Grace Dent has broken her silence several days after leaving the I’m A Celebrity Get Me Out Of Here jungle.
The celebrated food critic has said that the hit ITV show, where famous faces are dropped into the Australian jungle to take on a series of ‘Bushtucker Trials’ to win their meals, ‘showed me that I am physically stronger than I thought’.
In a lengthy statement issued on her Instagram page, Grace thanked her followers for an ‘outpouring of love’ and said that she is ‘overwhelmingly sad right now’.
But she also celebrated in her statement all of the things she achieved in her short stint on I’m A Celeb.
She quit the show earlier this week with fans expressing concern for her mental and physical wellbeing during the episode prior.
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She spoke of cockroaches in her ear canal, mealworms in her bra, and of climbing off the side of a skyscraper.
Grace Dent has spoken about her I’m A Celebrity exit in a lengthy statement. Credit: Instagram @gracedent
Grace also said that the jungle allowed her to tap into a calm mental space and taught her to ‘stay calm, have empathy and that screaming achieves nothing but wasted calories’.
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She wrote that I’m A Celebrity ‘gave me a short, sharp glimpse into the pain some folk worldwide endure’.
Grace Dent signed off her statement with: “My plan is to recover…and when the adrenaline finally ebbs away, to make some serious plans for dinner. Three courses, extra potatoes, definitely pudding. I think I deserve it.”
Dear friends. Thank you for the outpouring of love I’ve received since I was removed on Monday. I am overwhelmingly sad right now, but determined to keep alive in my heart the huge personal breakthroughs I made over the weeks. I spent 15 days without a phone or any contact with loved ones, living much of the time outdoors in a rain forest in very wet weather. It gave me a short, sharp glimpse into the pain some folk worldwide endure. Normal life, forever, will always feel beautiful.
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Until now, I had no idea I could find a mental space where I could calmly climb down the side of a sky scraper and then slide out on a pole, unlocking stars,as the cars below on the street felt the size of ants.
I had no idea it was possible to be shown an American football helmet and be informed I was shortly to be locked in at the neck and filled to the eyebrows with cockroaches, and for me to think ‘OK this is doable, the trick is to breathe’.
For as long as I live, I shall never forget the cockroach that entered my ear canal and the sound of its little feet creeping closer down to my brain. It took us two goes to lure him out. Sat on the grass behind the ‘Scarena’ he finally washed up.
The jungle showed me how quickly I could become blasé about sleeping with hungry rats, noisy toads, moths and Huntsman spiders. It taught me that when you have to sleep close to the enemy the trick is to stay calm, have empathy and that screaming achieves nothing but wasted calories.
The jungle showed me that I am physically stronger than I thought; I can carry a lot of logs and water up hill, build fire and eat hare innards at dawn for breakfast.
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I hope I gave you all a smile. I didn’t go out as I planned or I wanted, but I did what I could, and I did it in a siren red gel manicure without chipping a nail. I didn’t cry when I took off my bra to find a family of mealworms living in the right cup. At some level, this must be an achievement.
My plan is to recover…and when the adrenaline finally ebbs away, to make some serious plans for dinner.
Three courses, extra potatoes, definitely pudding. I think I deserve it.
I love you all and miss my jungle crew. Miss Grace Dent xxx
A tribute festival in memory of Mani from The Stone have been announced
Danny Jones
After plenty of talk and rumours ever since his passing, a tribute festival in memory of Gary ‘Mani’ Mounfield will honour the late great Stone Roses and Primal Scream bass player later this year.
Despite various organisations and regional residents having observed their own memorial services following his death on 20 November 2025, the city and Greater Manchester as a whole made it clear that they wanted to carry out a more dedicated form of remembrance.
And we couldn’t agree more.
Deciding to remember him in the past best way possible – by celebrating one of his greatest loves and legacies: music – ‘Manichester’ festival will be held this spring.
Hosted in partnership with Madchester.com and simply dubbed as “a tribute to a true Manc legend”, names both new, old and current will be joining the inaugural Manichester lineup.
Organised by the website and iconic Manchester streetwear brand GIOGOI, not to mention being “blessed by Mani’s family” directly, artists playing will range from those who were lucky enough to have played with him or, like us all, were simply left inspired by his unforgettable basslines.
As well as a ‘AAA headliner’ still yet to be confirmed, there are some serious legendary names on here, both local and beyond; at the minute, the roster of acts is looking like this:
Manichester 2026 lineup
Cast
Peter Hook (Joy Division, New Order)
The Kowloons
A “specially assembled core band” featuring Aziz Ibrahim (The Stone Roses), Rowetta, Simone Butler (formerly Primal Scream) and Mick Rossi (Slaughter and The Dogs)
Dave McCabe (The Zutons)
Baz Fratelli (The Fratellis)
Zak Starkey (Mantra of the Cosmos)
Steve White (ex-Oasis drummer)
Jon McClure (Reverend and the Makers)
However, as they have teased in the announcement, “that’s just the start”, and with more names incoming, many are already trying to guess who the headliner could be. Some have even suggested Ian Brown himself might get up on the stage…
As per an official statement, key artwork for the event comes from the one and only and equally influential Stone Roses guitarist, John Squire, whose new designs will feature on flyers, limited-edition physical tickets and other promotional materials.
Manichester will take place on Saturday May 30, doors open 2pm.
Most importantly, all the proceeds from the special one-off in memoriam show will go towards Mani’s and Imelda’s twin boys, Gene and George – and who knows? This could be the start of a brand-new annual festival spawned in the name of a very special Mancunian.
GIOGOI added: “Manchester is the best city in the world, and we do things differently here. This is Manchester showing up. This is Madchester showing love. This is ‘Manichester’.“
Taking place on Saturday, 30 May and held at Diecast on Ducie Street in Manchester city centre from 2pm, it’s sure to be a momentous ocassions with thoughts of Mani and his family looming large in everyone’s minds.
A new documentary about football ultras is coming to a Manchester city centre cinema
Danny Jones
A new documentary about football ultras and the world surrounding the sport’s most avid and sometimes controversial fans is coming to a cinema right here in Manchester.
I mean, obviously – it’s the spiritual home of football, after all.
Seriously though, whether you bit or not, Greater Manchester has, is and always will be a region obsessed with the beautiful game, so what better place to screen such a film?
Covering the often crazy and all-consuming nature of ultra culture, the aptly-titled feature-length doc will be shown here in the city centre next month as part of this year’s Manchester Film Festival.
It was previewed last year, but is now set for theatrical release.
ULTRAS is the work of Swedish filmmaker Ragnhild Ekner, who has travelled all over the world in search of understanding these super passionate footy fans.
Herself a die-hard IFK Göteborg supporter, Ekner looks at it not just artistically but as one of their own; she’s another football-obsessive like so many of us all around the globe, making her an ideal person to get across the lifestyle.
Covering matchgoers and punters from the likes of Argentina and Indonesia to Morocco, Italy and more, she covers a total of eight different countries across four continents.
The director and her producers have put things plain and simple for those curious: “This isn’t a critical review, it’s a tribute.”
As mentioned, it also happens to form part of the wider Manchester Film Festival 2026, which is kicking off this week and ends on 29 March.
You can find out what else is on the MFF programme this month down below.
Just some of the faces on show at this year's @mcrfilmfestival. 🎞️
So, if you’re a football fan, a cinephile, or just fancy going along to learn more, ULTRAS will be showing at the Odeon cinema inside Great Northern Warehouse exclusively on Sunday, 22 March from 5:30pm.
It’s also happening on the same day as the Carabao Cup Final between Man City and Newcastle, so if you’re a Red or just not a blue, it’s a very viable bit of alternative football-based entertainment.
Now, speaking of wider football culture, another fervently followed aspect of the people’s game is fashion, especially on the vintage side of things…
Daisy Jackson -
30th November 2023 
