Rebekah Vardy isn’t holding back when it comes to her thoughts on Coleen Rooney’s upcoming appearance on I’m a Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here!
WAG Rebekah Vardy isn’t holding back when it comes to Coleen Rooney’s upcoming stint in the jungle.
Scouse star Coleen, 38, is hopeful that appearing on I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here! will give people “a better idea of what kind of person I am” – but Rebekah has a feeling her old nemesis could show a darker side to her wholesome personality as she camps under the stars in Australia.
The wife of former Manchester United striker Wayne Rooney, 38, has been embroiled in a high-profile libel battle with fellow footballer’s wife Rebekah, who previously competed on the ITV reality show in 2017. Ahead of the 2024 series premiering on Sunday, mum-of-five Rebekah has revealed what she really thinks of Coleen’s big TV deal.
“Coleen’s legal team were very dismissive about my reality TV past. They mocked it,” she says in a lengthy interview about Coleen. “So for her to be doing the jungle now, it’s hypocrisy at its finest, isn’t it? I think there was always a plan for reinvention. She stayed out of the public eye for so long.”
Rebekah added:” There were so many stories, negative stories, about Wayne. And I think she wanted to turn things around for herself. We’ve gone from a person about whom her legal team stood up in court and said, ‘She’s such a private individual’, and now this so-called private individual is going on one of the biggest reality TV shows in the UK. I mean, it’s ironic really.”
Speaking to The Sun, Rebekah admitted she will be watching Coleen on the show but doesn’t think the mum-of-four will come across well. She claims Coleen is “quite calculated” with everything that she does and “likes to be the victim” – adding she suspects her rival will enter the jungle with a game plan.
Coleen was confirmed in the I’m A Celebrity 2024 line-up on Monday night, alongside former Strictly Come Dancing star Oti Mabuse, champion boxer Barry McGuigan, N-Dubz band member Tulisa Contostavlos, Coronation Street actor Alan Halsall, Loose Women ’s Jane Moore, and McFly singer Danny Jones.
When asked about the “biggest misconception” she wants to dispel, Coleen said: “I have been in the public eye for over 20 years now and people take what they want from it. I do think people will get a better idea of what kind of person I am. It has been year after year I have been asked to go on a programme, and it’s always been a straight ‘no’.
“Over the years, there have been different things going on in my life and also, my children have been really young. But they are at an age now where I can go away for this length of time. I also feel it’s time to have a challenge for me and do something different. It has taken many, many years but I’m finally doing it. And I have always said, if I was going to do one – then it would be this show. I think it will be good for me.”
Aside from her friends and family, Coleen says she will most miss her phone in the jungle along with a notepad and pen, as she loves “jotting things down”. She also said that she is scared of heights, and explained her best attribute is that she is “quite a focused person”, while her worst – according to Wayne – is her snoring.
Wayne is “supportive”, and “fine” with her being on camera 24/7 in the jungle, but would be unable to commit to the long filming time of the ITV reality show himself. Coleen added: “I am not saying he would go in, but he wouldn’t be completely put off. I haven’t spoken about it with my younger two boys as not many know, but my eldest son told me: ‘Yeah, go for it.’ My second one was a bit more emotional. He thought about me being away for a long length of time, but hopefully that will pass. My parents are happy too that I’m doing something for me.”
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