I'm A Celebrity's reigning Queen of the Jungle now a year after winning

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I'm A Celebrity's reigning Queen of the Jungle now a year after winning

Last year's action-packed series of I'm A Celebrity... Get Me Out Of Here! was certainly an explosive one – but which famous face took home the crown?

The three celebrities to reach the final in 2022 were disgraced Tory MP Matt Hancock, Hollyoaks hunk Owen Warner and women's football star Jill Scott. After spending three weeks in camp, it was fan-favourite Jill who won the public vote, crowning her last year's Queen of the Jungle. It's thought she'll be heading back to Australia later this year to pass over the crown to this year's winner with the help of Ant and Dec.

This year, Britney Spears' sister Jamie-Lynn, TV personality Sam Thompson, This Morning's Josie Gibson, First Dates' Fred Sirieix, YouTuber Nella Rose, former politician Nigel Farage, food critic Grace Dent, JLS star Marvin Humes, EastEnders legend Danielle Harold, Hollyoaks star Nick Pickard are heading into the jungle on Sunday, November 19 to compete for the jungle crown.

I'm A Celebrity's reigning Queen of the Jungle now a year after winning eiqxixuidreinvWho won last year's action-packed series of I'm A Celebrity? (ITV)

Who won I'm A Celebrity in 2022?

Jill Scott won the final vote on I'm A Celebrity... Get Me Out Of Here! with 57.7 per cent of the public vote, compared with Hollyoaks actor Owen Warner's 42.3%, according to ITV.

Speaking as she was crowned Queen of the Jungle, Jill smiled wildly as she celebrated her win. Owen, who placed second, was also thrilled for her. "I can't believe it. I honestly think I'm going to owe my grandma a lot of money," she said. "We were one big team, I don't think there should be one winner, we couldn't have got through it without all of us."

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What did Jill Scott do after she won I'm A Celebrity?

Lioness Jill was all-smiles when beating Hancock and Owen to the top spot last year and has since gone on to make some exciting moves, including planning her wedding with partner Shelly Unitt. Upon leaving the jungle Jill got straight back to business, previously announcing her retirement from football in 2022. Along with Shelly, the pair own a coffee shop called Boxx2Boxx, something they've continued to operate since Jill's big win.

It was straight after being crowned Queen of the Jungle that sources told The Mirror the MBE holder was "bombarded" with business offers. A source said: "The response has been incredible and Jill will be able to pick and choose what she does next. Her team has been bombarded with offers of TV work and endorsements and all kinds of invites."

I'm A Celebrity's reigning Queen of the Jungle now a year after winningJill Scott was crowned Queen of the Jungle (James Gourley/ITV/REX/Shutterstock)

Shortly after winning, Jill landed her first TV role. She joined Soldier Soldier star Robson Green in his new Weekend Escapes show for a special episode. Speaking about the BBC programme, Robson said: "The North-East holds a special place in my heart and I'm excited to showcase the best it has to offer."

Later it was announced Jill had landed the role of team captain on A League of Their Own, with the news announced as a statue in her honour was unveiled. Right next to the Angel of the North, Sky bosses unveiled the A League of Their Own-branded structure to celebrate the news. "Wow. I can’t believe it. Only important people get statues," Jill admitted when she first saw it. "It looks incredible. It's such a proud moment to be back in the North East. To look at a statue like this – I’ve got goosebumps! It's such a special moment to be here today."

Scott joined host Romesh Ranganathan, captain Jamie Redknapp and panellist Micah Richards on Series 18 of the entertainment show on Sky Max. She added at the time: "It's not everyday you get to unveil a giant statue of yourself. It's massive and incredibly lifelike. I could have done with those few extra feet back in my playing days! But the crowning glory for me? It's got to be seeing Rom and Jamie's faces when this lands on their doorstep in London – the banter has already started and I know I will get a lot of stick when I kick off my tenure as a team captain."

Jill was also awarded with another unique honour after helping the Lionesses to glory at the Euros before her stint on I'm A Celeb. The former Manchester City midfielder now has a pitch named after her, just five miles away from her native of Sunderland. Speaking at the official opening of her pitch in February, Scott said: "It’s an absolute honour to have a site that will be used by so many people in the local community named after me."

In May she was back on ITV for this year's star-studded Soccer Aid. She took Liam Payne's armband for her debut in the charity game and previously told The Mirror it would be an honour to take part, explaining ahead of the match: "To step out onto the pitch as captain. It's a 'pinch me' moment."

She also returned to the screen as a TV pundit for massive football games, including the Euro 2024 qualifying match. It was last month Jill tragically revealed she has become the target of vile trolls who send her abusive messages on social media. Appearing on Loose Women alongside Coleen Nolan, Jane Moore and Judi Love, when asked by Jane if she gets a bit of stick by football fans for commenting on matches, Jill agreed. She told the viewers: "I'd like to say no but yeah you do.

"A soon as it's the men's football, it's like 'well you've never played the men's game so what do you know'. No, but the women brought it home! For me it's just football. Ian Wright does the women's football and he's very good at it. At the end of the day, you're just talking about football whether its male, whether it's female. I try and stay off Twitter. Twitter is usually the one where you do get a lot of negativity. But since being very young and playing a boy's game from a very young age, you used to get the parents shouting if you beat their precious son in a football match."

Before going into camp, Jill admitted she didn't expect to be crowned Queen of the Jungle as she said: "I haven't even thought about winning. I've got a tattoo on my wrist that says, 'Step by step, day by day, mile by mile' – Whitney Houston lyrics, and something I've always lived my life by. Tomorrow is never guaranteed – I'll just always give my all for that day."

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Days before her crowning asked on ITV's Lorraine what it would mean to win the show, Jill's partner Shelly said: "She'd be grateful and humble and ecstatic, but she's not in it to win. It's about the experience. She's been in football 16 years, been tied down to restrictions, and now being able to do something like this… she'll enjoy every minute."

Harry Rutter

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