The line-up for I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here 2023 has officially been announced – and this season is shaping up to be a wild one.
All the rumours that have been swirling this week – fuelled by Nigel Farage boarding a flight to Australia – have come true, with this year’s cast of campmates including Jamie-Lynn Spears, Sam Thompson and Grace Dent.
The hit ITV show will be returning to screens on Sunday 19 November, with brand new line-up of celebrities heading to the Australian bush.
Over the coming weeks the famous campmates will battle everything from food rations to the notorious Bushtucker Trials, leaving their usual luxuries far behind.
The madness will once again be overseen by Ant and Dec.
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Also on this year’s I’m A Celebrity 2023 line-up are This Morning‘s Josie Gibson, Fred Sirieix of First Dates fame (which films in Manchester), and YouTuber Nella Rose.
They’ll be joined by soap stars Danielle Harold (from Eastenders) and Nick Picard (Hollyoaks).
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The most controversial addition to the jungle so far is Nigel Farage, with viewers labelling ITV ‘a disgrace‘ for signing him up to the hit show.
The GB News presenter believes he’ll face a number of Bushtucker trials because ‘millions hate him’.
Nigel Farage will controversially join I’m A Celebrity 2023’s line-upJamie-Lynn Spears leads this year’s I’m A Celebrity castFred Sirieix joins the I’m A Celebrity 2023 line-up
Farage said: “I want to test myself. Business, politics, media, I’ve done so many different jobs and generally I have been reasonably successful. But I have never been tested in quite this way. It’s such a mental test and maybe I will discover who I really am.”
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He added: “Given millions hate me, I do expect people will vote for me to do trials! My crime was to stand against an establishment view and I was for many years the lone voice saying Europe wasn’t where we should be, so I have been a little bit demonised. I am hoping those who hate me might hate me a little bit less afterwards. But it’s a gamble.
“And the idea that somehow the things I represent – mean-spirited, small-minded, nasty, the ‘little Englander’ – all those accusations that have been flung at me over the years just aren’t true. If we can dispel some of those misconceptions, then that will be a good thing too.”
Jamie-Lynn Spears, actress, singer, and sister of Britney, is another famous face on this year’s I’m A Celebrity line-up.
She should be a fun watch, admitting she’s ‘absolutely frightened’ of all the creepy crawlies and terrifying heights involved in the show’s Bushtucker Trials.
Hollyoaks legend Nick Pickard will also join I’m A Celebrity’s 2023 line-upI’m A Celebrity 2023’s line-up includes food critic Grace DentMarvin Humes from JLS is heading into the I’m A Celebrity jungle
She said: “Everything I have seen I have been afraid of. Absolutely every one of these trials I am dreading. I haven’t looked at any of them and thought, ‘Oh cool, I could do that one’. This is going to be terrifying.”
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Former Made In Chelsea star Sam Thompson, whose girlfriend Zara McDermott just finished a stint on Strictly Come Dancing, said that he recently tried to test his camping skills but gave up and went home at 10pm… which bodes well for the jungle.
This Morning‘s Josie Gibson has warned she has a gripping fear of creepy crawlies; Channel 4 star Fred Sirieix so afraid of ‘everything’ he’s been having nightmares about the jungle; and YouTuber Nella Rose so frightened of bugs she once ‘moved out’ because a daddy long legs was in her bedroom.
The I’m A Celebrity 2023 line-up is completed by food critic Grace Dent (phobias: horrible people… her and Nigel should be a fun watch); JLS singer Marvin Humes; Eastenders’ Danielle Harold; and long-standing Hollyoaks icon Nick Pickard.
All-girl K-pop powerhouse aespa book MASSIVE Manchester arena show
Danny Jones
All-girl K-pop group, ‘aespa’, are coming to Manchester for some of their largest performances to date as part of a new global tour.
If you know anything about the K-pop scene, you’ll know that most acts are even bigger than you could ever imagine.
Manchester has gained a steady supply of gigs from artists within the genre over the past year or so, and now aespa are the latest to book the AO Arena for a headline show.
Rest assured, these tickets will fly…
aespa SYNK : COMPLæXITY
Catch the LIVE TOUR in Manchester at @AOArena on Thu 14th January 2027!
Register by [Wed 29 Apr at 6AM PT / 8PM CT / 9AM ET] for access to the artist presale: https://t.co/JuWFFMCE8Q
Dubbed the ‘SYNK : Complæxity World Tour’, this follows on from their last live iteration, ‘æXIS LINE’ shows, which began back in August 2025 and, technically, have only just ended this April.
As per an official press release, “Produced by Live Nation, the tour will bring aespa’s acclaimed live production and immersive performance experience to arenas across Asia, North America, Latin America, the UK, and Europe.”
There are actually just two shows in the entirety of Britain (the other being down in the capital), and Manchester has the good fortune of kicking off not only being the first of both, but the inaugural date of the entire European leg.
Consider us honoured.
Made up of a talented quartet – Karina, Giselle, Winter, and Ningning, the rising South Korean stars – this female-led phenomenon is arguably one of the fastest rising acts in the world of K-pop.
Having now been to a couple of these shows for ourselves, we’re starting to understand that these artists might have some of the most passionate followings on the planet.
Kicking off the latest run of performances back in their home country’s capital of Seoul, they’ll hit multiple continents before wrapping things up in Paris.
aespa EU tour dates 2027
14 January – AO Arena, Manchester
16 Jan – London
19 Jan – Amsterdam
22 Jan – Stockholm
24 Jan – Copenhagen
26 Jan – Berlin
29 Jan – Milan
31 Jan – Barcelona
2 February – Paris
If you’re a fan or are interested in throwing your hat in the ring for a first K-pop gig experience, you can register by signing up for their exclusive pre-sale window.
As for general admission, tickets to see aespa at the AO Arena in Manchester will go live at 3pm on Wednesday, 6 May; you can get ready to grab yours HERE.
BBC’s Football Focus to end after more than half a century
Danny Jones
In a fairly shocking bit of broadcasting news, Football Focus is ending after more than half a century on our screens.
Announced on Thursday, 23 April, the once flagship show and weekly TV guide staple for countless British households is set to be cancelled after 52 seasons’ worth of coverage.
With BBC Sport confirming the tough decision in a lengthy statement, the long-running show will be taken off the air at the end of the 2025/26 campaign.
Most programmes like these have seen declining audiences across the board in the era of streaming and digital packages across various platforms, but this is truly the end of an era.
An incredible 52-year journey comes to an end.
Following extensive consideration, BBC Sport has made the difficult decision to say goodbye to Football Focus at the end of this season.
First broadcast in 1974, Football Focus is a testament to the brilliant team who have… pic.twitter.com/bmHQqQdf6J
An official social media post reads: “An incredible 52-year journey comes to an end. Following extensive consideration, BBC Sport has made the difficult decision to say goodbye to Football Focus at the end of this season. “First broadcast in 1974, Football Focus is a testament to the brilliant team who have worked on it over the years and, of course, the audience. The programme has been a staple of the BBC’s football coverage for decades, providing fans with interviews, analysis and stories from across the game ahead of the weekend’s fixtures.
“But changing audience behaviours mean fans are now increasingly consuming football content in different ways, and we need to respond appropriately as we face difficult decisions around how the licence fee is spent.”
Second only really to Match of the Day (MotD), which first began a whole decade prior to its once equally popular spin-off, Gary Lineker, Manish Bhasin, Alex Scott and others have all enjoyed varying periods hosting the regular weekend watch.
While even MotD has seen steadily dipping viewing figures, not just following the Lineker departure/saga, but ever since YouTube highlights and the social media era.
The statement goes on to say: “Fans are accessing discussion, highlights, analysis and news through digital platforms and on-demand viewing, and as viewing habits continue to evolve, it is right that BBC Sport adapts how it brings football coverage to the widest audiences across television, radio, online and to its extensive social platforms. BBC Sport boasts a strong football rights portfolio and is set to significantly expand its digital output this year, growing content across BBC platforms, as well as a bold new slate of exclusive shows on YouTube.
“Featuring fresh formats, big personalities and more frequent, always-on content tailored for digital audiences, the expansion will bring fans closer to the game than ever before, delivering more high-quality, accessible and engaging football coverage at scale. We will release further details on these plans in the coming months.”
Will you miss it? Perhaps more to the point, do you still watch Match of the Day, Soccer Saturday and the like on terrestrial telly?
Daisy Jackson -
13th November 2023 
