Scarlett Moffatt has leapt to the defence of I’m A Celebrity… South Africa’s winner amid an ongoing feud between members of the cast. In last night’s episode of the show, Emmerdale star Adam Thomas became the second winner of the ITV series’ spin-off edition. However, Adam seemed quite subdued following a shouting match in which he was cornered by Jimmy Bullard and David Haye – still fuming over a much-discussed argument between Adam and Jimmy. During the ensuing spat, Sinitta and Gemma Collins elected to walk off stage, leaving hosts Ant and Dec to try and defuse the row.
Adam Thomas Crowned Winner Amid Controversy
Waterloo Road star Adam went on to take the crown as I’m a Celebrity’s Ultimate Legend, but it was clear that the bitterness had left a bad taste in his mouth. Unpacking the events of the final afterwards, Scarlett has weighed in on the controversy, describing the upset as ‘really disheartening’ for Adam. Joining presenters Sam Thompson and Kemi Rodgers on I’m A Celebrity… Unpacked Live afterwards, Ashley Roberts had said: ‘I hope Adam enjoys it, I think he’s been through so much, and I just hope that he can take a second, because I feel like he doesn’t feel like he maybe deserves it because he’s won.’ This prompted Scarlett to reply: ‘He does deserve it. It was hard in there, and he was amazing, and he was a friend to us all.’ She continued: ‘It is really disheartening that he didn’t get to have that moment of glory.’
Cast Reactions and Support
The sentiment was echoed by Gemma Collins, who agreed: ‘The best man won!’ Gemma continued: ‘It was positive, like what is such a shame about tonight, I’m just going to tell it how it is. We had such an amazing experience in there. We had a ball. It was an explosive end to what had been a chaos-filled series of the show. Adam’s row with Jimmy and David marked his latest run-in with the former English footballer, after Jimmy had previously refused to take part in a Bushtucker trial. Jimmy’s refusal would have sent them both home, causing Adam to accuse Jimmy of ‘taking the p*ss.’ As tempers flared, Jimmy then called Adam ‘pathetic,’ and demanded to be sent home.
Behind-the-Scenes Drama
During the ensuing fallout, I’m A Celeb bosses then bent the rules, allowing Adam to stay while Jimmy went home. However, it has been claimed that the worst of their argument wasn’t aired, with an insider telling Daily Mail that scenes in which Adam called Jimmy a ‘c***’ were subsequently cut from broadcast. The source said: ‘Adam just completely lost it and went for Jimmy. He called him a c*** and Jimmy believes that he tried to kick him, too,’ later adding that ‘Jimmy’s view is that Adam was vile, vicious and violent, but most of it has been cut out by ITV so the viewers will not see the full extent of his behaviour.’ In a comment to Metro, ITV pushed back. In response to the kicking claims, a spokesperson said: ‘This is categorically not true. Adam did not try to kick Jimmy.’
Additional Conflicts
Over the course of the series, Adam also clashed with boxer David Haye over another Bushtucker Trial. Adam, who had asked to be exempt due to arthritis, found himself on the receiving end of David’s ire as a result. ‘Who gives a sh*t if he doesn’t feel well?’ David had said, adding: ‘He’s a grown-ass man. I don’t like guys who are a bit useless. I hate them useless guys.’ Adam later took to Instagram, where he said that David had ‘broke’ him, and that he was now going to therapy over the situation. Reflecting on his second stint in the jungle for his At Home With The Thomas Bro’s podcast, Adam said: ‘It was an amazing experience, don’t get me wrong and I don’t regret any of it but again, there are moments in there where I just have a bit of a tough time in there with one of the campmates.’ Addressing spats with David, he said that the boxer had apologised, saying that ‘it meant so much to me,’ when they later shared a heart-to-heart.
