Former I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here contestant Paul Burrell has slammed the show, branding the format as tired and blasting the level of stars involved.
The 65-year-old personality has featured on ITV's long-running reality show himself twice - first appearing on season four in 2004 where he placed second and returning for the ‘All Stars’ special that aired earlier this year which was won by Myleene Klass and which was filmed in South Africa. But despite appearing on the show himself just six months before the current Australia based season, Paul says the series is showing signs it has run its course as the well of celebrities to choose from has died up, viewers are switching off, participants are too aware of how to secure air time, and the format is tired.
Paul has suggested the show needs a complete overhaul if it is expected to remain relevant and entertaining - and has also suggested ITV should ban contestants that are famous just for being influencers. The 2023 season of the show - which has shed millions of viewers - has a cast that included American star Jamie Lynn Spears who is most famous for being Britney Spears’ sister, a YouTube star named Nella Rose, a former Made In Chelsea contestant named Sam Thompson, and a famous restaurant employee named Fred Sirieix.
Paul has argued that, after 23 seasons, plus an ‘All Stars’ special, and after 21 years on the air, the show has gone on too long. He told Spin Genie: “It's been a juggernaut of a show for so long we are so used to it but I wonder if we have seen it all before.”
Taking aim at the 2023 contestants and without any irony or acknowledging that he himself is only famous for being Princess Diana’s former butler, Paul whined: “I’ve done it and it was an incredible experience but I don’t recognise half of the people this year. I’m not sure influencers or podcasters are celebrities, there was a time we would recognise everyone.
“I think the public want to see celebrities so I’m wondering about the fact that it lost so many viewers. Are we tired of it? There are only so many times you can throw a bucket of maggots over someone or put them into a box with snakes, you can’t continue, it has to be refreshed somehow.”
Paul has argued that including politicians in the series - like Nigel Farage taking part this year and Matt Hancock featuring last year - is a mistake. He said: “They are public figures but if they are sitting in the House of Commons then no, they are being paid to look after their constituents and getting a very good wage and lifestyle. If they take three weeks off whilst parliament is sitting then what happens to their constituency.
“They shouldn’t take part in that case but if they are no longer an MP then I think that's fine. But they should beware, Matt Hancock didn’t do himself any favours by doing it last year, it just exposed him. I think the exposure Nigel Farage is getting isn’t all good."
He also thinks the participants can manipulate the show too easily to steal all the limelight. He said: “However I do think contestants know how to manage air time because the show has been going for so long, they know how to create a thread which will carry them through the show.
“If you sit there on a log and say nothing you won’t be there for very long so the contestants know how to create controversy to give them air time. These people are not stupid they know how to play the programme and maybe that's part of why it doesn’t work anymore. But Ant and Dec are brilliant, it's worth watching just for them, their humour and presentation of the show is hilarious.”
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