A petition calling for Ant and Dec to distance themselves from I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here! over claims the show abuses animals has reported been backed by thousands.
PETA has labelled the bushtucker trials that famous contestants have to take on as ‘tired, tacky and cruel’.
The animal rights charity says that 50,000 people have now signed its petition to stop animals being involved in the trials, The Hoot reports.
Celebs including Boy George, Sue Cleaver and Matt Hancock have all entered the Australian bush this week, battling it out to be crowned King or Queen of the Jungle.
The bushtucker trials they typically face involve being locked in confined spaces with thousands of bugs, crawling through rat and snake-infested tunnels, and even eating animal parts, like kangaroo testicles.
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Ant and Dec. Credit: ITV
PETA has now hit out at Ant and Dec for endorsing ‘animal abuse’ in an open letter to the Geordie presenter duo.
They wrote: “And and Dec. The longer you associate yourselves with I’m A Celebrity, the more you send the message to viewers that you think animal abuse is not only acceptable but also entertaining…
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“So please, hang up your hats and get yourselves out of there – for animals’ sake.”
#ImACeleb has been exploiting animals for 20 years – and it must end. We’re calling on @antanddec to stop being complicit in this cruelty and step down from the show. pic.twitter.com/5lSY43GfwS
On the petition page, they added: “During these challenges, celebrity participants perform ghastly acts such as sticking their hands or heads into tanks filled with insects, spiders, mice, rats, or fish; crawling into small spaces on top of masses of rats or insects; and even eating animals and their body parts.
“Killing animals off camera before contestants are pressured into eating them – or using them in tired, tacky, cruel stunts – must end.”
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PETA continued that animals are ‘not there by choice’ and ‘deserve better than to be used in irresponsible and inhumane stunts’.
A spokesperson for I’m A Celebrity said: “We are always fully transparent about our protocols and we have a very strict environmental plan in place on the show. As a production, we comply with all regional and national laws concerning the use of insects, animals and reptiles.
“Welfare and safety is always the primary priority on any of our programmes, and at any Bushtucker trial that features animals, we have qualified and experienced animal handlers on site at all times. We inform the RSPCA NSW of all of our activities on the show and they have an open invitation to attend the site at any time.
“We cannot stress enough that we have rigorous protocols in place to ensure that animals are handled safely at all times, before, during and after any filming has taken place, in compliance with all regional and national laws.”
Featured image: ITV
TV & Showbiz
Amazon Prime Video release trailer for Man United’s treble documentary, ’99’
Danny Jones
Just a fortnight on from Manchester City releasing their trebledocumentary on Netflix, Manchester United have issued a timely reminder that they did it first by releasing a trailer for their own on Amazon Prime Video.
Oh, we’re about to enjoy some serious online debate and not at all petty social media spats over the next few days. Play nice, everyone…
Simply entitled 99, the new documentary series from fellow streaming giants Amazon will cover Man United‘s hallowed 1998/99 season, where they became the first-ever English club in history to win a treble and went down as one of the greatest teams in football history.
Considered the holy trinity of trophies in Europe – winning the first division in your country, the main domestic cup and the Champions League – the true ‘continental’ treble has only ever been completed by eight teams and the Red Devils are clearly looking to capitalise on the same media buzz as City.
Official Trailer: 𝟗𝟗
The story of Man Utd’s remarkable treble-winning season in 1998/99, told by those who were part of it.
— Amazon Prime Video Sport (@primevideosport) April 16, 2024
The first trailer for Amazon’s upcoming documentary about Man United’s treble season?
While Man City are still well and truly basking in the glory of achieving the incredible footballing feat, with the possibility of defending all three titles still very much on the cards,
There have been multiple productions celebrating United’s lifting that same trio of trophies in the past, from The Treble season review film released in 1999 itself to the likes of The Impossible Dream released on its 20th anniversary in 2019 and others, but this latest is set to be the comprehensive look yet.
Showing “never-before-seen footage” and featuring the stories “told by those who were there – including David Beckham, Gary Neville, Paul Scholes, Peter Schmeichel, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and more. documentary” – it promises to serve as the “definitive documentary” of United’s treble season.
Naturally, there’s already plenty of discussion rearing its head over which team was more impressive.
Winning a treble with an entire team you built from scratch including 6 academy players. Tell me again SAF isn’t the goat. https://t.co/VisMWD7vzc
City Won The Treble last year but Guess who is having another documentary made about a 25 years old achievement… Manchester United.. no trophy to celebrate but this one we will stream and enjoy well https://t.co/uqu844liGy
Amazon has scheduled 99 for a 17 May release date, just over a month and a half on from City releasing Together: Treble Winners, not to mention dropping the trailer itself barely a fortnight after the fact.
Although many have been quick to point out that the docuseries omits any discussion of their ongoing FFP charges – with Paddy Power even spoofing it as a Netflix true crime drama – it has received largely positive reviews for its fly-on-the-wall look at one of the best teams in the world.
Set to be fittingly spread over three parts, 99 is also being co-created by three different parties: Ventureland, Gary Neville’s production company, Buzz16.2, and David Beckham’s Leigh-based production house, Studio 99.
The latter were obviously heavily involved in the recent Beckham Netflix series, so fans of that can expect similar vibes from Amazon’s documentary on United’s own treble season and the momentous year that was 1999.
Eurovision 2024 final to be screened live in cinemas across Greater Manchester
Emily Sergeant
The grand final of the Eurovision Song Contest is to be screened live in cinemas across Greater Manchester next month.
Following the success of the first-ever live streams of Europe’s biggest party onto the big screen when it was held on British soil in Liverpool last year, cinemas up and down the UK are set to come together once again to celebrate 2024’s edition of the major night in the music calendar by hosting the ultimate viewing events.
The epic Eurovision Song Contest Grand Final on Saturday 11 May will be broadcast live on BBC One, and streamed into more than 100 cinemas nationwide – including several in Greater Manchester.
Hosted by CinemaLive, the live stream events will allow Eurovision fans to gather under one roof and be “united by music” to share in the unbeatable experience of celebrating the brightest and boldest music party of the year on the big screen.
Eurovision 2024 final to be screened live in cinemas across Greater Manchester / Credit: Cinema Live | Krists Luhaers (via Unsplash)
You may remember that Sweden is hosting Eurovision this year, following the Scandinavian country’s well-deserved victory at the 2023 contest with the song ‘Tattoo’ performed by Loreen.
But thanks to these live stream events, you won’t need to make the trip to Malmö to get in on the action, as you’ll just need to nip down to your nearest participating cinema instead.
Not only will the long-awaited final of the show be streamed live onto the big screen in 5.1 surround sound, but fans are invited to bring their Eurovision parties from the front room to the cinema instead, as organisers say fancy dress is “heavily encouraged” as are enthusiastic sing-alongs too.
The Eurovision Grand Final will be in Cinemas on May 11, 2024! Get your tickets now! https://t.co/4KBeOZ6DT7
Speaking ahead of the event next month, John Travers from distributors CinemaLive, said: “We’re delighted to be working with the BBC to bring Eurovision’s grand final live into cinemas across the UK for the second year in a row.
“We want audiences to enjoy themselves, so come along in groups, get your fancy dress on, and join together to enjoy this incredible occasion on the big screen”.
Tickets are now live and available to book at your local cinema here.
Some of the participating Greater Manchester cinemas include Vue Manchester Printworks, Everymans in Manchester city centre and Altrincham, The Light in Stockport, and Cineworld in Didsbury, among others.
Daisy Jackson -
8th November 2022 
