Reigning King of the Jungle Sam Thompson gave an exclusive tour of the I’m A Celeb camp on Wednesday ahead of the series’ 2024 launch episode.
Sam has won over the nation with his boundless energy and positivity, landing a role as host of this year’s ITV2 spin-off series I’m A Celebrity… Unpacked, alongside Joel Dommett and Kemi Rodgers.
Sam took MailOnline on a tour of the camp, starting at the iconic campfire, where all the bonding takes place and most of the show is filmed.
He then showed off a brand new, more luxurious camp area called the ‘leader’s lodge’, next to the red telephone booth.
The small wooden hut has two single beds and two rocking chairs, which Sam shares: ‘having your back against a chair in the jungle is like gold dust’
Reigning King of the Jungle Sam Thompson gave an exclusive tour of the I’m A Celeb camp on Wednesday ahead of the series’ 2024 launch episode
Sam took MailOnline on a tour of the camp, starting at the iconic campfire, where all the bonding takes place and most of the show is filmed.
Sam also revealed that he suffered a panic attack on his first day at the I’m a Celebrity camp.
Despite winning the ITV show, the reality star, 32, explained how the pressure he felt on his first day as a contestant led to him ‘hyperventilating’.
The former Made in Chelsea star said: ‘I actually had a panic attack on my first day here. I have been a fan of the show for twenty years and I remember sitting on the living room floor watching the show with my parents.
“But when I got here, it was like Jumanji. I had a panic attack because I couldn’t believe I was really here.
“I thought maybe I was way out of my league and that I’m better as a viewer, and I started hyperventilating.”
Sam revealed his tips for winning the series and warned that every year a few contestants come in with a game plan.
He said, “You’ll find out right away if you have a plan. In a place like this you can’t have one, you have to be yourself.
“There are people who come in here and say, ‘If I do this, or I do that, or maybe if I get one of the trials, I can do this and get airtime,’ then it goes right out the window. when they get here, you will be discovered immediately.
Sam also revealed that he suffered a panic attack on his first day at the I’m a Celebrity camp
He showed a completely new, more luxurious camp area, the ‘leader’s lodge’, next to the red telephone box
Despite winning the ITV show, the reality star, 32, explained how the pressure he felt on his first day as a contestant led to him ‘hyperventilating’.
He said: ‘I had a panic attack because I couldn’t believe I was actually here. “I thought maybe I’m way out of my depth and better as a viewer and I started hyperventilating.”
Sam revealed his tips for winning the series and warned that every year a few contestants come in with a game plan (pictured with Tony Bellew)
“I would say to anyone who wants to go far, it will be the person who lives the experience.”
Sam, who has been in a relationship with Strictly’s Zara McDermott for five years, praised the strong female line-up this year and said it will be a queen crowned on this series.
Confirmed to be heading into the Jungle include Wagatha Christie’s Coleen Rooney and NDubz’s Tulisa Contostavlos, while Love Island’s Maura Higgins is tipped as a late arrival.
It comes after Sam also admitted he rushed straight to the doctors after securing his new role on spin-off show I’m A Celebrity.
However, the star explained that before catching his flight to Australia, he visited the doctor to request some sleeping pills to aid the chaotic schedule due to the time difference between Australia and Britain.
Leading this year’s entrants is Coleen Rooney, who has given up her WAG glamor for the famous jungle outfit as this year’s highest-paid signing
I’m A Celebrity… Unpacked is filmed on UK time, meaning he goes to bed at 4pm and wakes up at midnight to go to work.
Speaking on his podcast Staying Relevant with Pete Wicks, Sam explained: ‘The timing is quite tricky because we’re obviously live on UK time. So in Australia we go to bed at 4pm every day and wake up at midnight. That’s going to be wild.’
Pete added: ‘You don’t deal well with change and what Sam said to me when he told me last week is, “I’ve just been to the doctor and I’ve got 24 sleeping pills.”
He continued, “That was the first thing you did. He literally came out of the meeting with ITV or on the phone and went straight to the doctor and said, ‘I need pills’.”