Helen Flanagan admits her first I’m A Celeb stint ‘destroyed’ her ahead of all-star edition airing

Helen Flanagan is set to appear on the all-star edition of I’m A Celeb, despite admitting her first stint on the show “destroyed” her.

The former Coronation Street actress, 32, stars in I’m A Celebrity… South Africa, which debuts at 9pm tonight (24 April), a decade on from her first appearance on the brutal ITV1 reality show in 2012.

She has admitted that she didn’t know what to expect when she first appeared on I’m A Celeb and it wasn’t until she was on her flight to Australia that she started to watch YouTube clips from previous series.

The Bury-born actress told The Mirror that she was “horrified” by the amount of rats in the camp as it was her first time seeing the rodents.

Helen said: “I just got absolutely destroyed. It was just ridiculous. I was just like, ‘Oh, I’ll be fine. I’ll chill in my bikini, make some friends, it will be good for me…’

“I was only just YouTubing things when I was on my plane, then I was thinking, ‘It won’t be that bad.’”

The mother-of-three has now decided to return to the jungle for the first ever I’m A Celebrity all-star edition.

The show, which was filmed in South Africa rather than Australia is pre-recorded, so there are no public votes to determine the trials or who eventually wins. The celebrities are forced to compete against each other.

Helen said: “Obviously you change, you’re such a different person within 10 years. I really wanted to set myself the challenge of doing it. I’m A Celebrity is such an iconic show and it’s so flattering to be asked back.”

Helen admitted it was “difficult” spending time away from her children - Matilda, seven, Delilah, four, and Charlie, two - whilst filming took place. However, she was supported by both sets of her children’s grandparents.

The mother-of-three revealed that Scott Sinclair’s mum “looked after” their youngest Charlie, despite Helen having split with the Bristol Rovers player in October 2022.

The actress, who played Rosie Webster on ITV’s Coronation Street, also felt “very lucky” as her parents looked after the two girls and took them to school.

Helen shared that she is planning to throw her children a “jungle party” when they watch the show with her at home.