Freddie Flintoff has confessed to bending the rules to secure victory on I’m a Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here!. The renowned cricket star from England participated in the inaugural Australian edition of the show in 2015 and emerged triumphant as the King of the Jungle.
However, Flintoff’s win was tainted with deceit. During his time on the show, which was filmed in Kruger Park, South Africa, instead of the usual Australian jungle setting for the UK version, he clandestinely took cigarette breaks despite not being a smoker.
He also illicitly refilled his water canteen and manipulated a Bushtucker trial by falsely claiming to have certain fears, thereby making the challenge easier for himself. In an interview on BBC Radio 5 Live in 2018, the 47-year-old revealed, “I said ‘I’m a smoker,’ which I’m not by any stretch. In Australia, I knew it’s illegal to smoke on Aussie TV, so I had to do it off-screen.”
Moreover, instead of adhering to the camp’s protocol of collecting and boiling water from a nearby stream, Flintoff sidestepped the process by surreptitiously filling his water bottle from a medical hut nearby, which he did multiple times a day.
Despite his deceptive tactics, Flintoff won over viewers with his humor and charm, ultimately besting Australian Rules star Barry Hall to claim the top spot. He secured $100,000 (£50,000) for his chosen charity, the McGrath Foundation.
Flintoff joins a list of English celebrities who have participated in the Australian series, such as Joey Essex, Stephen K. Amos, and Paul Burrell, with cricket icon Shane Warne also being a notable former contestant.