ITV I'm A Celeb fails to boost launch ratings past 2022 peak

ITV’s I’m A Celebrity... Get Me Out Of Here! returned on Sunday night with a peak audience of eight million viewers and an average of seven million, matching last year’s launch but falling short of the nine million viewers reached in 2022.

Despite the dip, the episode marked ITV's highest overnight audience of the year for a non-sporting event.

ITV’s Monday announcement confirmed the show’s viewing figures: “The first episode was watched by a peak of eight million viewers, with an average of seven million tuning in.”

While these numbers are on par with last year, ITV acknowledged the decline from 2022’s peak. Nonetheless, the series continues to dominate its time slot, and producers hope the drama will build as the jungle antics heat up.

The action-packed premiere featured the new cast jumping straight into the jungle’s gruelling trials, from cockroach-filled races to capsized canoes and revolting fish-eye cocktails.

Among the contestants, N-Dubz singer Tulisa Contostavlos and Coronation Street’s Alan Halsall stole the show with a hard-fought victory in a heated jungle showdown.

This year’s celebrity line-up includes former Strictly pro Oti Mabuse, McFly’s Danny Jones, boxer Barry McGuigan, Loose Women’s Jane Moore, and BBC Radio 1 presenter Dean McCullough, alongside Coleen Rooney, who reportedly became the show’s highest-paid star ever.

Viewers were quick to single out McCullough as a fan favourite after his hilarious introduction to Coleen Rooney, poking fun at her infamous "Wagatha Christie" trial.

"He’s absolutely hilarious—an early standout!" one fan commented on social media.

GK Barry, one of this year’s TikTok stars, found herself in the spotlight after being chosen by the public for the next Bushtucker Trial, ominously named Vile Volcano.

Despite claims that singer Tulisa Contostavlos is using I’m a Celeb to revamp her career, the former X Factor judge has said she hopes to be out of the entertainment industry entirely by the time she turns 40 in four years time.

“I just want to live as peaceful and happy a life as possible, surrounded by peaceful, happy people who I love and who love me. That’s all I ask,” she said.

I’m A Celebrity... Get Me Out Of Here! air nightly on ITV1 and ITVX at 9pm