The Capitalist: The politicians who almost made it onto I’m a Celebrity
Angela Rayner? Ed Balls? Michael Gove? We spill the beans on who almost made it into the I’m a Celebrity jungle in this week’s edition of The Capitalist
I’M A POLITICIAN… GET ME OUT OF HERE
It’s not unusual for MPs to do whatever they can to avoid weekends in their own constituency, but only the truly desperate trek all the way to the Australian jungle. Nigel Farage, Matt Hancock, Nadine Dorries, Lembit Opik, Edwina Currie – filling the backbenches from the outback has a long and ignoble history and, according to rumour, this year it was former Labour darling Angela Rayner who almost joined the ranks.
Speaking on The Rest is Entertainment podcast, journalist Marina Hyde said the former Labour deputy leader was “very far” into talks to join the 2025 lineup, but pulled out last minute after it was “made clear” she would not have a way back to frontline politics if she went on the show.
Arguably, it could have been her fast track, and not just because the fee could have helped in her complicated tax arrangements. Former No 10 spinner-in-chief Giles Kenningham told The Capitalist the jungle would have been a savvy political move for the say-it-how-it-is MP, calling the show the “perfect medium for plain-speaking politicians”. Additionally, a potential impending leadership bid made public profile an even more coveted asset: “All politicians crave is name recognition. Beyond Westminster, how many politicians are known by their first name? Boris, maybe Nigel Farage?”
Speaking of, two years on from his own controversial entry into the jungle, which saw the Reform leader tucking into sheep udder amid a viewership boycott, the Reform leader told The Capitalist he “would recommend” other politicians to go on the show and was “pleased” he had done it. Said to have made jungle history with a record £1.5m payday, The Capitalist doesn’t doubt the latter.
ITV, on the other hand, seems to have regrets. According to Richard Osmon, Ant and Dec swore off having politicians on the show after Farage’s entry saw viewership plummet. Clearly, with Rayner’s near entry this year, they’re not *too* wedded to that idea, though.
In terms of jungles that could have been, according to whispers, Ed Balls has repeatedly been approached to go into the jungle – in particularly sad news for his maverick namesake Ed Davey, who was reportedly rejected from the show just this year despite his unsurprising enthusiasm to appear. The Capitalist was also told Michael Gove had turned down multiple offers to appear on the show, though the now Spectator editor dismissed the claim – “Sadly not!” – when contacted by Morning Wire.
Meanwhile, Edwina Currie told The Capitalist she for one was “quite glad to see there are no pols in this year’s I’m a Celeb – I think we’ve all got rather fed up with them”, though admitted she enjoyed her own stint in the jungle in 2014.
PIZZA WITH A SIDE OF POLITICS
Into politics and pizza? Boy do we have a recommendation for you. Today from 1pm, Bad Boy Pizza at Seven Dials Market in Covent Garden will be slashing the price of a slice to just 71p as part of an anti-tax campaign – delicious. The pizza slices, along with 75 other cut-price dishes at the market, are being sold at the exact amount pocketed by vendors after costs, VAT and tax in a bid to show the struggles currently faced by the hospitality industry ahead of next week’s Budget. Other bargains on offer will include bao boxes for £1, cacio e pepe for £1.50 and chicken sandos for £2.40. Be fast though, prices will jump right back up to their £10+ usual after 60 minutes – they wouldn’t want to labour the point.
SCOOP!
To the Nina restaurant in Marylebone, where OpenTable was hosting a dinner about dining trends in 2026, to which The Capitalist arrived hungry – not only for their famed duck ragu, but for the booking service’s hot takes. It turned out no trends would be revealed though, despite the rather misleading invitation. When pressed, a member of the team said that “dining out” had seen a rise, and that “group dining” was going to be big next year. You read it here first.
TO THE RACES
It is The Capitalist’s favourite kind of evening when four Michelin starred chefs cook for us all at once. That is exactly what happened at this week’s Ascot 2026 preview at Quaglino’s, where Country Life editor Mark Hedges was left gasping after his glass of still wine just wouldn’t turn up (he’d made a special request to break away from the endless bubbly, to no avail). Raymond Blanc OBE certainly did show up, replete with a preview of his tasty seafood and servings of his unwoke humour about sexy girls, dished out liberally during a panel with Sam Holland, brother of Spider-Man actor Tom. Angela Hartnett was far too busy to show up; maybe she’d heard Blanc would be there.