I’m a Celeb host Ant McPartlin declares dish ‘worst thing I’ve ever smelt’ on show as Rev Richard Coles gags

I’m a Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here! host Ant McPartlin has claimed that in all his 12 years of hosting, he’d never smelt anything quite so bad as the dish that turned up in a Bushtucker Trial.

As the Rev Richard Coles and Love Island star Maura Higgins were rumbled over their junkyard deception, they learnt that they would be facing the “Terrifying Teddy Bear’s Picnic” in order to win the final six portions of food for the junk food buffet.

For every two dishes the popular duo successfully ate – each one with a picnic-themed name – they would win another portion of food for the junk food buffet.

As the dishes were brought out, Higgins realised she would be eating a “Porked Eye” (two pig’s eyeballs), while Coles was required to wolf down a Crawl-Dorf Salad (five cockroaches and five crickets).

Crossing himself before he began, Coles joked: “For what we are about to receive…”

But out of the further five dishes each they had to tuck into, from blended beachworms to pig’s snout, crocodile anus and goat’s testicle, it was the blended fermented herring (or “Camo-vile Tea”) that seemed to shock the entire camp due to its stench.

Ant McPartlin (left) said the blended fermented herring was the worst thing he’d ever smelt on ‘I’m a Celeb' (ITV)
Ant McPartlin (left) said the blended fermented herring was the worst thing he’d ever smelt on ‘I’m a Celeb' (ITV)

“If hell had a smell, it’s that,” Ant declared. “That’s the worst thing I’ve ever smelt on this show.”

“The taste isn’t great either,” Coles responded.

Coles and Higgins ultimately emerged victorious and won all six portions up for grabs at the junk food buffet, subsequently redeeming themselves in the eyes of their campmates.

Rev Richard Coles managed to avoid throwing up during the ‘Terrifying Teddy Bear’s Picnic' (ITV)
Rev Richard Coles managed to avoid throwing up during the ‘Terrifying Teddy Bear’s Picnic' (ITV)

They were suitably chastened after an Oscar-worthy performance that morning, where Coles, Higgins and Dean McCullough tried to convince the rest of the contestants that they’d been miserable in the junkyard.

“We’re really hungry”, Higgins had claimed, while Coles described “the deprivation, the hardship”.

“They’re not getting a job in Corrie, I can tell you that!” Alan, appearing completely unconvinced, remarked.

McCullough ultimately gave the game away after Coleen Rooney told him: I’m not convinced that you actually are in the junkyard.”

“Wagatha Christie strikes again!” he responded.

After the rest of the camp confirmed the trio had been fibbing, McCollough and Higgins revealed they’d made use of the bubble bath, while Melvin learnt that Higgins and Coles had been tucking into cheese sandwiches while he endured the previous day’s challenge.

Elsewhere, viewers finally got to see what they’d anticipated to be an awkward encounter between Higgins and her new campmate, Barry McGuigan. Higgins was romantically involved with the former boxing pro’s son, Shane, before she appeared on Love Island in 2019.