01 February 2024 , 23:04
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Former Emmerdale star Gemma Oaten has revealed she was snubbed by I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here! - and the rejection rocked her confidence.
The 39-year-old actress played Rachel Breckle on the ITV soap from 2011 until 2015 - and was tipped to appear on the long-running reality show after ditching the ‘dales. She ended up being on the ‘reserve list’ - meaning she would feature on the show if a fellow celeb pulled out or was forced to exit early.
Gemma has openly discussed her past battles with anorexia - but says she was stunned when a psychologist working on I’m A Celeb warned her she would relapse if she took part in the show. Gemma says she was subsequently denied the chance to take part in the reality series.
She went on to explain that she was disappointed by the decision. She opened up about her past to Scott McGlynn's Celebrity Skin Talk podcast. She said: "Unfortunately, what happens you all have to go through like psych tests and stuff. And I had this interview with this psychiatrist who said that if I went into the jungle and lost weight, I would become anorexic again. And I was like 'Um no, that’s not how it works'."
Former Emmerdale star Gemma Oaten says she was snubbed from joining the I'm A Celeb line-up in 2015 (Ken McKay/ITV/REX/Shutterstock)
Gemma played Rachel Breckle on Emmerdale until 2015 (PA / ITV)Gemma continued: "I just felt like l’d been discriminated against because l’d gone through something that was painful, but actually I’m probably one of the most resilient people you’ll ever meet and I’ve been damn good in the jungle, But that was like, that was eight years ago.
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"I think the conversation on mental health is is a lot different now, And people are a lot more like open to that but yeah I was quite burned by that. I’m not gonna lie I’ve never told this story before." The Mirror has contacted ITV for comment.
Last year, during an appearance on BBC Breakfast, Gemma battled back tears as she opened up about her 13 year struggle with anorexia and how her parents helped her set up a charity called SEED - standing for Support and Empathy for people with Eating Disorders - to help others battling the condition. She explained: “My eating disorder developed around the age of nine.
“My mum and dad set up SEED 22 years ago, and I genuinely believe that through doing that, they helped bring me back and saved my life too… We've done a lot of hugging over the last few days. A lot of hugging, a lot of crying, it is quite an emotional thing, we've not seen that before either.”
The SEED website states: "Although Seed is not a Clinical Service, we will do our very best to support, advise and signpost sufferers, carers and loved ones appropriately, by giving people the tools to enable them to cope on a daily basis."
The Mirror has reached out to an ITV spokesperson for comment on this story.
For help and support on eating disorders contact Beat Eating Disorders on 0808 801 0677.