ITV bosses fear cast of show will be brutally booed at NTAs amid savage backlash
ITV bosses are fearing that the cast and crew of I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here! will be booed at the NTAs due to Matt Hancock being in the show last winter.
The 44-year-old former Health Secretary was a controversial contestant during 22nd season of the long-running ITV reality show last winter - appearing alongside eventual winner Jill Scott and second place star Owen Warner of Hollyoaks fame. And while Matt did end up coming third in the show, his participation sparked more than 1,000 Ofcom complaints.
There were even petitions to have the political banned form taking part in the series - with a group made up of believed family members of Covid victims pressuring ITV not to allow the MP to take part. Now show bosses are fearing that the series will be slammed at the National Television Awards that are due to take place in London on Tuesday.
The show is up for the Bruce Forsyth Entertainment Award and show hosts Ant and Dec stand to win the TV Presenter award.
Matt Hancock was a controversial contestant on I'm A Celeb in 2022 (James Gourley/ITV/REX/Shutterstock)Matt - who was in charge of the UK’s response to the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020, and became engulfed in a scandal in June 2021 when it wieds revealed he had an affair with government advisor Gina Coladangelo - is expected to attend the glitzy event. While campmate have traditionally taken to the stage when I’m A Celeb has won the NTAs Entertainment gong in the past.
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A source told The Sun: “This is a very real headache for ITV because the jungle has won this particular accolade for the past four years and last year’s series was one of the most popular in the show’s history.
ITV bosses fear the I'm A Celeb contestants will be booed at the NTAs if they win (James Gourley/ITV/REX/Shutterstock)“Bosses see this win as proof of I’m A Celebrity’s ongoing popularity but also a reflection of the fact that it returned to form in 2022 after Covid forced it to be filmed in the UK rather than Australia for two years.
“They don’t want that glorious moment on stage to be affected by anything negative, but they also know the strength of feeling against Matt. They realise there’s not a great deal they can do to control the crowd of up to 20,000 people.”
Laughably, ITV bosses don’t seem to be concerned about This Morning drawing the wrong kind of attention after the show was seeped in scandal over the past year. Presenters Holly Willoughby and Phillip Schofield became arguably the most hated presenters on TV last autumn when they skipped the queue to view the late Queen Elizabeth II lying in state in Westminster - and then tried to weasel their way out of an apology.
Phillip Schofield and Holly Willoughby's popularity has imploded since last year (REX)Public opinion about the ghastly duo only intensified this year when it was revealed Phil had engaged in a ‘unwise but not illegal’ affair with a much younger This Morning staff member while married to his wife. Fans of the show were left laughing when it was suggested Holly had no clue the affair had taken place and when Phil claimed he had lied to her about it.
Regardless of the scandals, This Morning is nominated for the Daytime award - while Allison Hammond, who could be tarnished by association with Phil and Holly, is also nominated for TV Presenter at the awards.
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