Ant and Dec have addressed the fallout from Friday night's I'm A Celebrity final, insisting there was no behind-the-scenes confrontation despite chaotic scenes during the live broadcast. Tensions boiled over as Jimmy Bullard and David Haye turned on eventual winner Adam Thomas, shouting that he did not deserve the title.
Both repeatedly claimed viewers had not seen the "real" Adam and urged the hosts to air footage of what they described as an "abusive and intimidating" outburst after a trial. The tense atmosphere appeared to spill beyond the stage, with Sinitta and Gemma Collins seen walking off during the broadcast. Later images also suggested a heated exchange in the car park involving the presenters and Bullard.
Speaking on their Hangin' Out podcast, Ant McPartlin set the record straight, describing what happened once filming ended. He said he saw David Haye and Jimmy Bullard standing in the car park, and approached Haye, who said: "How brilliant was that? Wasn't that great?" Ant replied that it was certainly talk about TV but he would not call it great, adding they had a laugh and were cool. He then shook Bullard's hand and said "look after yourself", with Bullard responding "yeah, yeah cheers". Ant stressed there was no confrontation and he was not flanked by security guards as had been reported.
Declan Donnelly also shared Haye's post-show comment, revealing the former boxer remarked: "What about that then? Hope you get some good ratings for that one." Ant responded that Haye does not care, saying: "That's what he does. He's a boxer. That's his stock in trade." Dec agreed that such behaviour is often used to build hype in boxing, suggesting the moment felt like a sporting spectacle rather than a genuine dispute.
Adam Thomas has since broken his silence, admitting the experience has left him disillusioned. Speaking on The Thomas Bro's podcast with his brothers Ryan and Scott, he said he would not have taken part had he known how events would unfold. He claimed he felt exploited by the live show and said the fallout had negatively affected both him and his family. He also expressed frustration that viewers were not shown the full sequence of events involving Bullard, admitting he had used strong language and wished the full clip had been aired.
