I’m A Celeb hosts Ant and Dec left viewers in hysterics after they poked fun at campmate Coleen Rooney’s infamous Wagatha Christie trial just seconds into the new series on Sunday.
The cheeky duo made the very cheeky quip as Dec teased: ‘It’ll be nice for Coleen to face a trial that doesn’t involve Rebekah Vardy‘.
Ant then laughed saying: ‘There will be plenty more [of these jokes]!’ with fans at home rushing to social media branding the pair ‘legends’.
Their trial – which Coleen won – came after a widely-shared social media post in October 2019, in which Coleen said she had carried out a ‘sting operation’ and accused Rebekah of leaking ‘false stories’ about her private life to the press.
Taking to X they wrote: ’28 seconds in, Ant & Dec mention Rebekah Vardy’: ‘Not Dec mentioning Rebekah Vardy already’: ‘Dec’s first quip about Rooney not meeting Vardy’: ‘Straight out the bat from Ant and Dec‘: ‘Dec straight in there with the Vardy jokes’.
I’m A Celeb hosts Ant and Dec left viewers in hysterics after they poked fun at campmate Coleen Rooney’s infamous Wagatha Christie trial just seconds into the new series on Sunday
The cheeky duo made the very cheeky quip as Dec teased: ‘It’ll be nice for Coleen (left) to face a trial that doesn’t involve Rebekah Vardy (right) ‘
The WAG found her time in the jungle off to a difficult start when her and Dean McCullough boat capsized during the first challenge
Rebekah lost the libel case and was ordered to pay up to £1.5million towards Coleen’s legal fees.
The infamous court case was again mentioned later in the show when Dean McCullough called Coleen ‘Wagatha Christie’ in their first encounter.
As the ITV show kicked off this series, Danny Jones, Tulisa, Jane Moore, Dean, and Oti Mabuse had to do the iconic skydive into the jungle.
Meanwhile, Barry McGuigan, GK Barry, Alan Halsall, Coleen, and Melvin Odoom waited at the beach for the other five campmates to join them.
The celebrities doing the sky dive then had to take their turns to pick which celebrity they wanted to compete in a race to the finish line.
Once it was Dean’s choice to pick between Coleen or his Radio 1 colleague Melvin, he said: ‘Melvin, I’m so so sorry! Wagatha Christie you’re coming with me!’.
But the pair got off to a rough start as their boat capsized in the tense first challenge as the 10 celebs were tasked to race down the river on a rowing boat.
Arriving at the bank of the river, they reached a signpost which read: ‘Release a boat to continue the race. Each burrow on the riverbank contains one correct key which will unlock any boat. Choose your boat wisely.’
![Ant then laughed saying: 'There will be plenty more [of these jokes]!' with fans at home rushing to social media branding the pair 'legends'](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/11/17/21/92172505-14093811-Ant_then_laughed_saying_There_will_be_plenty_more_of_these_jokes-m-66_1731879495676.jpg)
Ant then laughed saying: ‘There will be plenty more [of these jokes]!’ with fans at home rushing to social media branding the pair ‘legends’
Rebekah lost the libel case and was ordered to pay up to £1.5million towards Coleen’s legal fees (pictured outside court in 2022)
Taking to X they wrote: ’28 seconds in, Ant & Dec mention Rebekah Vardy’: ‘Not Dec mentioning Rebekah Vardy already’
In order to release a boat, the celebrities had to find a key, hidden inside a Hell Hole on the river bank.
Each Hell Hole had multiple keys inside, as well as some critters along the way. One of the keys unlocked one of the packlocks holding a boat, with the others being decoys which didn’t unlock anything.
Once a pair unlocked a boat, they could immediately begin rowing to their next challenge.
But the BBC Radio 1 host, 32, and WAG, 38, who were Team Yellow, had trouble as their boat began to fill with water and capsize.
Dean said: ‘On the sign it said choose your boat wisely, and now we know why!’
Dean had a bright idea for him and Coleen to block the hole in their boat with his jacket and her scarf, but they quickly started to sink again.
Recalling the race, Dean joked: ‘There is nothing more petrifying than a Barry McGuigan on a mission. We were the Titanic, they were the iceberg and we all know how that story ends!’
Neck and neck, Alan Halsall and Tulisa reached the river bank first, unlocking the final stage, and pulled a tag to let off a flare and win the race, along with the coveted title of first camp leaders.
As the ITV show kicked off this series, Danny Jones, Tulisa, Jane Moore, Dean, and Oti Mabuse had to do the iconic skydive into the jungle.
Meanwhile, Barry McGuigan, GK Barry, Alan Halsall, Coleen, and Melvin Odoom waited at the beach for the other five campmates to join them.
The celebrities doing the sky dive then had to take their turns to pick which celebrity they wanted to compete in a race to the finish line.
Once it was Dean’s choice to pick between Coleen or his Radio 1 colleague Melvin, he said: ‘Melvin, I’m so so sorry! Wagatha Christie you’re coming with me!’
Danny and Barry were team orange, Tulisa and Alan were team red, Jane and GK team green, Dean and Coleen were team yellow and Oti and Melvin were team pink.
Coleen has previously revealed that her plan to publicly share the leaker on Instagram in October 2019, was all her own.
The infamous court case was again mentioned later in the show when Dean McCullough called Coleen ‘Wagatha Christie’ in their first encounter
Once it was Dean’s choice to pick between Coleen or his Radio 1 colleague Melvin, he said: ‘Melvin, I’m so so sorry! Wagatha Christie you’re coming with me!’
Arriving at the bank of the river, they reached a signpost which read: ‘Release a boat to continue the race. Each burrow on the riverbank contains one correct key which will unlock any boat. Choose your boat wisely’
She said: ‘In the night I started thinking about what I was going to do. I just wanted these stories to stop.’
But did she do a classic firing up of the Notes app at 3am?
She explained: ‘No. I like a pen and paper – a pencil and rubber, actually, so I can rub it out. So I started writing what I wanted to say and then the next morning I put it out there. That was the start of something that I would never have expected.’
Coleen added that she didn’t tell a soul what she was about to do. ‘No. [The part] my friends and family were most surprised at me [for was] putting the post up.’
Coleen was awarded costs by the court and £800,000 of the total amount due was payable immediately.
Rebekah was said to have scored one of the worst own goals in British legal history after a High Court judge dismissed her evidence as ‘evasive or implausible’ and accused her of deliberately deleting WhatsApp messages central to the case.
Her agent, Caroline Watt, was also accused of intentionally dropping her phone in the North Sea.
Coleen gave a subtle nod to her Wagatha Christie trial against fellow WAG Rebekah as she prepared to enter the jungle.
The WAG, 38 – who is reportedly being paid £1.5million – spoke in an interview with ITV ahead of taking on the Jungle.
She was asked ‘Aside from your family, who/what else will you miss in camp?’ – to which she answered: ‘Aside from my family and friends, my phone and a pen and notepad. I love jotting things down.’
Previously Coleen has told how she concocted her bombshell Wagatha statement with a pencil, pad and rubber.
Meanwhile Rebekah has propositioned ITV with the idea of getting her latest series so she can confront her rival.
The WAG, 42, headed Down Under herself back in 2017, yet is willing to face the critters again and arrive as a surprise late entry if it means she gets to hatch her ‘revenge plot’ against her rival.
Teasing an epic reunion between the pair, Rebekah told The Sun: ‘If people really want us to meet up before that, then ITV should get me in that jungle as a special guest. What are they scared of? Confrontation? But isn’t that what the show’s all about? It’s about viewing figures.’
Continuing to hit back at Coleen, she added: ‘Coleen’s legal team were very dismissive about my reality TV past. They mocked it. So for her to be doing the jungle now, it’s hypocrisy at its finest, isn’t it?
Coleen gave a subtle nod to her Wagatha Christie trial against fellow WAG Rebekah as she prepared to enter the jungle
She said she ‘loved jotting things down’ after telling how she concocted her bombshell Wagatha statement with a pencil, pad and rubber
Meanwhile Rebekah has propositioned ITV with the idea of getting her latest series so she can confront her rival (pictured on the show in 2017)
‘I think there was always a plan for reinvention. She stayed out of the public eye for so long.’
While Rebekah admitted she will watch Coleen on the show, she believes the wife of Wayne Rooney will have a game plan going in as she described her as ‘quite calculated’.
It is believed Rebekah’s team of lawyers will be on high alert and ready to take action if her archenemy says anything derogatory about her on air.
Meanwhile Rebekah was unveiled as The Sun’s I’m A Celeb columnist on Friday as she joked she hopes Coleen is forced to ‘eat penis or humble pie’ in the I’m A Celebrity jungle.
Rebekah blasted Coleen in a furious rant, admitting she is looking forward to watching Coleen chomp down on some ‘jungle nasties’.
A-listers have previously been forced to eat things like kangaroo testicles, camel toes, grubs, and mouse tails on previous seasons of the grueling competition.
When asked if there is anything particular she would like to watch Coleen eat, she said: ‘Yeah, penis. Or humble pie.
Then when asked if a camel testicle would be the worst thing Wayne Rooney’s wife Coleen has ever had in her mouth, Rebekah said: ‘I don’t know. You have to look at her husband for that one.’
I’M A CELEBRITY 2024: MEET THE ALL STAR LINE UP
OTI MABUSE
Oti Mabuse has already two Strictly glitterballs under her belt
AGE: 34
OCCUPATION: Professional dancer
FAMOUS FOR: Oti is best known for being a professional dancer on the British television series Strictly Come Dancing, which she won in 2019 and 2020.
DANNY JONES
Danny Jones is one of the bookies’ favourites to win this year’s I’m A Celeb
AGE: 38
OCCUPATION: McFly singer
FAMOUS FOR: Danny is one of the lead vocalists and the lead guitarist for pop-rock band McFly.
He is also a coach on The Voice UK.
BARRY MCGUIGAN
Former boxer Barry McGuigan is heading into the jungle
AGE: 63
OCCUPATION: Retired professional boxer
FAMOUS FOR: Barry was nicknamed The Clones Cyclone and held the WBA and lineal featherweight titles from 1985 to 1986.
GK BARRY
GK Barry is a TikTok star who recently joined the ITV family on Loose Women
AGE: 25
OCCUPATION: TikTok star
FAMOUS FOR: Grace is known for her comedic commentary on culture, lifestyle, and fashion. She has over 3.6 million followers and recently joined the Loose Women panel.
DEAN MCCULLOUGH
ITV bosses are hoping Dean McCullough will ruffle feathers in the camp
AGE: 32
OCCUPATION: Radio 1 DJ
FAMOUS FOR: Radio 1 DJ Dean has been signed by I’m A Celeb bosses, in the hope that he will ruffle feathers with his outspoken views.
Earlier this year it was announced Dean would be taking over the BBC Radio 1 Early Breakfast Show, after previously fronting the afternoon slot.
JANE MOORE
Jane is best known as a panellist and anchor of Loose Women
AGE: 62
OCCUPATION: Journalist
FAMOUS FOR: Jane is best known as a panellist and anchor of Loose Women between 1999 and 2002.
She returned as a regular panellist from 2013 onwards.
Jane takes on the challenge following her high-profile split from husband of 20 years, Showbiz agent, Gary Farrow.
MELVIN ODOOM
Melvin was previously courted by I’m A Celeb bosses back in 2021
AGE: 44
OCCUPATION: DJ and TV presenter
FAMOUS FOR: His work on radio. Melvin was previously courted by I’m A Celeb bosses back in 2021, but turned down the offer at the last minute.
He also had a primetime stint on Strictly back in 2016.
COLEEN ROONEY
Reports claim that she has been offered the biggest deal in the show’s history
AGE: 38
OCCUPATION: WAG
FAMOUS FOR: Wagatha Christie case against arch rival Rebekah Vardy.
Reports claim that she has been offered the biggest deal in the show’s history, exceeding Nigel Farage’s £1.5million from last year.
ALAN HALSALL
Alan Halsall is best known for his role as Tyrone Dobbs on Coronation Street
AGE: 42
OCCUPATION: Actor
FAMOUS FOR: Coronation Street actor Alan Halsall was forced to withdraw from I’m A Celeb last year, after undergoing ACL Reconstruction surgery.
Bosses have now convinced the actor to sign up again, and no doubt he will draw in a huge fanbase thanks to his long-running role as Tyrone Dobbs on the soap.
TULISA
Tulisa is making her career comeback after reuniting with N-Dubz last year
AGE: 36
OCCUPATION: Singer and former X Factor judge
FAMOUS FOR: Tulisa reunited with N-Dubz last year for a tour after first finding fame with the band in 2007.
In 2011, she became a judge on The X Factor and went on to launch her debut solo album, The Female Boss.
She released her fourth album with N-Dubz last year.