Ant McPartlin and Dec Donnelly are set to present a one-off ITV programme titled I'm A Celebrity: How To Survive The Jungle on Sunday, November 15, ahead of the 2026 series launch on Monday, November 16.
The Geordie duo will share "hints and tongue-in-cheek tips" aimed at helping celebrities cope with jungle life, campmates and their "assortment of annoying habits," according to the programme synopsis. The special will also revisit some of the most memorable moments from the show's 25-year history, drawing on past trials and camp chaos to equip the incoming celebrities with survival knowledge.
Rumoured contestants and airport sightings
ITV has not yet officially confirmed the full lineup, but rumoured participants Wayne Rooney and Sharky have been photographed at airports, reports the Mirror. Former footballer Wayne Rooney, whose wife Coleen appeared on the show two years ago, departed Manchester Airport on Sunday morning (November 8) with his manager Paul Stretford, travelling to Australia via Singapore.
Content creator Sharky, real name Sharmarke Mohamud, was photographed at Heathrow Airport in London wearing a puffer jacket and tracksuit bottoms before boarding his flight. ITV is understood to have been keen to sign Sharky, a member of the social media collective Beta Squad, following last year's victory by 24-year-old gamer AngryGinge, real name Morgan Burtwistle.
Expected lineup and jungle experience
Wayne and Sharky are expected to be joined by Chloe Burrows, Joanna Page, Ade Adepitan, Claire Sweeney, Ricky Wilson, AJ Odudu, Leigh Francis, Mariella Frostrup, Leomie Anderson, and Jack Skipper. The programme is expected to run for approximately three weeks, building towards a live finale in early December where Ant and Dec will crown the new King or Queen of the Jungle.
Sources close to the production claim this year's campmates are the most "jungle ready" in the show's history. Paralympian Ade spent four weeks trekking 220 miles through the Nicaraguan jungle in a customised wheelchair, while Loose Women star Mariella has hiked in the foothills of Mount Everest and ventured into remote regions of South America.
Sharky has previously completed a 24-hour survival challenge in the Australian wilderness, and model Leomie gained first-hand experience of jungle life in Costa Rica during Netflix's Celebrity Bear Hunt. Big Brother presenter AJ has braved the freezing Chilean Andes during Channel 4's Celebrity SAS: Who Dares Wins.
I'm A Celebrity: How To Survive The Jungle airs Sunday, November 15 at 6pm on ITV1 and ITVX.
