Former England captain Wayne Rooney heads the official line-up for the 2026 series of ITV’s I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here!, which was confirmed on Wednesday, November 11. He and ten other famous faces will enter the jungle camp in Australia when the show returns on Monday, November 16.
What We Know
ITV revealed the full cast of 11 campmates for the show’s 26th series, with Ant McPartlin and Declan Donnelly back as hosts, the BBC reported. The opening episode airs at 9pm on ITV1 and ITVX.
Joining Rooney are:
- Ade Adepitan, Paralympian, TV presenter and documentary maker
- Joanna Page, best known as Stacey in Gavin & Stacey
- Ricky Wilson, frontman of the Kaiser Chiefs
- Sharky, YouTuber and member of Beta Squad
- AJ Odudu, Big Brother presenter
- Mariella Frostrup, broadcaster, author and journalist
- Claire Sweeney, actress known for Brookside and Coronation Street
- Chloe Burrows, Love Island finalist and radio presenter
- Jack Skipper, stand-up comedian
- Leomie Anderson, model and TV personality
The most significant detail of this year’s casting belongs to Adepitan. He will be the first wheelchair user to take part in the programme’s history, and producers are adapting the camp so he can move around it independently, according to the BBC and PinkNews.
Background
For Rooney, the jungle is familiar territory by proxy. His wife, Coleen Rooney, took part in the 2024 series and finished as runner-up, which explains why he talks about finishing the job.
The 41-year-old is one of the most decorated English footballers of his generation. He is Manchester United’s all-time leading scorer and spent years as England’s record goalscorer before Harry Kane overtook him. Since retiring as a player he has managed several clubs and worked as a television pundit. Few players of his stature have signed up for a British reality show at this point in their careers; former England teammate David Beckham, for instance, has opened up to audiences through documentaries rather than entertainment formats.
The rest of the line-up mixes British TV regulars with stars from the online world. Sharky brings a huge YouTube audience, while Burrows and Odudu represent the reality and entertainment presenting circuit that has also produced names such as Maya Jama. Skipper’s casting continues the show’s habit of including a comedian, following stars like Romesh Ranganathan who have built careers between stand-up and TV.
Reactions
Rooney made it clear he is not going in to make up the numbers. “If you’re going in you want to win it,” he said, as reported by the BBC, adding that he would like to bring the title back to the Rooney household. He admitted that snakes and water are not his favourite things, and joked that he had been booked to jump out of a plane three times before “and never made it on the plane.” His biggest fear, he told PinkNews, is “jumping out of a helicopter,” though he hopes to face it in camp.
Adepitan reflected on the importance of his place in the line-up. “It’s never been done before, and it never crossed my mind I would be the first,” he said in a press statement quoted by the BBC.
Chloe Burrows sounded relieved to be on a different kind of reality show. She told PinkNews it would offer “no dating, no bikinis – just massive rats, spiders, and snakes.”
What’s Next
The series launches on Monday, November 16, with the public once again set to vote on who faces the infamous Bushtucker Trials. Late arrivals are a regular feature of the format, and British media have speculated about extra campmates, but ITV has not confirmed any additions to the 11 names so far.
Sources
- BBC News: Wayne Rooney leads I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here! line-up
- PinkNews: I’m A Celebrity makes history as 2026 line-up confirmed by ITV
- Eastern Eye: I’m A Celebrity 2026 line-up in full
- HuffPost UK: I’m A Celebrity Line-Up 2026