Holly Willoughby has revealed that she was "s*** scared" about becoming co-host of I'm A Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here, when she stepped in for Ant McPartlin during his break from the show in 2018.
The presenter, who was known at the time for hosting This Morning, took time away from the ITV daytime programme to host the reality series in Australia alongside Dec Donnelly. She joined Dec after Ant stepped back from his work commitments.
Holly's fears and her coping strategy
Speaking on the Beauty Drop podcast, the 45-year-old said she really believes crystals have healing properties. She described taking a Tiger's Eye stone, given to her by a friend, into the jungle with her.
"And I was so s**t scared because obviously Ant wasn't there and I was stepping into the biggest TV shoes you could possibly do, standing next to somebody that people are so familiar seeing with somebody else and it was utterly, utterly terrifying," she said. "And I had that in every pocket and in the bra of every outfit I wore. And honestly, it really helped me."
Dec's view on hosting with Holly
Dec has previously spoken about what it was like to present with Holly instead of his usual partner Ant. In Ant and Dec's 2020 book, Once Upon A Tyne, Dec wrote: "The year that Holly stepped in, it was very strange for me to host a TV show with anyone but Ant."
He added: "Ant and I are both really good mates with Holly and she is a brilliant and accomplished presenter, but I had no real idea how she worked, not she me, and we knew that for the viewers there was a curiosity factor to it... Holly did a superb job and was fantastic to work with and once we knew Ant wasn't going to be a part of that series, she was top of my list to host alongside me."
Upcoming series
The 2026 edition of I'm A Celebrity is set to begin on Monday, November 16, with 11 famous faces confirmed to be heading into the jungle. These include Manchester United legend Wayne Rooney, former Coronation Street star Claire Sweeney, Kaiser Chiefs frontman Ricky Wilson, and Gavin & Stacey actress Joanna Page.
They will be joined by Paralympian and broadcaster Ade Adepitan, supermodel Leomie Anderson, YouTuber and content creator Sharky, TV presenter AJ Odudu, comedian Jack Skipper, Love Islander Chloe Burrows, and broadcaster Mariella Frostrup.
