I was absolutely in awe of her and we’re absolutely in awe of him.” He’ll have them cheering him on at home.

The final celebrity that is entering the castle for I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here 2021 is music producer Naughty Boy. According to The Sun, Naughty Boy AKA Shahid Khan was supposed to be on the show in 2020 but dropped out. Having worked with some of the biggest names in the music industry – including Beyoncé – it’s unlikely that Naughty Boy will be starstruck during his time on the show.