The I'm A Celeb line up for 2024 has been announced and while it's nearly time to tune in to watch 10 celebrities take on the bugs and Bushtucker trials, who will be crowned the King or Queen of the jungle this year is all to fight for.
Professional dancer Oti Mabuse may be best known for winning Strictly Come Dancing two years in a row, but her closenesss to one particular soap star also got tongues wagging. As she prepares to face her fear of snakes in The Im A Celeb jungle, The Mirror takes a look at her love life, family and affection for one time dance partner, which seemed to go further than friendship.
Winning the glitterball trophy in 2019, was a huge achievement for professional ballroom dancer Oti and her dance partner Kelvin Fletcher but it was their closeness and affection for each other that had people talking much after they'd won the show. The ex Emmerdale soap star was snapped with his hand placed on the small of Oti Mabuse's back as he guided her to the door of a hotel.
It was the second night in a row that they'd been photographed enjoying late night drinks together back in 2020 and it certainly got the rumour mill swirling. But, although Kelvin's wife actress Liz Marsland unfollowed her husband on Instagram shortly after and was pictured without her wedding ring the next day, the pair denied any romantic involvement insisting they were just friends.
And although Oti is married to Romanian dancer Marius Iepure and has a baby daughter she certainly seems closer to Kelvin than any of her previous celebrity partners. However, a friend told the Mail: "They were just meeting up as friends for an hour," while another added "Kelvin is a happily married man and Oti is a happily married woman, there is zero going on."
Leading up to her time in the jungle, Oti said it's going to be hard not seeing her daughter while she's over in Australia but she is also the reason why she is taking on the challenge.
“Now I have had my baby daughter, I want to get back to the adventurous and fun Oti. I feel ready for a change and doing something completely different. I will have no make-up, concealer, lashes – it’s going to be nice to be laid back. Of course not seeing my daughter is going to be hard. She is going to be one of my biggest motivators."
Meanwhile, she has also shared what she thinks are her best and worst attributes: "I think I have a good listening ear. My worst? I can be quite loud – but unintentionally. And if I get bored, I am even more energetic."
Only time will tell whether she has what it takes to be crowned Queen of the Jungle.
I'm A Celebrity starts on ITV tonight at 9pm.
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