Ant and Dec

Why I Love… I’m a Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here!

To me, the end of November/beginning of December is I’m a Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here! season. I love this show and to be honest it’s the only reality show I watch religiously every year.

For those of you that don’t know, I’m a Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here! is a reality show where a group of “celebrities” have to camp in the Australian jungle, without any home comforts or contact with the outside world, on basic rations and complete in trials full of creepy crawlies, crocodiles and snakes in order to win food for the camp. I put the word celebrities in quotation marks as they are usually soap stars, musicians, sportspeople and people who you would recognise if you’re under 40.

Saying that though, half the fun of I’m a Celebrity… is that it introduces you to celebrities you’ve never heard of and you fall in love them. A couple of years ago a series featured Superbike World Champion Carl “Foggy” Fogarty who I’d never heard of before, but he soon became my favourite campmate and I was so happy he won.

There’s been some unlikely friendships made in the jungle which are always wonderful. One of my favourites was Star Trek legend George Takei and Joe Swash, a former EastEnders actor when they were in the jungle together ten years ago. The two of them couldn’t have been more different but they bonded so much in the jungle and it was really sweet to see.

This year I actually had heard of nine out of the eleven celebrities which was a bit of a surprise as normally I don’t even know half of them. This series has been a lot of fun, and that’s in part because all of the campmates have gotten on so well and there’s been no arguments. It is kind of entertaining when there’s larger than life characters who clash, but as someone who cries as soon as someone raises their voice at me in real life, I prefer it when everyone gets along.

The thing I like about I’m a Celebrity… is that it’s so funny. I spend every evening for almost three weeks laughing. The campmates antics are hilarious and then the hosts, usually Ant & Dec but this year it’s Holly Willoughby and Dec, are also funny with their quips about what’s been happening in camp and their skits.

Tomorrow it’s the final of this year’s series and the final three are Harry Redknapp, Emily Atack, and John Barrowman. I’m happy they are the final three. I’ve loved John Barrowman since I first saw him in Doctor Who as Captain Jack Harkness so he’s kind of always been my favourite. I’d heard of both Harry Redknapp and Emily Atack before but didn’t know that much about either of them, and they’ve both entertained me over the past few weeks and made me smile. I do love John and Emily’s friendship though, them two together are so sweet and they look like they’re having the best time when they’re goofing around together. Tomorrow night is the final and I would be more than happy with whoever was crowned King or Queen of the Jungle out of those three.

Below is a video compilation of some of the trial’s campmates have faced over the years so you can see what this brilliant show is all about. It’s bonkers but I love it.

L is for Let’s Get Ready to Rhumble by PJ & Duncan aka Ant & Dec

I don’t think this song is one that’s made it internationally and I would be very surprised if Americans have heard of it, but it’s a very British attempt at a hip hop song.

Let’s Get Ready to Rhumble is a bit of a nonsense song, the lyrics don’t make much sense and those that do are corny, but the beat of the song and how catchy the chorus is you can’t help but dance. I just love this song a lot, it’s pure 90’s nostalgia for me.

Originally released in 1994 by PJ & Duncan aka Ant and Dec (the guy’s real names are Ant & Dec but they used their characters names from the show Byker Grove when they attempted to have a music career after leaving the show) it reached number 18 in the UK charts. But! When the duo performed the song on their show Saturday Night Takeaway in 2013, it only went and reached the number one spot! I remember watching the show and I cheering and clapping when the music started because it was so unexpected and so much fun seeing these guys perform their best-known song after about 15 years. They’re entertainment presenters now and have left their attempt at a music career far behind them so seeing them “rap” was very funny.

The video below is of that performance in 2013 because it puts a smile on my face every time I see it, but if you fancy seeing the original music video it’s here.

Ant and Dec and the National Television Awards

The National Television Awards were last night and to be honest it’s my favourite UK television awards show since every single category is voted for by the public.

Ant and Dec went and won the Best Entertainment Presenter for the thirteenth year running beating Keith Lemon, Alan Carr, Dermot O’Leary and Graham Norton. (more…)