I'm A Celeb 'feud' brewing as fans insist Ant McPartlin 'can't stand' contestant

Dean McCullough's tears have been sneered at by some celebrities who insisted he "wasn't scared" when he was asked to role-play a mummified body and get buried up to the thigh in sand while having meal-worms thrown into his make-shift "sarcophagus".

There's been even worse to come for the tearful I'm A Celebrity contestant, who couldn't stand being submerged in sand, as he seemed to receive a very icy rebuttal from Ant McPartlin on tonight's episode. The BBC Radio 1 star, who was nominated for a further trial, exactly as fans had predicted, attempted to crack a joke to relieve the tension.

Turning to Ant and Dec, he exclaimed: "Well, well, well. We need to stop meeting like this. I've told you I didn't want another date!" While Declan Donnelly gamely laughed along, Ant gave a blank stare in his direction instead.

Fans took to social media to address the apparent snub, with one writing: "Ant hates Dean so much omg his face says it all." A second agreed: "Ant can’t stand Dean. you can tell."

A third viewer chimed in: "Ant literally looks like he hates Dean." Meanwhile, poor Dean's attentions might be more focused on the horrors of the trial ahead, after being nominated for the terrifying Jack and the Screamstalk trial.

Tulisa made an unsuccessful attempt to reassure him, insisting that the trial wouldn't necessarily be "critter-related".

Fortunately for her, she's exempt for "medical reasons" - and the public voted Dean to take on the responsibility.

The BBC star has already attracted negative attention for being too theatrical during previous trials, as some refuse to believe that he's scared.

He screamed, cried and almost hyperventilated his way through the infamous sarcophagus trial, prompting Strictly pro Ola Jordan and fellow dance champ husband James Jordan to debate on Twitter whether he was "acting".

Ola claimed: "I don’t believe one bit that he was scared of that #ImACeleb."

James then shot back: "I’m sure he’s a lovely guy but needs to work on his acting skills massively otherwise he will come across a bit fake as he’s definitely trying to play the game."

Dean, who recently opened up about his battle with "hidden homelessness", opted out of the trial after just two stars, yelling the code-word, "I'm A Celebrity, Get Me Out Of Here!" as he begged to be released.

The decision made him less than popular with his hungry campmates, who'd been struggling alongside him in the jungle - and now fans are certain that Ant is acting frosty too.